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Tagging an Existing PDF in Adobe Acrobat Pro DC

Adobe Acrobat Pro DC allows for elements of a document to be tagged according to

their purpose. These tags are not displayed in the document, but they are used by

screen readers to understand the structure of the document. Tags establish logical

reading order and provide a means of indicating structure and type, adding alternative

text to non-text elements and substitute text (referred to as actual text) for elements in

the PDF document. Tagging documents used in online courses allows people with

2)

Go to Show/Hide, then Navigation Panes, and select Tags from the list.

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3)

A tag tree will appear in a new window docked on the left sidebar.

structure tree will appear.

Note: Occasionally, a document may not be considered tagged by Acrobat even though

it looks like it is tagged in the Tags panel. To indicate the document is tagged, right-click

on Tags and select Document is Tagged PDF from the list.

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To Autotag a PDF

You may have Adobe Acrobat Pro DC auto tag your document by doing the following:

1)

3)

Note: You will still need to look over the tags that Adobe Acrobat Pro DC generates to

make sure they are correct, and fix them if they are incorrect. In most cases, especially

with larger documents, it is faster to let Adobe Acrobat Pro DC tag the document for you

rather than manually tagging the entire document.

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1) From the Tags panel, right click on No tags available.

2) Select Add Tags to Document.

1) Open the Tags panel, hold the Control key and click on > located next to Tags to

show all tags and a structure tree.

2) Right click on Tags and select Highlight Content from the list. This allows

you to click on a specific tag on the tag tree and see what it is tagging in the

document. This makes it easier to determine if the item has been tagged

correctly.

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Document Structure and Tags

• <H2> = Heading 2. This is the highest-level sub‐headings in a document.

• <H3> = Heading 3. This is a third level heading.

• <H4> = Heading 4. This is a fourth level heading.

• <H5> = Heading 5. This is a fifth level heading.

• <H6> = Heading 6. This is a sixth level heading.

Note: Like in an Outline, you should never skip heading levels. For example, an

incorrect heading structure would be: Heading 1  Heading 3  Heading 2 

Heading 4. This tutorial is an example of a proper heading hierarchy!

• <LI> = List item. This tag should always be embedded within an <L> tag.

• <Link> = A hyperlink.

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Table Tags

• <Table> = A table. All tags within this tag are part of a table.

• <TR> = Table row. You should have one of these tags for each row in your table.

• <TD> = Table data. This is used to tag data cells in a table.

• <TH> = Table Heading. This is used to tag table heading cells.

To Change an Incorrect Tag on the Tag Tree:

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3)

Click Close. The old tag changes to the new tag you just selected on the tag

tree. You must do this for every tag in your document that is incorrect.

Adding Alternative Text to Images (<Figure>)

Screen readers require the use of alternative text to convey the meaning of an image. It

is not necessary to begin your alt text with “Image of…” because screen readers

preface the alt text with “Image.” Alternative text should be clear and concise.

To Add Alternative Text to an Image:

1) Right-click on the <Figure> tag in the tag tree you want to modify and select

Properties… from the list.

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correctly. They should also include a ‘scope’ for each table header cell, so screen

readers can understand what cells each heading is describing.

1) If you do not already have the Reading Order Tool open, you will need to

open it. Click Accessibility from the right side-bar then select Reading

Order in the list.

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2) With the Reading Order dialog box open, select your table in your document by

clicking the number near the top of your table.

4) Right-click a table header cell and select Table Cell Properties.