Presented at 3:00 pm in Denver 1-3 on Wednesday, November 19, 2025.
#41384Speaker(s)
- Chad Chelius, Trainer/Consultant/Accessibility Wizard, Chax Training and Consulting
Session Details
- Length of Session: 2-hr
- Format: Bring-your-own Device Workshop:
- Expertise Level: Intermediate
- Type of session: General Conference
Summary
Creating fillable PDF forms from a Microsoft Word document comes with its inherent limitations. For one, Word form fields don’t translate to the PDF format. So that requires a unique approach to how to create forms that can be ported over to the PDF format. This session will guide you through a process that works and that can be used to facilitate properly creating accessible PDF forms. You’ll leave with tips and tricks on how to properly build a fillable PDF form.
Abstract
In this session you'll learn about things to do and not to do when building accessible PDF forms from a Microsoft Word document. Users make common mistakes during this process that creates more work for them that is unnecessary. Chad will walk you through steps to take to minimize overall work and create forms efficiently and accurately.
Key takeaways you'll learn in this session include:
- Elements to include in your Word document
- Elements to exclude from your word document
- Setting up content for proper tagging
- Adding form fields to a PDF after export
- Adding necessary accessibility attributes to form fields for accessibility
- Tagging form fields
This session will provide attendees with a practical approach to building fillable forms in Word that will be exported to the PDF format and will show them techniques for success. Attendees will learn techniques to implement directly in Microsoft Word before PDF export as well as techniques to implement in the PDF file after export.
Keypoints
- Learn how to structure a document in Microsoft Word to facilitate exporting to the PDF format.
- Learn how to tag form fields in a PDF file after export.
- Learn how to include all accessibility attributes in a PDF file for accessibility success
Disability Areas
All Areas
Topic Areas
Assistive Technology, Teaching about Accessibility in Curriculum, Uncategorized, Web/Media/App Access
Speaker Bio(s)
Chad Chelius
Chad Chelius is a trainer, author, consultant, and speaker as well as Director of Training Solutioins and Principal for Chax Training and Consulting. He resides in the Philadelphia area and has been using Adobe products for over 25 years. He began his career in the design and publishing industry. As an Adobe Certified Instructor and consultant he teaches and advises on all Adobe print and web products, specializing in InDesign and InCopy workflows, Illustrator, automation, and PDF accessibility using InDesign, Word, and Adobe Acrobat. He works with clients both large and small in and outside of the United States, helping them to solve design, workflow, and accessibility challenges using Adobe products. Chad is a LinkedIn Learning author and you can connect with him on LinkedIn or Twitter.