Voluntary Product Accessibility Template (VPAT)

A VPAT® is the template developed by ITI and is used to evaluate and document a product’s accessibility. Once the VPAT is completed for a specific product or service, the finished document is called an Accessibility Conformance Report or ACR.

VPAT is free and available to everyone, regardless of ITI membership.  Find resources like VPAT valuable? Learn how ITI membership can help your organization amplify its voice, connect with industry leaders and help shape technology policy.

Organizations complete a VPAT to show how a product or service meets accessibility standards and to give customers the information they need to make purchasing decisions. A VPAT may also be requested or required as part of a procurement process. The company that knows the product best, usually the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) or product owner, is generally best positioned to complete it accurately.

Choose the edition based on the accessibility standards that apply to your product, customer or market. ITI offers editions for WCAG, US Section 508 and the European EN 301 549 standard, as well as an International Edition that includes all three.

Yes. Either a reseller or vendor can complete the VPAT, but ITI recommends checking with the vendor or OEM first because they may have the most complete information about the product and its accessibility features.

No. ITI develops and maintains the VPAT template but does not review, approve or certify completed VPATs or ACRs. Third-party review is generally optional, although a customer or government agency may require an independent review as part of a procurement or contract.

Once completed, your VPAT becomes an ACR. You can provide the ACR directly to customers or buyers, include it in procurement responses or make it available on your website.

No. There is no official VPAT or ACR certification, approval or pass/fail rating. A completed VPAT becomes an ACR that describes how a specific product or service supports applicable accessibility standards

VPAT does not give products a passing or failing score. Instead, the completed ACR shows how the product performs against individual accessibility criteria, giving buyers a fuller picture of its features.

ITI provides free training and resources to help companies create ACRs and help buyers understand them. The training covers everything from preparing to write an ACR to evaluating a completed report.

Review or update your VPAT and ACR when a product changes in ways that could affect accessibility or when relevant accessibility standards or requirements change. Keeping the information current helps buyers understand the accessibility of the product they are actually evaluating.