[Public] Understanding WCAG and PDF/UA

Introduction

If you've worked with accessibility requirements for web apps or documents, you've likely heard of WCAG and PDF/UA. These are two distinct—but often confused—standards.

• WCAG = Web Content Accessibility Guidelines

• PDF/UA = PDF Universal Accessibility

Although their goals are similar—making content accessible to users with disabilities—they serve different types of content and are governed by different organizations.

What Is WCAG?

WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines) is basically a set of international standards created by the W3C (World Wide Web Consortium). It defines how to make web content more accessible to people with disabilities.

WCAG Covers:

• HTML pages

• JavaScript apps

• Images, video, and audio content on websites

• Forms and UI components

WCAG Requirements (Examples):

• Provide text alternatives for images

• Ensure keyboard navigability

• Use proper HTML semantics (headings, landmarks, etc.)

• Maintain sufficient contrast between text and background

• Avoid flashing or flickering content

Compliance Levels:

• A (Minimal)

• AA (Standard requirement for most organizations)

• AAA (Most strict)

What Is PDF/UA?

PDF/UA (PDF Universal Accessibility) is the official standard for creating accessible PDF documents.

It ensures that PDFs can be correctly interpreted by assistive technologies like screen readers and magnifiers.

PDF/UA Covers:

• PDF documents used in reports, invoices, forms, etc.

• Structure tagging (like HTML semantics for PDF)

• Reading order and logical flow

• Alternative text for images

• Metadata (language, title, author)

PDF/UA Requirements (Examples):

• Use of tags to define document structure (like headings, lists, tables)

• Logical reading order that matches the visual layout

• Alt text for non-text elements

• Embedded fonts for consistent rendering

• Language and title metadata properly set

Where IronPDF Fits In

IronPDF is a .NET library that generates PDFs from HTML, Razor, or ASPX views. This means:

• IronPDF is currently able to generate a PDF/UA compliant PDF that is verfied via VeraPDF.