VPAT and ACR explained: what they are and how to get one
What a VPAT and an Accessibility Conformance Report are, who asks for them, what the conformance terms mean, and how to produce one buyers will trust.
Last updated . General information, not legal advice.
If you sell software or web services to a school, a government agency or a hospital, you will be asked for a VPAT. It is one of the most common procurement requests in accessibility, and one of the most misunderstood.
VPAT and ACR: the difference
VPAT stands for Voluntary Product Accessibility Template. It is a blank form published by the Information Technology Industry Council (ITI). ACR stands for Accessibility Conformance Report, and it is the completed form. In everyday use people say "VPAT" for both, but when a buyer asks for your VPAT, they mean your ACR.
The current template is VPAT 2.5, which comes in editions for WCAG, Revised Section 508, EN 301 549 (the European standard) and an INT edition that covers all three. Most U.S. buyers want the WCAG or Section 508 edition.
Who asks for one, and why
Procurement teams in government, higher education and healthcare use the ACR to compare products and to meet their own obligations under ADA Title II, Section 504 and Section 508. A strong report can shorten a sales cycle. A vague or inflated one can end it.
What the terms mean
For each criterion, the report states a level of support and explains it in a remarks column.
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Supports | The product meets the criterion with no known defects, or meets it with equivalent facilitation. |
| Partially Supports | Some functionality does not meet the criterion. |
| Does Not Support | The majority of functionality does not meet the criterion. |
| Not Applicable | The criterion is not relevant to the product, for example audio criteria on a product with no audio. |
| Not Evaluated | The product has not been evaluated against the criterion. |
What makes a report trustworthy
- It says how it was tested. Name the tools, the assistive technologies and the date, and the product version covered.
- It does not say Supports for something nobody checked. Use Not Evaluated for what was not tested. Buyers read that as honest, not weak.
- The remarks are specific. "Partially supports: the search form lacks a visible label on three pages" beats a generic note.
- It is current. Reissue it when the product changes materially, and at least once a year.
- It includes a contact. A named person or mailbox for accessibility questions.
Can a scan produce one?
A scan can give you a solid draft. It tests the criteria that automation can judge and records the findings, and the draft should mark the rest as not evaluated until someone tests them. Our Pro plan generates an editable VPAT 2.5 draft against WCAG 2.2 AA from your latest complete scan, written that way on purpose. Add manual test results before you send it to a buyer. See how the generator works, or compare plans.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between a VPAT and an ACR?
The VPAT (Voluntary Product Accessibility Template) is the blank template published by the Information Technology Industry Council. The Accessibility Conformance Report (ACR) is the completed document you give to a buyer.
Who asks for a VPAT?
Procurement teams, most often in government, higher education and healthcare, ask vendors for one before buying software or web services, to show how the product measures up against WCAG and Section 508.
What do the VPAT conformance terms mean?
For each criterion the report says Supports, Partially Supports, Does Not Support, Not Applicable or Not Evaluated, with remarks explaining what was found.
Can a VPAT be created from an automated scan alone?
A scan can fill in the criteria it can test and give you a starting draft, but a trustworthy ACR also needs manual testing of the criteria automation cannot judge. A report that claims Supports for something nobody checked by hand can damage trust with a buyer.
See where your site stands
Request a free WCAG 2.2 AA audit of your website. The report names the exact success criterion for every finding and the deadline that applies to you.