Ensure your IT products and services meet federal accessibility standards.
Summary
Section 508 Accessibility: Requirements for IT Products Ensure your IT products and services meet federal accessibility standards.
Carefully determine which Section 508 standards apply to your specific product based on its type, functionality, and intended use. Web content follows Web Content Accessibility Guidelines requirements. Software applications follow the software requirements in the Revised 508 Standards. Hardware follows physical accessibility requirements. Electronic documents follow document accessibility requirements. Some products may fall under multiple standard categories requiring comprehensive evaluation against all applicable requirements.
Test your product systematically against each applicable accessibility standard using appropriate testing methods for each requirement. Use established automated accessibility testing tools for initial broad assessment of common issues. Conduct thorough manual testing with multiple assistive technologies including screen readers like JAWS, NVDA, and VoiceOver, screen magnification software, voice recognition tools, and keyboard-only navigation. Document testing methodology, tools used, assistive technology versions, and detailed results for each standard tested.
For each applicable accessibility standard, document whether your product Supports (fully conforms), Partially Supports (conforms with some exceptions), Does Not Support (does not conform), or finds the standard Not Applicable to this product. Provide detailed, honest remarks explaining the conformance level determination and describing any specific limitations, exceptions, or accessibility issues that users with disabilities may experience when using the product.
Where accessibility testing reveals gaps, deficiencies, or areas of non-conformance, prioritize remediation efforts based on user impact severity, number of users affected, and standards compliance requirements. Some accessibility issues may be resolved before product delivery while others may require documented workarounds, accommodations, or planned future remediation commitments. Develop and document mitigation strategies for issues that cannot be immediately resolved.
Update Accessibility Conformance Reports whenever products are modified, updated, or enhanced to accurately reflect current accessibility status rather than outdated historical assessment. Major product updates, new feature additions, and significant user interface changes require accessibility retesting and ACR revision. Provide current ACRs to federal agencies upon request and include updated ACRs with deliverables as contractually required.
