What is a VPAT? A plain guide for software vendors
What the document is, who asks for it, and what to do when a buyer asks you.
A VPAT, or Voluntary Product Accessibility Template, is a form. The Information Technology Industry Council (ITI) publishes it, and it is free. You fill it in to say how well your product works for people with disabilities, one standard at a time.
Once you fill it in for a specific version of your product, it becomes an Accessibility Conformance Report, or ACR. When a buyer says "send us your VPAT", they almost always mean a completed ACR.
Who asks for one
Universities, school districts, state and local governments, US federal agencies, and many large companies. For public bodies in the US the pressure comes from the ADA Title II rule. Many now require a report before purchase. See what some universities publish.
What is in it
- The product name, version, a description, and a contact
- The report date
- How you evaluated the product: who tested, and with what
- Which standards the report covers
- A table with a row for each criterion: a conformance level, and remarks that explain it
The four editions
ITI publishes the current template, VPAT 2.5Rev, in four editions: WCAG, Revised Section 508, EN 301 549 for the EU, and International, which covers all three. Check what your buyer asked for, because some name an edition.
What the conformance levels mean
- Supports: at least one method meets the criterion with no known defects.
- Partially Supports: some functionality does not meet the criterion.
- Does Not Support: most functionality does not meet it.
- Not Applicable: the criterion is not relevant to the product.
- Not Evaluated: not tested. ITI allows this only for Level AAA.
What it is not
A VPAT is not a certificate. Nobody approves it. It is your own statement of what you tested and found. It does not have to say your product is perfect, and reviewers are wary of reports that do. An honest report with known gaps and a plan is often worth more than a wall of "Supports".