Checkpoint 18: Page Headers and Footers

Repeating page headers and footers must be marked as pagination artifacts in PDF documents. These artifacts should be classified with the appropriate Header or Footer subtype to distinguish them from the main document content.

What This Means

Page headers and footers are content that appears in the margins of pages, typically repeating across multiple pages:

Common header content:

Document title or chapter name
Company name or logo
Date or version number
Section identifiers

Common footer content:

Page numbers
Copyright notices
Document identifiers
Author information
"Confidential" or classification markings

In accessible PDFs, this repeated content must be marked as artifacts. Artifacts are elements that are part of the visual presentation but not part of the logical document content. When properly marked:

Screen readers skip over artifacts during normal reading
The document's logical reading order remains clean and focused
Users don't hear "Page 15" announced on every page
Reflow views can hide pagination artifacts appropriately

Additionally, artifacts should specify their subtype (Header or Footer) so assistive technology understands what kind of repeated content is being skipped.

Why It Matters

Proper artifact marking significantly improves the reading experience for screen reader users:

Without proper artifact marking:

Screen readers announce every header and footer on every page
Users hear "Company Name, Document Title, Page 42" repeatedly throughout the document
The logical flow of content is constantly interrupted
Navigation becomes tedious as users must skip past repeated elements
It becomes difficult to distinguish main content from peripheral information

With proper artifact marking:

Screen readers skip headers and footers during continuous reading
Users can navigate directly through the main content
If needed, users can access page information through other means
The reading experience mirrors how sighted users naturally ignore repeated elements
Document structure remains clean and comprehensible

Consider reading a 100-page report. Without artifact marking, a screen reader user would hear the header and footer 100 times each. With proper marking, they hear only the actual content.

Common Violations

The Matterhorn Protocol defines two failure conditions for page headers and footers. Both require human testing because automated tools cannot reliably distinguish headers/footers from main content.

18-001: Headers and Footers Not Marked as Pagination Artifacts (Human Testing)

What's Wrong: Page headers and footers are included in the document's tag structure as regular content rather than being marked as artifacts. This causes assistive technology to read them as part of the main document content.

How to Identify:

Screen reader test: Read through the document with a screen reader
- If you hear headers/footers announced on every page, they are not properly marked
- Listen for repeated content like page numbers, document titles, or company names
Tags panel inspection in Acrobat:
- Open the Tags panel (View > Show/Hide > Navigation Panes > Tags)
- Look for tags containing header/footer content
- If headers/footers appear in the tag tree as P, Span, or other structural tags, they should be artifacts instead
Content panel inspection:
- Open the Content panel (View > Show/Hide > Navigation Panes > Content)
- Header/footer content should appear as "Artifact" in the content stream
- If it appears as text content without artifact marking, this is a violation
Reflow test:
- Go to View > Zoom > Reflow
- Properly marked artifacts disappear in reflow view
- If headers/footers still appear, they may not be marked as artifacts

Common Causes:

PDF created without accessibility consideration
Manual tagging that missed header/footer content
PDF conversion tools that don't recognize headers/footers
Templates with improperly structured recurring content

18-002: Header or Footer Artifacts Not Classified with Proper Subtypes (Human Testing)

What's Wrong: Headers and footers are marked as artifacts, but they lack the specific "Header" or "Footer" subtype classification. While they are excluded from the main content, assistive technology cannot identify what type of artifact they are.

How to Identify:

Content panel inspection:
- Open the Content panel in Acrobat
- Locate artifact entries for header/footer content
- Right-click and select Properties
- Check the "Artifact Type" or "Subtype" attribute
- Should show "Header" or "Footer", not "Pagination" alone or empty
Tags panel review:
- Even though artifacts shouldn't be in the tag tree, some may be
- Check artifact properties for proper subtype classification
Screen reader behavior:
- While the content is skipped, some advanced screen readers can report artifact types
- Test if the screen reader can identify artifacts specifically as headers or footers

Why Subtypes Matter:

Assistive technology can provide specific information about skipped content
Users can query "what header is on this page" if needed
Document analysis tools can properly identify document structure
Improves overall document metadata quality

How to Fix in Adobe Acrobat

Adobe Acrobat provides comprehensive tools for marking headers and footers as artifacts.

Method 1: Using the Reading Order Tool

Open your PDF in Adobe Acrobat Pro
Go to Tools > Accessibility > Reading Order
The Reading Order panel will appear
In the document, draw a rectangle around the header content
Click Background/Artifact in the Reading Order panel
Repeat for footer content on the first page
For subsequent pages, you may need to repeat this process

Method 2: Using the Content Panel

Open the Content panel (View > Show/Hide > Navigation Panes > Content)
Navigate to a page with header/footer content
Expand the page content to find text elements
Right-click on header content and select Create Artifact
In the dialog:
- Type: Pagination
- Subtype: Header
Repeat for footer content, selecting Footer as subtype
Apply to all pages as needed

Method 3: Using the Tags Panel

If header/footer content is incorrectly in the tag tree:

Open the Tags panel (View > Show/Hide > Navigation Panes > Tags)
Find tags containing header or footer content
Right-click on the tag
Select Change Tag to Artifact
In the artifact properties:
- Set Type to Pagination
- Set Subtype to Header or Footer as appropriate

Batch Processing for Multi-Page Documents

For documents with many pages:

Fix the header/footer on one page completely
Use Action Wizard to create a batch process
Alternatively, use Preflight with fixups for artifact handling
Some third-party tools can automate this process

Setting Artifact Subtypes

When creating or modifying artifacts:

Right-click the artifact content in the Content panel
Select Properties
In the Artifact Properties dialog:
- Type: Select "Pagination"
- Subtype: Select "Header" or "Footer"
Click OK

Verifying Your Changes

After marking artifacts, use Reflow view (View > Zoom > Reflow)
Headers and footers should disappear in reflow mode
Test with a screen reader to confirm they're skipped
Check the Content panel to verify artifact types

How to Fix in Microsoft Word

Proper handling in Word helps ensure better PDF export, though additional work in Acrobat is often needed.

Using Word's Header/Footer Feature

Always use Word's built-in header/footer functionality:

Go to Insert > Header or Insert > Footer
Choose a style or create custom content
Word recognizes this as separate from main content
When exported to PDF, this content is more likely to be handled correctly

Do Not Place Headers/Footers in Main Content

Avoid these practices:

Do not manually type header/footer content at the top/bottom of each page
Do not use text boxes positioned in header/footer areas
Do not use shapes or images placed manually in margins
These approaches make PDF artifact marking much more difficult

Proper Document Structure

Use Word's built-in Header/Footer feature exclusively
Put repeating content only in Header/Footer areas
Keep main content in the body of the document
Use section breaks if different pages need different headers/footers

PDF Export Considerations

Go to File > Save As and choose PDF
Click Options
Ensure "Document structure tags for accessibility" is checked
Note: Word export does not guarantee proper artifact marking
Plan to verify and fix artifacts in Acrobat after export

Post-Export Remediation

Even with proper Word setup:

Export to PDF
Open in Adobe Acrobat
Verify headers/footers are marked as artifacts
If not, use Acrobat tools to mark them
Add proper Header/Footer subtypes

How to Fix in Other Applications

Adobe InDesign

Use Master Pages for repeating header/footer content
Go to Window > Output > PDF Export Presets
Create or modify a preset with accessibility options
In the preset, configure artifact handling for master page items
Export to PDF
Verify in Acrobat that master page items are artifacts

LibreOffice

Use Insert > Header and Insert > Footer for repeating content
When exporting to PDF:
- Go to File > Export as PDF
- Check accessibility options
Post-export verification in Acrobat is recommended

Google Docs

Google Docs has limited header/footer support
Use Insert > Header or Insert > Footer
Download as PDF
Important: Google Docs PDFs typically require significant remediation
Open in Acrobat and manually mark artifacts

LaTeX

For LaTeX documents:

Use standard \pagestyle and header/footer packages (fancyhdr)
When compiling to PDF, headers/footers are typically not auto-tagged as artifacts
Use post-processing tools or Acrobat for artifact marking
Some LaTeX accessibility packages may help with this

Testing Your Fix

Screen Reader Testing

This is the most important test for this checkpoint:

Open the PDF in a screen reader (NVDA, JAWS, VoiceOver)
Navigate through multiple pages using continuous reading
Verify headers and footers are not announced
Page content should flow naturally without interruption
Test page navigation to ensure main content is still accessible

Reflow View Test

Open the PDF in Adobe Acrobat
Go to View > Zoom > Reflow
Navigate through several pages
Headers and footers should not appear in reflow view
Only main document content should be visible

Content Panel Verification

Open the Content panel in Acrobat
Navigate to different pages
Verify header/footer content shows as "Artifact"
Check artifact properties for correct subtypes
Confirm main content is not marked as artifact

PAC Validation

Open the PDF in PAC (PDF Accessibility Checker)
Run the PDF/UA check
Use the Screen Reader Preview
Navigate through pages
Verify headers/footers are skipped

Validation Checklist

All page headers are marked as artifacts
All page footers are marked as artifacts
Header artifacts have "Header" subtype
Footer artifacts have "Footer" subtype
Artifact type is set to "Pagination"
Screen reader skips headers/footers during reading
Headers/footers disappear in reflow view
Main content remains properly tagged (not artifacted)
Page numbers are artifacts (not in tag structure)

Common Pitfalls

Content That Should NOT Be Artifacts

Not everything in header/footer positions should be an artifact:

First occurrence of document title: If the title appears only once on the cover, it's content, not an artifact
Table of contents page numbers: These are content, not pagination artifacts
Important footnotes: Footnotes in the footer area may be content
Unique page content: Content that appears only on one page may not be a true header/footer

Content That SHOULD Be Artifacts

Page numbers (on every page)
Running headers (document/chapter title repeated)
Running footers (copyright, company name repeated)
Decorative lines or borders in header/footer areas
Logos that appear on every page

Mixed Content in Header/Footer Areas

Sometimes header/footer areas contain both artifact and content:

Mark repeated elements as artifacts
Keep unique or meaningful elements as tagged content
Use judgment about what adds value for the reader
When in doubt, test with a screen reader

Additional Resources

Official Standards and Guidelines

PDF/UA Technical Resources

Tools

PAC (PDF Accessibility Checker) - Free PDF/UA validation
Adobe Acrobat Pro - Artifact marking tools
CommonLook PDF Validator - Comprehensive validation

This documentation is based on the Matterhorn Protocol 1.02, the definitive reference for PDF/UA validation. Both failure conditions for page headers and footers require human testing as automated tools cannot reliably identify recurring content. For the most current information, consult the PDF Association and W3C WCAG guidelines.