Scan a PDF for accessibility

• Open the file in Adobe Pro

• In the Search tools  column on the right, type in accessibility 

• Click the Accessibility Check  tool

• Make sure the following options are selected and click Start Checking :

Open

Accessibility checker options in Adobe Pro

• In the Accessibility Checker  panel on the left, expand all dropdowns where an error is indicated

Open

Accessibility checker column in Adobe Pro

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  • Most errors can be fixed by right-clicking on the error and clicking Fix 

Common errors and how to fix them

Document: Bookmarks - failed

• Right-click on the error message and click Fix 

• A dialogue box will appear

• Click Select All  to highlight all the bookmarks in the document

• Click OK 

Alternate Text: Figures alternate text - failed

All images must have alternate text describing it.  This is for screen readers to read for people navigating the internet and documents who may be visually impaired.

• Right-click on the error message and click Fix 

  • Adobe will highlight the image in blue and a Set Alternate Text  dialogue box will appear

• Enter in text describing the image and click Save & Close 

Tables: Headers - failed

• Right-click on the element causing the error and click Show in Tags Panel 

  • Adobe will highlight the element with a green box

• Adobe is reading this element as a Table 

  • To meet WCAG standards, all tables must have table headers.  However, this element can be refactored as a Paragraph 

  • Expand the Table  element and all elements under it until you come to the content.  Adobe will place a magenta border around the content:

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  • Right-click on the element and go to Properties 

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  • An Object Properties  dialogue box will appear.  Select the appropriate element from the dropdown box:

Note: The element you select will not always be a paragraph.  This is for demonstration purposes only.

• Follow these steps for the remaining elements

• When you're done, go to the Accessibility panel, and click Check Again  to clear the accessibility error

Headings: Appropriate nesting - Failed

Headers must follow the order of h1, h2, h3, h4, h5, h6 .  An h1  header must be followed by an h2 , an h2  must be followed by an h3 , and so on.

• Right-click on the element causing the error and click Show in Tags Panel 

  • Adobe will highlight the element with a green box

• In the tags panel, we see this element is an h3 .  Immediately above it is an h1 .  The element is not following the correct order and must be refactored as an h2 

  • Right-click on the h3  and go to Properties 

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  • An Object Properties  dialogue box will appear

  • Set the heading level to to Heading level 2  and click Close 

• Right-click on the element again in the Accessibility panel and click Check Again  to clear the error

Resources

• https://webaim.org/techniques/acrobat/acrobat

• https://helpx.adobe.com/acrobat/using/create-verify-pdf-accessibility.html