- Success Criterion 1.4.13
- Conformance level AA
Tooltip That Can’t Be Closed With the Escape Key
1.4.13 — Content on Hover or Focus
Scenario
Setting
A government tax-filing portal
What’s wrong
Tooltips that cannot be dismissed with Esc while obscuring other content.
Example
Here's what happens on a government tax-filing portal: tooltips that cannot be dismissed with Esc while obscuring other content.
Why it matters
Screen-magnifier users, people with motor tremors, and keyboard-only users of tooltips/menus. On a government tax-filing portal, this barrier means they can't read the text against its background.
How to test
Trigger a tooltip and press Esc while it obscures other content: if it doesn't close, or closing it also moves focus away unexpectedly, it fails.
How to fix
Hover/focus-triggered content must stay visible until dismissed, be dismissible with Esc without moving pointer/focus, and remain when the pointer moves onto it.
Outcome
Corrected, a government tax-filing portal now lets a visitor see the control's boundary and current state.
Who is affected
Screen-magnifier users, people with motor tremors, and keyboard-only users of tooltips/menus.
Learn more
- Understanding Understanding document (opens in a new tab)
Related scenarios
- Hover Tooltip That Vanishes Before the Pointer Can Reach It
- Hover Content That Can’t Be Dismissed Without Moving the Mouse
- Mega-Menu That Collapses When Crossing the Gap to Reach It
- Hover Preview Card That Vanishes on the Slightest Pointer Move
- Focus-Triggered Popover That Steals or Dumps Keyboard Focus
- Tooltip That Covers the Very Field It’s Meant to Explain