PDF/UA TWG

Background

The PDF/UA Technical Working Group (TWG) drives development of ISO 14289 (PDF/UA) through its association with ISO TC 171 SC 2 WG 9. PDF/UA is of interest to those concerned with conformance to regulations requiring accessible electronic content including WCAG 2.1, Section 508 in the US, Canada’s Common Look and Feel standard, Britain’s BS 8878, and others.

In addition to the standard itself, the TWG publishes resources for developers working on support for the International Standard for universally accessible PDF.

History of PDF/UA

2024-03-14 ISO publishes ISO 14289-2:2024.
2024-02-29 The PDF Association publishes Well-Tagged PDF (WTPDF).
2021-04-21 The PDF Association publishes the Matterhorn Protocol 1.1
2020-09-16 The PDF Association publishes version 1.1 of the PDF/UA Reference Suite
2019-06-11 The PDF Association publishes Deriving HTML from PDF, a usage specification for tagged ISO 32000-2 files
2019-06-10 The PDF Association publishes the Tagged PDF Best Practice Guide: Syntax, a guideline for developers implementing tagged PDF and PDF/UA
2018-12-01 The PDF Association creates the PDF Accessibility Liaison Working Group
2016-03-31 ANSI adopts PDF/UA-1 as an American National Standard, technically identical to the ISO standard, but available for only $15
2015-02-18 The US Access Board adopts PDF/UA for its new draft NPRM updating US federal government ICT Standards and Guidelines
2014-12-17 ISO publishes ISO 14289-1:2014, a minor technical update
2014-07-29 AIIM publishes the PDF/UA-1 Technical Implementation Guide for ISO 32000
2014-06-14 The PDF Association publishes the PDF/UA Reference Suite
2014-04-30 The PDF Association publishes the Matterhorn Protocol 1.02
2013-10-03 AIIM updates the PDF/UA Technical Implementation Guide to version 1.2a
2013-08-15 Access for All announces their free PAC 2.0, the first implementation of the Matterhorn Protocol
2013-08-04 The PDF Association publishes the Matterhorn Protocol, the definitive validation algorithm for PDF/UA
2013-03-07 AIIM publishes PDF/UA Technical Implementation Guide: Understanding ISO 14289-1 (PDF/UA-1)
2012-08-16 AIIM publishes Achieving WCAG 2.0 with PDF/UA
2012-08-15 Adobe Systems announces its intention to integrate PDF/UA into their products
2012-08-01 ISO publishes ISO 14289 (PDF/UA)
2004 AIIM Standards launches the PDF/UA committee to study accessibility guidelines for PDF technology

Note: ISO 14289-1:2014 is ISO’s first fully accessible standard; the document conforms to PDF/UA.

Objective

The PDF/UA Technical Working Group is a collaboration of PDF software developers and PDF accessibility subject matter experts who use the TWG’s resources to share their knowledge and experience in a vendor-neutral space.

The WG’s main areas of work are:

Further development of PDF/UA
Creation of documents explaining the application and use of PDF/UA
Addressing technical developments and user/market feedback

Status

As of Q4 2025 key subjects currently under discussion include, but are not limited to:

Development of Matterhorn Protocol 2.0
Possible amendments and technical notes regarding PDF/UA-1
Update of PDF Best Practice Guide: Syntax

Accomplishments

2024-03-14 ISO 14289-2:2024 published by ISO based on the PDF/UA TWG suggestion
2024-02-29 Well-Tagged PDF (WTPDF) published in cooperation with the PDF Reuse TWG by the PDF Association
2021-04-21 Matterhorn Protocol 1.1 published by the PDF Association
2020-09-16 PDF/UA Reference Suite 1.1 published by the PDF Association
2019-06-10 Tagged PDF Best Practice Guide: Syntax published by the PDF Association

How to participate in the Working Group

It’s possible to participate in the Working Group without attending meetings!

The Working Group’s activities are centered on a private GitHub repository.
Working group members may attend the working group’s online meetings – currently biweekly on Wednesdays, 1805–1900 CET / 1205–1300 ET / 0905–1000 PT, or review meeting notes and recordings of previous calls.

The PDF/UA TWG is open to all PDF Association Individual, Division, Full, Partner and Institutional members.

Join this working group to:

Access all of the working group’s private GitHub repositories
Access the working group’s private Google Drive area with working documents
Participate via the mailing list and view mailing list archives
Participate in the approval and publication process
Access meeting recordings and notes
Access and provide comments on related ISO documents
PDF Association members can join the PDF/UA TWG by visiting the Member Area and clicking “Manage Working Groups”.