What is PDF/UA (universal accessibility)?

PDF/UA is the standard that makes a PDF genuinely usable with assistive technology like screen readers. It builds on tagging and adds strict requirements.

Beyond "it has tags"

A file can be tagged yet still fail real users. PDF/UA demands a correct reading order, meaningful alt text on images, proper table headers, and document language — the things a screen reader needs to make sense of a page.

Who needs it

Public-sector and many private organisations must meet accessibility law. PDF/UA is the concrete, testable target that satisfies those obligations for documents.

Getting there

Start from a well-structured source document, then verify tags, reading order and alt text. See our accessibility checklist for a practical pass.