aid: accessibility-standards url: >- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/api-evangelist/accessibility-standards/refs/heads/main/apis.yml name: Accessibility Standards type: Index image: https://kinlane-productions.s3.amazonaws.com/apis-json/apis-json-logo.jpg tags: - Accessibility - Compliance - UX - Web Standards - WCAG - ARIA - Section 508 - Disability description: >- Guidelines and technical specifications that ensure digital content, applications, and technologies are usable by people with disabilities, including standards like WCAG, Section 508, and ARIA. These standards help organizations meet regulatory requirements and demonstrate accountability to stakeholders. created: '2025-01-01' modified: '2026-04-19' specificationVersion: '0.19' apis: - name: Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 description: >- The current stable web accessibility standard published by the W3C Accessibility Guidelines Working Group (AG WG). WCAG 2.2 comprises 13 guidelines organized under four principles (perceivable, operable, understandable, robust) with success criteria at three levels: A, AA, and AAA. It has been adopted as ISO/IEC 40500:2025 and is referenced by Section 508 and the EU Accessibility Act. humanURL: https://www.w3.org/WAI/standards-guidelines/wcag/ baseURL: https://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG22/ tags: - WCAG - Web Content - Accessibility - W3C - ISO properties: - type: Documentation url: https://www.w3.org/WAI/standards-guidelines/wcag/ - type: Specification url: https://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG22/ - type: Documentation url: https://www.w3.org/WAI/WCAG22/quickref/ title: WCAG 2.2 Quick Reference - type: GitHubRepository url: https://github.com/w3c/wcag - type: JSONSchema url: >- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/api-evangelist/accessibility-standards/refs/heads/main/json-schema/wcag-success-criterion-schema.json title: WCAG Success Criterion Schema - type: JSONSchema url: >- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/api-evangelist/accessibility-standards/refs/heads/main/json-schema/wcag-conformance-report-schema.json title: WCAG Conformance Report Schema - type: JSONStructure url: >- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/api-evangelist/accessibility-standards/refs/heads/main/json-structure/wcag-success-criterion-structure.json title: WCAG Success Criterion Structure - type: JSONStructure url: >- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/api-evangelist/accessibility-standards/refs/heads/main/json-structure/wcag-conformance-report-structure.json title: WCAG Conformance Report Structure - type: Example url: >- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/api-evangelist/accessibility-standards/refs/heads/main/examples/wcag-success-criterion-example.json title: WCAG Success Criterion Example - type: Example url: >- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/api-evangelist/accessibility-standards/refs/heads/main/examples/wcag-conformance-report-example.json title: WCAG Conformance Report Example - name: WAI-ARIA 1.2 description: >- Accessible Rich Internet Applications (WAI-ARIA) 1.2 is a W3C Recommendation (June 2023) that defines semantic attributes enabling assistive technologies to interpret dynamic web content and complex interfaces. The suite includes Core Accessibility API Mappings, Accessible Name and Description Computation, and HTML/SVG API Mappings. humanURL: https://www.w3.org/WAI/standards-guidelines/aria/ baseURL: https://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria-1.2/ tags: - ARIA - Semantic - Screen Reader - W3C properties: - type: Documentation url: https://www.w3.org/WAI/standards-guidelines/aria/ - type: Specification url: https://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria-1.2/ - type: Documentation url: https://www.w3.org/WAI/ARIA/apg/ title: ARIA Authoring Practices Guide - type: JSONSchema url: >- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/api-evangelist/accessibility-standards/refs/heads/main/json-schema/aria-role-schema.json title: ARIA Role Schema - type: JSONStructure url: >- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/api-evangelist/accessibility-standards/refs/heads/main/json-structure/aria-role-structure.json title: ARIA Role Structure - type: Example url: >- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/api-evangelist/accessibility-standards/refs/heads/main/examples/aria-role-example.json title: ARIA Role Example - name: Authoring Tool Accessibility Guidelines (ATAG) 2.0 description: >- ATAG 2.0 is a W3C Recommendation that defines standards for making authoring tools (CMSes, code editors, web-based tools) accessible to authors with disabilities, and for helping those tools generate accessible content. humanURL: https://www.w3.org/WAI/standards-guidelines/atag/ baseURL: https://www.w3.org/TR/ATAG/ tags: - ATAG - Authoring Tools - W3C properties: - type: Documentation url: https://www.w3.org/WAI/standards-guidelines/atag/ - type: Specification url: https://www.w3.org/TR/ATAG/ - name: User Agent Accessibility Guidelines (UAAG) 2.0 description: >- UAAG 2.0 is a W3C standard for browsers, browser extensions, media players, and other user agents that render web content. It defines how user agents should make web content accessible to users with disabilities either directly or in conjunction with assistive technologies. humanURL: https://www.w3.org/WAI/standards-guidelines/uaag/ baseURL: https://www.w3.org/TR/UAAG20/ tags: - UAAG - Browsers - User Agents - W3C properties: - type: Documentation url: https://www.w3.org/WAI/standards-guidelines/uaag/ - type: Specification url: https://www.w3.org/TR/UAAG20/ - name: Section 508 description: >- Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act requires U.S. federal agencies to ensure their information and communication technology (ICT) is accessible to people with disabilities. The Revised 508 Standards (effective January 18, 2017) incorporate WCAG 2.0 Level A and AA success criteria for web and electronic content across seven chapters of requirements. humanURL: https://www.access-board.gov/ict/ baseURL: https://www.section508.gov/ tags: - Section 508 - Federal - Government - US Law - ICT properties: - type: Documentation url: https://www.access-board.gov/ict/ - type: Documentation url: https://www.section508.gov/develop/web-content/ title: Section 508 Web Content Development Guidance - name: Accessibility Conformance Testing (ACT) Rules Format 1.1 description: >- ACT Rules Format 1.1 (W3C Recommendation, February 2026) establishes a standardized format for documenting accessibility conformance testing rules. The framework supports automated, semi-automated, and manual testing and is used to create transparent, interoperable accessibility testing methodologies aligned with WCAG. humanURL: https://www.w3.org/WAI/standards-guidelines/act/ baseURL: https://www.w3.org/TR/act-rules-format/ tags: - ACT - Testing - Conformance - W3C properties: - type: Documentation url: https://www.w3.org/WAI/standards-guidelines/act/ - type: Specification url: https://www.w3.org/TR/act-rules-format/ - type: GitHubRepository url: https://github.com/w3c/wcag-act-rules title: WCAG ACT Rules Repository common: - type: Website url: https://www.w3.org/WAI/standards-guidelines/ - type: GitHubOrganization url: https://github.com/w3c title: W3C GitHub Organization - type: Tools url: https://www.w3.org/WAI/test-evaluate/tools/list/ title: W3C Accessibility Evaluation Tools List - type: Tools url: https://github.com/dequelabs/axe-core title: axe-core Accessibility Testing Engine - type: Tools url: https://github.com/pa11y/pa11y title: Pa11y Automated Accessibility Testing - type: JSONLD url: >- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/api-evangelist/accessibility-standards/refs/heads/main/json-ld/accessibility-standards-context.jsonld title: Accessibility Standards JSON-LD Context - type: Vocabulary url: >- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/api-evangelist/accessibility-standards/refs/heads/main/vocabulary/accessibility-standards-vocabulary.yaml title: Accessibility Standards Vocabulary - type: Features data: - name: Perceivable Content description: >- Standards requiring that information and user interface components be presentable to users in ways they can perceive, including text alternatives for non-text content. - name: Operable Interface description: >- Standards ensuring that user interface components and navigation are operable, including keyboard accessibility and sufficient time limits. - name: Understandable Information description: >- Standards ensuring that information and the operation of the user interface is understandable, including readable text and predictable navigation. - name: Robust Technology description: >- Standards requiring that content be robust enough to be reliably interpreted by a wide variety of user agents, including assistive technologies. - name: Conformance Levels description: >- Three-tiered conformance model (Level A, AA, AAA) providing graduated accessibility requirements for organizations to target. - name: Automated Testing Rules description: >- ACT Rules Framework providing standardized, machine-readable rules for automated accessibility conformance testing. - type: UseCases data: - name: Web Application Accessibility Auditing description: >- Using WCAG 2.2 success criteria and ACT rules to audit web applications for accessibility compliance. - name: Federal Government ICT Procurement description: >- Applying Section 508 standards when procuring or developing information and communication technology for U.S. federal agencies. - name: Accessible Rich Internet Application Development description: >- Using WAI-ARIA attributes to make dynamic JavaScript-driven interfaces accessible to screen readers and assistive technologies. - name: Automated CI/CD Accessibility Testing description: >- Integrating axe-core or Pa11y into continuous integration pipelines to catch accessibility regressions automatically. - name: Regulatory Compliance Documentation description: >- Producing Voluntary Product Accessibility Templates (VPATs) and Accessibility Conformance Reports aligned with Section 508 and WCAG. - type: Integrations data: - name: axe-core description: >- Open-source accessibility testing engine by Deque Systems implementing WCAG 2.0/2.1/2.2 rules, integrates with browsers, testing frameworks, and CI tools. - name: Pa11y description: >- Open-source Node.js tool for automated accessibility testing against WCAG standards, integrates with GitHub Actions and CI/CD pipelines. - name: Section508.gov description: >- GSA's Government-wide IT Accessibility Program providing guidance, training, and resources for federal Section 508 compliance. - name: EU Accessibility Act / EN 301 549 description: >- European standard referencing WCAG 2.1 AA, applicable to public and private sector digital services in EU member states. - name: ISO/IEC 40500:2025 description: >- International Standards Organization adoption of WCAG 2.2, enabling global regulatory alignment with the W3C standard. maintainers: - FN: Kin Lane email: kin@apievangelist.com