If you market information and communications technology (ICT) to government agencies — or to businesses that work with government agencies — there’s a good chance that you’ll need to complete a Voluntary Product Accessibility Template (VPAT).
The VPAT outlines your product’s current level of accessibility and its compliance with Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. So, how much time will you need to budget to complete your VPAT?
4 Factors That Affect VPAT Timelines
As you might have expected, there’s no simple answer; some VPATs can be completed in a matter of hours, while others will take weeks or months. The process of actually writing the report is pretty straightforward, but testing and remediation takes time.
However, by understanding the factors that affect VPAT timelines, you can plan more effectively — and ensure that your report will be practically useful for buyers and end users. Here’s a look at a few of those factors.
1. Product Complexity
The VPAT is intended as a measure of compliance with Section 508, and Section 508 incorporates the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) by reference. To complete a VPAT, you’ll test against WCAG 2.0 Level A/AA; learn more about WCAG conformance levels.
If you have an extremely simple product, many WCAG requirements (called success criteria) may not be applicable. If your product is complex, however, you might need to perform multiple tests to ensure that each feature of your product is conformant (and multiple rounds of remediations to remove barriers).
Related: Do I Need a VPAT for My Business?
2. The VPAT Author's Experience with Digital Accessibility
Anyone can learn about digital accessibility and WCAG — and if you’re interested in beginning that journey, head over to our Compliance Roadmap for free resources and guides.
But if you have no experience with WCAG, filling out a VPAT can be intimidating. Many WCAG criteria require some amount of subjective judgment, and to apply that judgment, you’ll need to understand the intention of the requirement.
If you don’t understand how the requirement helps a user with disabilities, you’re more likely to make a mistake. You’ll also need to spend more time researching conformance techniques to make sure that your product is truly compliant.
Related: What Can Automated Accessibility Testing Tools Find?
3. The Team's Cooperation
As we’ve mentioned in other articles, you shouldn’t assign your VPAT to a single developer. Accessibility involves development, but it’s a much broader set of priorities that encompasses design, content writing, and virtually every other aspect of your business.
To that end, every member of your team will need to communicate and collaborate to complete the report accurately. When communication is lacking or there's a reluctance to share information, it can lead to delays, misunderstandings, and incomplete or inaccurate assessments.
For instance, if designers are resistant to incorporating accessibility feedback into the user interface, that will almost certainly lead to bottlenecks and additional rounds of changes.
Related: What Are Exceptions to Section 508 Accessibility Requirements?
4. The Time Needed to Perform Remediations
If you’re planning on fixing accessibility barriers to improve compliance, you’ll need to factor that into your VPAT planning. You’ll also need additional rounds of testing to verify that issues have been resolved.
We should note here that you don’t have to create a perfectly accessible product to write a VPAT — you can simply acknowledge Section 508/WCAG conformance failures within the report. In some cases, minor conformance failures won’t affect the buyer’s purchasing decision.
In general, however, you’ll want to make your product as accessible as possible for a wide range of users. Full compliance means a better (and more marketable) product.
Related: How Long Does an Accessibility Audit Take?
VPAT Planning: Make an Early Commitment to Accessibility
Here’s the good news: The actual process of completing the report shouldn’t take long — but it’ll take much, much longer if you’re learning about WCAG, introducing the concepts to your team, and handling all of the remediations while writing the report.
The best approach is to start thinking about accessibility on day one. While you can certainly remediate after-the-fact, a long-term approach leads to fewer remediations and better results overall.
To learn how the Bureau of Internet Accessibility can help you build a strategy for Section 508 conformance, send us a message to connect with an expert.
