Accessible enough to pass a screen reader, not just a scanner.
VPAT services backed by real assistive technology testing
A VPAT is only as trustworthy as the testing behind it. We audit against WCAG 2.1/2.2 AA with real assistive technology — screen readers, keyboard-only navigation, voice control — and produce the Accessibility Conformance Report procurement teams actually rely on.
A VPAT (Voluntary Product Accessibility Template) is the Information Technology Industry Council's standard form for reporting how a product meets accessibility standards; the completed report is an Accessibility Conformance Report (ACR). Tizora's VPAT services audit your product against WCAG with real assistive technology, help fix what fails, and deliver the ACR on the VPAT 2.5 edition your buyers ask for.
Information on laws is general guidance, not legal advice.
VPAT vs ACR vs accessibility audit
| Question | VPAT | ACR | Accessibility audit |
|---|---|---|---|
| What it is | A blank template published by ITI | The completed VPAT for your product | The testing that decides what goes in the ACR |
| Who needs it | Anyone preparing a conformance report | Buyers and procurement teams | Your product and engineering teams |
| What makes it credible | Using the current version and the right edition | Accurate conformance levels with clear explanations | Manual testing with real assistive technology, not only scanners |
How our VPAT services test your product
What our accessibility audit services cover
Which VPAT 2.5 edition do you need?
| Edition | Reports against | Typically needed for |
|---|---|---|
| VPAT 2.5 508 | Revised Section 508 Standards | US federal agencies and their suppliers |
| VPAT 2.5 WCAG | WCAG 2.x | Commercial and enterprise buyers worldwide |
| VPAT 2.5 EU | EN 301 549 | Buyers in the European Union |
| VPAT 2.5 INT | Section 508, WCAG and EN 301 549 together | Multinational buyers, or one report for every market |
Not sure which you need? Ask your buyer's procurement team which standard their contract names; we can map the answer to an edition. Building on Shopify? We also prepare VPATs for Shopify apps.
Accessibility laws behind most VPAT requests
| Rule | Who it applies to | Technical standard | Key dates |
|---|---|---|---|
| ADA Title II web rule (US) | State and local governments, and the products they use to serve the public | WCAG 2.1 Level AA | 26 April 2027 for entities serving 50,000 people or more; 26 April 2028 for smaller entities and special districts |
| Section 508 (US) | US federal agencies buying or using technology | WCAG 2.0 Level A and AA | In force; the basis of federal accessibility procurement |
| European Accessibility Act (EU) | Many digital products and services sold to consumers in the EU | EN 301 549, which incorporates WCAG 2.1 AA for web content | Applies since 28 June 2025 |
Many enterprise buyers ask for a current VPAT even when none of these laws applies to your product directly. This is general information, not legal advice.
Structured around WCAG’s own four principles.
Every audit finding is organized under the POUR framework WCAG itself is built on, so the report maps directly to the standard your VPAT will cite.
Perceivable
- Text alternatives for non-text content
- Captions & audio descriptions
- Color contrast & use of color alone
- Content adaptable & distinguishable
Perceivable
Whether users can perceive your content: text alternatives, captions and audio descriptions, color contrast, and adaptable, distinguishable content.
Each point is tested against the interface and recorded in the VPAT.
Operable
- Full keyboard accessibility
- No keyboard traps
- Enough time & no seizure-inducing content
- Clear navigation & focus order
Operable
Whether users can operate the interface: full keyboard access, no keyboard traps, enough time, no seizure-inducing content, and clear navigation and focus order.
Understandable & Robust
- Readable, predictable interfaces
- Input assistance & error identification
- Valid, semantic markup
- Compatibility with assistive technologies
Understandable & Robust
Whether the interface is predictable and works with assistive technology: readable interfaces, input assistance and error identification, valid semantic markup.
Passing a scanner isn’t the same as passing a screen reader.
An automated tool can confirm an image has an alt attribute. It can’t tell you the alt text reads "image047.png" to someone who can’t see the image itself.
It can flag a contrast ratio. It can’t tell you a custom dropdown is completely invisible to a screen reader, or that a modal traps keyboard focus with no way out.
A conformance report built on scanner output alone tends to fall apart the moment a real assistive-technology user — or a skeptical procurement reviewer — actually tries the product.
Accessibility fixes that hold up, not just pass a re-scan.
It’s possible to satisfy an automated checker without actually fixing the experience for someone using a screen reader. We build fixes that address the underlying markup and interaction pattern, not just the flagged attribute.
Semantic HTML first
Native elements and landmarks over ARIA patches wherever possible — the most reliable accessibility is the kind the browser and assistive tech already understand.
Focus management that makes sense
Modals, menus, and dynamic content manage keyboard focus predictably, so navigation never gets silently trapped or lost.
Meaningful alternative text
Alt text and ARIA labels describe function and content, not just satisfy a linter — the difference between "image" and something a screen reader user can actually act on.
Contrast & scalability by design
Color contrast and text-resize behavior are checked against real WCAG thresholds during design review, not discovered during a pre-launch audit.
How a VPAT engagement runs, step by step
Automated + manual audit
Automated scanning establishes baseline coverage, followed by manual testing with real assistive technology across your key user flows.
Findings mapped to WCAG
Every issue is documented against the specific WCAG success criterion it violates, with severity and user-impact context — not a raw tool export.
Remediation support
We provide implementation guidance or work directly in your codebase to fix confirmed issues, prioritized by user impact.
VPAT / ACR delivery
You receive a completed Accessibility Conformance Report on the VPAT 2.5 edition your buyers need, mapped to WCAG, Section 508 and EN 301 549 as applicable, ready to hand to a customer or procurement team.
Who runs your accessibility audit
Every finding in your ACR comes from a person testing the product, not only from a scanner report.
- Screen readers
- NVDA and JAWS on Windows, VoiceOver on macOS and iOS.
- Input methods
- Keyboard-only navigation and voice control across your key user flows.
- Standards
- WCAG 2.1 and 2.2 AA, mapped to Section 508 and EN 301 549 in the ACR.
- Scope
- Web applications, native mobile apps, and PDF or document-based content.
Audits are run by Tizora's accessibility team: testers who use NVDA, JAWS, VoiceOver, keyboard-only navigation and voice control in every audit.
FAQ
VPAT services FAQs
It depends on your buyers. The VPAT 2.5 508 edition covers the US Section 508 Standards for federal buyers, the WCAG edition covers WCAG 2.x for commercial buyers worldwide, the EU edition covers EN 301 549 for European buyers, and the INT edition covers all three in one report. If unsure, ask which standard your buyer's contract names.
Yes. The VPAT template is free from the Information Technology Industry Council, and nothing stops a company completing its own. But a conformance report is only as credible as the testing behind it, and procurement reviewers often ask how it was tested. A third-party VPAT based on manual assistive technology testing is easier to defend.
Report against the version your buyer asks for. WCAG 2.1 AA is the standard named in the ADA Title II rule and incorporated in EN 301 549, while WCAG 2.2 adds further success criteria and is increasingly requested. We test to WCAG 2.1 AA by default and to WCAG 2.2 AA on request.
A VPAT (Voluntary Product Accessibility Template) is a standardized document format, published by the IT Industry Council, used to report how a product conforms to accessibility standards. The completed document is called an Accessibility Conformance Report (ACR). The audit is the testing work that determines what actually goes in it — a VPAT is only as credible as the testing behind it.
It depends on who you sell to. For US state and local governments, the ADA Title II rule sets WCAG 2.1 Level AA, with compliance dates of 26 April 2027 for entities serving 50,000 people or more and 26 April 2028 for smaller entities. US federal procurement under Section 508 uses WCAG 2.0 Level A and AA. In the EU, the European Accessibility Act has applied since 28 June 2025 and relies on EN 301 549, which incorporates WCAG 2.1 AA for web content. This is general information, not legal advice.
We don’t recommend it, and most experienced procurement reviewers can tell the difference. Automated scanners reliably catch structural issues like missing alt text or insufficient color contrast, but structurally cannot evaluate things like whether a screen reader user can actually complete a checkout flow. A defensible ACR requires manual testing with real assistive technology.
For a typical web application, a full WCAG 2.1 AA audit with manual assistive-technology testing and a completed VPAT usually takes two to four weeks, depending on the number of user flows and templates involved. Remediation timelines depend on the number and severity of findings.
We audit web applications, native mobile apps, and PDF or document-based content — each has its own applicable success criteria and testing approach, and we scope the engagement to match what you actually need conformance for.
Can't find what you're looking for? Reach out to our engineering team directly.
Get an ACR you can actually stand behind.
Whether you need a first VPAT for a procurement deal or a full remediation program, we’ll test it the way your users — and their assistive technology — actually experience it.
