The WordPress Accessible Forms Plugin for Permit, Records, and Contact Requests
A keyboard user tabs into a form field, gets no visible focus indicator, submits it wrong, and the error message appears in red text a screen reader never announces. Accessible Forms fixes every part of that chain: labels, focus, error identification, and live-region announcements.
Government Forms Carry the Most Legal Risk on the Whole Site. Most Are Built Wrong.
Permit applications, records requests, and contact forms are where residents most need to complete a task, and where inaccessible form fields cause the most friction. Placeholder text used as a label, color-only error indication, and unlabeled required-field asterisks show up in the majority of default WordPress form plugin setups we’ve reviewed.
This plugin pairs well with WPPersona's built-in accessibility compliance if your agency runs on the WPPersona CMS, and installs standalone on any WordPress 6.0+ site.
3.3.1
WCAG success criterion requiring every form error to be identified in text, not color alone
What Accessible Forms Actually Checks
Every feature below maps to a specific WCAG 2.1 success criterion, not a vague accessibility claim. Here's exactly what changes on your site.
Programmatic label association
Every field gets a real <label> tied to its input with a for/id pair, so a screen reader announces the field’s purpose instead of silence or a guessed placeholder.
Announced inline errors
Validation errors appear in text next to the field and are pushed through an ARIA live region, so a screen reader user hears what went wrong without hunting for it.
Error prevention on legal and financial fields
Forms involving payments, legal commitments, or permit submissions get a confirmation step before final submit, matching the WCAG requirement for reversible or reviewable actions.
Full keyboard operability
Every field, checkbox, date picker, and multi-step navigation control works with Tab, Shift+Tab, and Enter alone, with no mouse-only interaction anywhere in the flow.
Required field indication beyond color
Required fields are marked with text ("required") in addition to any visual asterisk, and the requirement is announced programmatically to assistive technology.
From Install to Fixed, in Four Steps
Build or import your form
Use the accessible form builder directly, or import fields from Gravity Forms, WPForms, or Contact Form 7 and the plugin restructures the markup for you.
Test the keyboard path
A built-in keyboard-only preview mode lets you tab through the entire form exactly as a keyboard user would, before it goes live.
Configure error and confirmation behavior
Set which fields need extra confirmation steps and customize the error message text that gets announced to screen readers.
Publish and monitor submissions
A submission-level report flags any form where users abandon at a specific field repeatedly, often a sign an accessibility issue is still slipping through.
“A resident using a screen reader had been unable to submit a records request for over a year. We didn’t know until she called. That call doesn’t happen anymore.”
City Clerk, Small City Government
Common Questions About Accessible Forms
Does this replace Gravity Forms or WPForms?
No. It works alongside your existing form plugin, restructuring the rendered markup to fix label association, error announcement, and keyboard operability without requiring you to rebuild every form from scratch.
What does WCAG require for form error messages specifically?
WCAG 3.3.1 requires that an error be identified and described to the user in text. 3.3.3 requires a suggestion for fixing it when known. Color alone, like a red border with no text, does not meet either criterion.
Can residents using a screen reader complete a multi-step form?
Yes. Multi-step forms announce the current step number and total steps on each screen, and focus moves to the top of the new step automatically so a screen reader user always knows where they are in the process.
Get Accessible Forms on Your Site
There's no self-serve checkout yet. Submit the form and our team confirms your license tier, sends pricing, and gets you installation instructions within 1 business day.
- WordPress 6.0+, PHP 7.4+, integrates with Gravity Forms, WPForms, and Contact Form 7
- License covers updates and support for 12 months
Need more than one? See the full Accessibility Suite bundle.
Request to Purchase
Tell us which plugins you need. We'll send licensing and setup details.
Pairs Well With
Looking for the deeper compliance picture? Read how these plugins fit into WCAG 2.1 AA compliance for government websites, or browse our accessibility resources hub for guides on ADA Title II deadlines.
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