PDF Accessibility Guide — Adobe Acrobat Pro

♿
NEO A&M College — Accessibility & Document Tools
PDF Accessibility Guide — Adobe Acrobat Pro
Step-by-step guide to creating and remediating accessible PDF documents using Adobe Acrobat Pro for ADA and Section 508 compliance.
📋 Before You Begin
  • ✅ Adobe Acrobat Pro installed on your computer
  • ✅ A PDF document to check or remediate
  • ✅ Optionally, the source document (Word, PowerPoint, etc.) for best results when fixing accessibility issues
  • ✅ A stable internet connection (for external tools like WebAIM Contrast Checker)
  • ⏱️ Estimated time: 15–45 minutes depending on document complexity
⚖️ Why PDF Accessibility Matters

Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) require that electronic documents be accessible to people with disabilities. An inaccessible PDF may block users who rely on screen readers, keyboard navigation, or other assistive technologies from accessing your content.

🔍 Step 1 — Run the Accessibility Checker ⏱️ ~2 min  |  Adobe Acrobat Pro Required
  1. Open your PDF in Adobe Acrobat Pro.
  2. Go to All Tools (or the Tools panel) and select Accessibility.
  3. Click Accessibility Check (also called Full Check).
  4. In the dialog box, ensure all categories are checked, then click Start Checking.
  5. Review the results in the Accessibility Checker panel on the left.
  6. Items marked with a red X indicate failures that must be fixed.
💡 Tip: Run the Accessibility Checker first before making any changes — this gives you a complete list of all issues to fix so you can work through them systematically.

📄 Step 2 — Set Document Properties ⏱️ ~3 min
  1. Go to File > Properties (or press Ctrl+D).
  2. Click the Description tab and fill in the Title field with a meaningful document title.
  3. Click the Initial View tab. Under Window Options, set Show to Document Title (instead of File Name).
  4. Click the Advanced tab and set the Language to English (US).
  5. Click OK to save.
💡 Tip: Setting a meaningful document title is one of the most important steps — screen readers announce the title when the document is opened, so it should clearly describe the document's content.

🏷️ Step 3 — Add or Fix Tags ⏱️ ~5–15 min

Tags define the document structure (headings, paragraphs, lists, etc.) and are essential for screen readers.

  1. Open the Tags panel: go to View > Show/Hide > Navigation Panes > Tags.
  2. If the document has no tags, go to Accessibility > Autotag Document.
  3. Review the tag tree and correct any misidentified tags (e.g., body text incorrectly tagged as a heading).
  4. Use the Reading Order tool to verify and adjust the order in which content is read by assistive technology.
⚠️ Note: Auto-tagging is only a starting point and may require manual corrections. Always review the tag tree after auto-tagging to ensure accuracy.

🖼️ Step 4 — Add Alternative Text to Images ⏱️ ~3–10 min
  1. Right-click on an image in the document.
  2. Select Edit Alt Text.
  3. Enter a meaningful description of the image in the Alternate Text field.
  4. If the image is purely decorative, check Decorative figure to mark it as an artifact.
  5. Click Save Alt Text.
💡 Tip: Good alt text describes the purpose or content of the image concisely (1–2 sentences). Avoid starting with "Image of..." or "Picture of..." — screen readers already announce it as an image.

📖 Step 5 — Fix Reading Order ⏱️ ~5–10 min
  1. Go to Accessibility > Reading Order (or use the Reading Order tool in the Accessibility panel).
  2. The tool displays numbered blocks showing the reading sequence.
  3. To change the reading order, drag and drop elements in the Order panel, or use the Tags panel to rearrange tags.
⚠️ Note: Reading order issues are common in multi-column layouts and documents with sidebars or text boxes. Always verify the logical reading flow matches what a sighted user would read.

🔖 Step 6 — Add Bookmarks ⏱️ ~3–5 min  |  Required for PDFs > 9 pages

Bookmarks help users navigate long documents and are required for PDFs longer than 9 pages.

  1. Open the Bookmarks panel: go to View > Show/Hide > Navigation Panes > Bookmarks.
  2. To auto-generate bookmarks from headings, go to Tools > Edit PDF > More > Add Bookmarks from Headings.
  3. Verify that bookmark names are descriptive and logical.
💡 Tip: If your document was created from a properly structured Word file with heading styles, bookmarks will auto-generate accurately and save significant time.

🎨 Step 7 — Check Color Contrast ⏱️ ~3–5 min  |  WCAG 2.1 AA

Text must have sufficient color contrast against its background to be readable. Minimum ratios per WCAG 2.1 AA:

  • 4.5:1 — Normal text
  • 3:1 — Large text (18pt+ or 14pt+ bold)
  1. Use a tool like the WebAIM Contrast Checker to verify color contrast ratios.
  2. If contrast is insufficient, edit the source document and re-export the PDF.
⚠️ Note: Color contrast issues must be fixed in the original source document (Word, PowerPoint, etc.) — they cannot be corrected directly inside Adobe Acrobat Pro.

📊 Step 8 — Verify Tables Are Tagged Correctly ⏱️ ~3–5 min
  1. Open the Tags panel and locate table elements (<Table>, <TR>, <TH>, <TD>).
  2. Ensure header cells are tagged as <TH> (Table Header), not <TD>.
  3. Right-click on a <TH> tag and select Properties to set the Scope attribute (Column or Row).
💡 Tip: Complex tables with merged cells are particularly difficult to make accessible. Whenever possible, simplify table structure in the source document before converting to PDF.

✅ Step 9 — Re-run the Accessibility Checker ⏱️ ~2 min
  1. After making corrections, run the Accessibility Checker again to verify all issues have been resolved.
  2. Repeat the remediation steps until no failures remain.
💡 Tip: Aim for zero failures in the Accessibility Checker before saving the final version. Warnings are acceptable but failures must all be resolved to meet ADA compliance.

💾 Step 10 — Save the Accessible PDF ⏱️ ~1 min
  1. Go to File > Save As.
  2. Choose a location and save the file.
  3. Optionally, save as a PDF/UA (Universal Accessibility) compliant file for the highest level of accessibility conformance.
💡 Tip: Use Save As rather than Save to avoid overwriting the original. Keep both the original and the accessible version for your records.

🛠️ Common Accessibility Issues & Fixes
Issue Fix
Document is not tagged Run Autotag Document, then manually review and fix tags.
Missing document title Add title via File > Properties > Description.
Images missing alt text Right-click image > Edit Alt Text and add a description.
Incorrect reading order Use the Reading Order tool or Tags panel to reorder content.
Tables not accessible Ensure header cells are tagged as <TH> with correct scope set.
No bookmarks in long document Add bookmarks from the Bookmarks panel or via Edit PDF.
Scanned PDF (image-based) Use Acrobat's OCR: Tools > Scan & OCR > Recognize Text.

📞 Still Need Help?

If you encounter any issues not covered in this guide, please contact the NEO A&M College IT Help Desk:

📞 Phone: (918) 540-6099
📧 Email: neosupport@neo.edu
🏢 Walk-in: I.T. Services, Library/Administration Building, 2nd Floor, Room 216
🕐 Hours: Monday – Friday, 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM
Print Article