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Creating Accessible PDFs

There are a few easy steps that you can take when exporting a Word doc to PDF that will make the end result more accessible. You must ensure that the end result contains text that you can highlight on screen: an image PDF (a snapshot or scanned image of your document) is not at all accessible.

Prior to continuing though, ask yourself do you really have to convert a Word doc to a PDF?

  • PDFs are not an accessible format and can cause issues for screen readers (particularly in relation to reading order). 
  • .doc(x) files support password-protection, just like PDFs.
  • Sharing editable or read-only files via OneDrive is easy for rapid updating and better collaboration. For instance, if you share a read-only link to the web, it updates automatically when you edit the document. If you upload a PDF instead, each time it would reqiure updating you would need to a) edit the source document, b) convert to PDF then finally c) login and upload to SiteManager.

In Microsoft Word (Windows):

  1. Do not print to PDF. This method will not preserve the document structure and will result in a PDF document with no tag structure.
  2. Select 'Save As' in the file tab.
  3. Select the location you want your file to be saved at, i.e.: Desktop, Documents folder
  4. Select 'PDF' from the 'Save as Type' Drop down menu.
  5. Click the Options button below the drop down menu.
  6. Check the box next to the 'ISO 19005-1 Compliant (PDF/A)' and press OK.
  7. Save your file.

In Microsoft Word (Mac):

  1. Do not print to PDF
  2. Click 'File' tab and select 'Save A Copy'.
  3. Select the location you want to save your file (i.e. Desktop, Documents folder, or other location)
  4. Select 'PDF' from the 'Save as' Type drop-down menu.
  5. Select the button next to 'Best for electronic distribution and accessibility'
  6. Click 'Export'.

Accessible PDFs FAQs

This list is not exhaustive

What does accessibility in PDFs involve?

An international working group of the PDF Association has formulated five basic requirements (aka "Fundamental Techniques") that apply to every accessible PDF: 

Basic Requirement 1: The technical rules for tagged PDFs are complied with (ISO 14289).

Basic Requirement 2: The content is machine readable (so that it can be output in alternate formats (e.g. braille, audio) if required.

Basic Requirement 3: Distinguish between real content and artifacts.
PDFs have two categories of content elements:

1. Real content (i.e. important for understanding the document).

2. Artifacts (graphics objects or other markings that are not part of the authored content - e.g. lines, header/footer content, decorative images).

Each type of content must be tagged as one or the other, so that assistive technology knows what it can safely ignore and what it cannot.

Basic Requirement 4: Logical Content Sequence.
Assistive technology needs to know the logical content order (e.g. which column to read first) so that it can be presented to the user in the order in which the author intended.

Basic Requirement 5: Appropriate Semantics.
The PDF must provide information, important for understanding, that would otherwise only be conveyed by the visual appearance (e.g. layout, font size, font colour). For example, these 5 basic requirements were indented to indicate that they are all related content items.

What is a PDF Accessibility Checker?

  • A PDF Accessibility Checker is used to identify any accessibility issues in a PDF.
  • The Accessibility Checker in Adobe Acrobat Pro does not check compliance with any specific current Accessibility regulations or standards. 
  • The independent checker PAC 2024 PDF Accessibility Checker, checks for WCAG Compliance (Click on the 'WCAG' tab to check compliance issues with your PDF).
  • The use of PDF Checkers may show compliance to the standards but to ensure your document is fully accessible, you should test with multiple assistive technologies (not just screen readers).
  • All PDFs should be checked using an independent checker that will check against the standards mentioned below before uploading it to the website.

Why are PDFs not recommended?

  • There is no fundamental need for a PDF, after extensive testing of PDFs we have found that they are very difficult to make accessible and remediation can be both tedious and time consuming.
  • If at all possible we would recommend that you use the CMS for content on the web, ISS has built most accessibility requirements into the CMS, so it happens automatically.
  • If you still wish to include a document you can link any Microsoft 365 documents in your website and they remain accessible.
  • Security settings on a PDF (such as settings to stop the PDF being copied, printed, extracted, commented on, or edited) make the PDF incompatible with screen readers, which must be able to copy / extract the document’s text to convert it to speech.

Why should I create an Accessible source document

  • Aside from us being obliged and legislated to meet these requirements as per the point above, an inaccessible PDF prevents a large proportion of people from reading it. 
  • At least 1 in 7 of our site visitors will use assistive technology to make our content accessible.  This number will not include people with invisible disabilities such as low vision, dyslexia and others. 
  • By taking the steps to make your PDF accessible, you are reaching a larger audience. 
  • Depending on the content within your PDF this could be a time-consuming exercise but it is our obligation to meet the required legislation for accessible documents.
  • An accessibile PDF may appear the same as an inaccessible one, but users of assistive technology will have difficulty navigating an inaccessible PDF.
  • To create an accessible source document, using Microsoft Word, see our guide to Making Accessible Word Documents.

What standards/legislation do we need to be compliant with?

  • The University is obligated to meet Irish and European legislation for Accessibility on the Web.  At a minimum we have to meet Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG), Level A & Level AA Success Criteria.
  • The University of Galway website is monitored by the NDA (National Disability Authority) for any breach of legislation, any documents found to be non-compliant will need to be remedied by the user or removed from the website.
  • We also need to be aware of the University of Galway Universal Design & Accessibility Policy - QA182.  As stated in the policy we must endeavour that information provided by the University (e.g. website, admissions, policies, annual reports, teaching and learning materials) is universally designed and accessible to people regardless of the age or ability.
  • The policy also states that the procurement of goods, products and services by the Univerity should seek to address Universal Design and accessibility, and ensure they are in compliance with section 27 of the Disability Act 2005, relevant EU Law and the EU Web Directive 2016. 
  • Procured PDFs from third party designers need to be accessible and it is your responsibility to ensure that they are. 

How should I save my document as a PDF to retain accessibility features?

  • Never use 'Print to PDF' - this ignores the source document's accessibility settings.  Instead, use the correct export method for your version of MS Office.
  • There are a number of options to save your file as a PDF, we recommend the Save a Copy option as this works for both Adobe Free or Adobe Pro. Using this option allows you to set up accessible options when saving.
  • With Adobe Acrobat Pro you can also Click on the Acrobat tab in Word, set your preferences for accessibility options, and Create PDF.

How difficult is it to make a PDF accessible?

  • In short, it is difficult to make a PDF accessible, requiring time to complete remedial work, particularly if you are working with an existing PDF which did not originate from an accessible source document.
  • Documents that consist of text only tend to be the easiest to convert to PDF as they may not require a lot of remedial action.
  • Documents that are media-rich, brochures, prospectus etc. are more challenging to remediate due to the different types of content they contain. 
  • Creating an accessible source document is likely to require less remedial work but some accessibility features may be lost when converting to a PDF. 
  • Avoid editing a PDF using the 'Edit PDF' feature in Adobe Acrobat Pro as this can create additional issues with the accessibility of a PDF. The tag tree is affected by changes and must be checked it is still in a logical order and may require a complete re-tagging which can be very time consuming.
  • Save often when remediating a PDF, in particular any manual modification to the tag tree, can have unpredictable results.  It helps to have an earlier version to return to should you wish to start remediation from a previous point.

How can I make a PDF accessible if I need to use one?

  • Ensuring that you made your source document accessible is a good start but does not guarantee further remediation will not be needed.
  • Use the tools provided within Word to create any specific formatting you need ensures that the document will have the associated accessible features.  For example, Heading styles, Bullets, Tables, Headers and Footers etc.
  • Any Colour Contrast issues need to be detected and remediated in your source document before converting to a PDF.  You will not be able to correct issues with Colour Contrast in a PDF.
  • You will need Adobe Acrobat Pro to fix any accessibility errors introduced by the PDF conversion. 
  • You will also need to use an independent checker such as PAC 2024 - PDF Accessibility Checker.
  • Always remember, if you need to update/change information within a PDF, you will need to update your source document and convert to PDF again. Any accessibility fixes you made in Acrobat, the last time you converted to PDF, will need to be repeated for this latest version of your PDF
  • To ensure you don't miss important steps, follow our Guide for making your PDF Accessible, below.

 

Guide for making your PDF accessible

  • Guide on Making your PDF Accessible.
  • This guide will walk you through the steps needed to check the accessibility of your PDF document using Adobe Acrobat Pro and the PAC 2024 PDF Accessibility Checker.
  • The information within the document specifically pertains to the use of Adobe Acrobat Pro which is available through the purchase of a subscription licence.
  • Both Adobe Acrobat and the PAC 2024 PDF Accessibility Checker mentioned on the website and within the document are third party systems for which the Web Team are unable to provide support.
  • The steps within the document are based on using a Microsoft 365 Word source document which has been converted to PDF format.
  • The Guide also illustrates step-by-step fixes for some of the errors reported by the PAC 2024 PDF Accessibility Checker.