Federal departments
Their websites, internal systems and the technology their employees use.
COMPLIANCE · SECTION 508COMPLIANCE · SECTION 508
Is your product 508 compliant?
Section 508 requires US federal agencies — and the companies that sell technology to them — to make it accessible, measured against WCAG 2.0 AA.
- Standard
- WCAG 2.0 Level AA
- Applies to
- Federal agencies and their vendors
- How it’s enforced
- Procurement and complaints
- What ADAGuard tests
- WCAG 2.2 A and AA, which includes 2.0
Who Section 508 applies to.
Companies selling to agencies
Software, SaaS and web work bought by federal agencies — usually documented with a VPAT.
Documents and media
PDFs, office documents and video delivered to agencies need to be accessible too.
What WCAG 2.0 AA asks for.
- 1.1.1Images have text alternativesTested automatically
- 1.4.3Text contrast of at least 4.5:1Tested automatically
- 2.1.1Everything works with a keyboardTested automatically
- 2.4.7Keyboard focus is visibleTested automatically
- 1.3.1Headings, lists and labels are marked upTested automatically
- 3.3.2Form fields have labels or instructionsTested automatically
- 1.2.2Videos have captionsPartly tested
- 2.4.3Focus moves in a sensible orderNeeds a person
WHAT’S AT STAKE
Contracts, not courtrooms.
Section 508 is enforced mostly through procurement: agencies ask vendors for a VPAT and can turn down products that don’t conform. Federal employees and the public can also file complaints.
Overlays don’t fix it
An overlay changes the page in each visitor’s browser. It doesn’t change your code, so the problems WCAG measures are still there.
Fixing the code does
Accessible markup, tested and kept that way, is what WCAG measures — and what a person using a screen reader actually needs.
Scan
Find what automated testing can find — 40 of the 55 WCAG 2.2 A/AA criteria, fully or partly.
Fix, most severe first
Critical issues block people outright. Each comes with its element and how to fix it.
Test the rest, then keep watching
Review the criteria that need a person, and schedule scans so new releases don’t regress.
QuestionsSection 508 questions.
Does Section 508 apply to private companies?
Not directly — it binds federal agencies. But agencies must buy accessible technology, so companies selling to them have to meet it in practice.
What is a VPAT?
A Voluntary Product Accessibility Template — a document stating how a product conforms to each criterion. ADAGuard pre-fills one from your scan results and flags the criteria that need manual testing.
How is Section 508 different from the ADA?
Section 508 covers federal agencies and what they buy, with WCAG 2.0 AA as the standard. The ADA covers businesses open to the public and state and local government.
When was Section 508 last updated?
The “Section 508 refresh”, published by the US Access Board in January 2017, applies from January 18, 2018. It adopted WCAG 2.0 Level A and AA for websites, electronic documents and software.
How do I test for Section 508?
Scan against WCAG 2.2 AA, which includes 2.0 AA, then test the remaining criteria by hand with a keyboard and a screen reader.
This page explains the law in general terms. It isn’t legal advice — talk to a lawyer about your situation.
- Source: Section508.gov
- Source: U.S. Access Board — Revised 508 Standards
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