Bookmarks must actually go somewhere

PDF/UA check OUTLINE_ACTION_ENTRY · Document level · severity Medium · PDF/UA 8.12.2 Outline · advanced check

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Advanced check. This is a file-internals rule. It is hidden from the standard report view and generally indicates a problem with the tool that produced the PDF rather than something an author did.

Why it matters#

Bookmarks without actions or destinations look navigable but do nothing when activated. Users tab through them expecting to jump to sections and nothing happens.

What you will see#

One or more bookmarks have no action or destination attached, so activating them does nothing.

How to fix#

Add a /Dest destination or an /A action (e.g. a GoTo action) to every outline (bookmark) entry so activating it navigates to its target. Delete bookmark entries that have no meaningful target.

Step-by-step guide#

1. Get the flagged bookmark titles from the EQChecker report details, then open the Bookmarks panel in Acrobat Pro (View > Show/Hide > Side panels > Bookmarks).
2. Path 1 - set a destination: navigate the document to the intended target view, then right-click the bookmark and choose Set Destination. This stores a /Dest the bookmark will jump to.
3. Path 2 - set an action: right-click the bookmark > Properties > Actions and add 'Go to a page view' (or another appropriate action). Either a /Dest destination or an /A action satisfies the rule.
4. Delete bookmarks that have no meaningful target (right-click > Delete) instead of pointing them somewhere arbitrary.
5. Click every repaired bookmark to confirm it navigates where its label promises.

Verify: Re-run the EQChecker scan; OUTLINE_ACTION_ENTRY passes when every outline item carries an /A action or a /Dest destination. Manually activate each bookmark to confirm navigation works.

Note: PDF/UA-2 8.12.2 phrases this as a recommendation ('each entry in an outline dictionary should include an Action'), but a dead bookmark is a genuine navigation failure. Documents with no outline at all pass this rule - missing outlines are covered by DOC_BOOKMARKS. Destinations Acrobat creates are page-based; for full PDF/UA-2 conformance the separate INTRA_DOC_STRUCTURE_DEST rule additionally expects structure destinations.

Fixing it in your authoring tool#

WCAG success criteria#

2.4.5 Multiple Ways — Level AA#

More than one way must be available to locate a page within a set of pages, unless the page is a step in a process.

Understanding 2.4.5

Standards#

This check contributes to the following standards:

PDF/UA WCAG AA EN 301 549