PDF accessibility for banks and financial service providers
The BFSG obliges the financial sector to offer accessible banking services for consumers - including the associated documents. Accessful automatically corrects account statements, contracts and product information according to PDF/UA-2 and WCAG 2.2 - if desired, directly from your systems via the API.
The challenge
Banks and financial service providers generate large amounts of customer documents every day: account statements, sales overviews and invoices are created systemically in core banking, contract and output management systems. Manual, accessible post-processing of these document streams is neither time nor economically feasible.
At the same time, the German Accessibility Strengthening Act (BFSG) has also applied to the financial sector since June 28, 2025: banking services for consumers - such as accounts, payment services and consumer loans - must be accessible. This includes the information you provide to your customers as a PDF.
Added to this is the technical complexity: price and service lists, securities information and figures contain nested tables that can only be used by screen readers if headers, cell references and reading order are marked correctly. Accessful automates exactly this structural work - from the archive inventory to the ongoing daily output.
Typical documents
- Account statements and sales overviews
- Price and service lists
- Credit and loan agreements
- Product and securities information
- General terms and conditions and contract documents
- Annual accounts and financial reports
How Accessful helps banks and financial services providers
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Directly from the core banking system
The REST API accepts documents via upload or URL list and reports results back via webhooks - daily document streams go through correction without manual steps.
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High volume batch processing
Thousands of documents in one run, results typically in seconds - from the inventory archive to ongoing daily production.
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Complex tables structured correctly
Sales lists, price lists and figures receive correct headers, cell references and a logical reading order - the prerequisite for use with screen readers.
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audit report per document
Every remediated document receives an audit-ready report - as reliable evidence for internal revision and audits.
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Layout and content unchanged
Only the structural level is added: tags, reading order and alt text. The appearance of your documents remains identical.
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Operation in your infrastructure
For sensitive customer data, Accessful can run completely on-premises if desired - also air-gapped, with its own AI models behind your firewall.
Legal framework
- BFSG (German Accessibility Strengthening Act)
- Implements the European Accessibility Act (EAA) into German law. Since June 28, 2025, consumer banking services - including accounts, payment services and consumer loans - must be provided in an accessible manner. This also includes the associated information, which is often provided as a PDF.
- EN 301 549, WCAG 2.2 and PDF/UA-2
- The European standard EN 301 549 specifies the technical requirements and refers to WCAG 2.2. PDF/UA-2 is the relevant standard for PDF documents. Accessful audits and remediates against exactly these standards.
- BITV 2.0 for publicly funded institutes
- As public bodies, development banks and state banks as well as other publicly sponsored institutions can also fall under EU Directive 2016/2102 and BITV 2.0. Your documents must then be accessible regardless of the BFSG.
Note: This content provides information about legal requirements, but does not replace legal advice.
Frequently asked questions
Do banking services even fall under the BFSG?
Yes. The BFSG covers banking services for consumers - these include, among other things, accounts, payment services and consumer loans. The associated information that you provide as a PDF must also be accessible. A detailed classification can be found under BFSG & accessible PDFs.
How can systemically generated documents such as bank statements be corrected?
Via the REST API: Your systems transfer documents via file upload or URL list, Accessful automatically corrects and reports completion via webhook. This means that daily document production runs through correction without manual steps. Details can be found at API & Integration.
Can Accessful handle the complex tables in financial documents?
Yes. Tables in price and service lists, sales overviews or securities information receive correct headers, cell references and a logical reading order. The visible layout remains unchanged - only the structural layer is added.
Does customer data have to leave your organisation for correction?
No, if you don't want that. By default, Accessful processes documents in ISO/IEC-27001-certified data centers in Germany. There are those for higher requirements On-premises version: Accessful then runs completely in your infrastructure – air-gapped if desired and with its own AI models.
What applies if internal audit or an audit objects to a remediated document?
Then the remediation guarantee comes into effect: If a document remediated by Accessful is not recognized as accessible during an accessibility audit, we will remediate it free of charge - quickly, easily and at no additional cost. For internal revision and audits, you will receive an audit-ready report as proof in addition to each document. You can find the conditions on the Pricing page.
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