WCAG 2.2 success criterion 1.3.5, Identify Input Purpose, is a Level AA requirement: fields that collect personal data identify their purpose.
Read the criterion in the W3C Recommendation, WCAG 2.2 (opens in a new tab).
How BearScan checks it
Fields that collect personal data identify their purpose
Checked automatically: reads the HTML. Severity: medium. Autofill is what lets users with motor or memory impairments complete a form without retyping. Without a recognised purpose, the browser cannot offer it.
An approximation: Validates autocomplete tokens against the purpose list in WCAG 2.2 section 7; an unrecognised token fails, matching axe-core's autocomplete-valid. The criterion applies only to fields about the user, so every field without a token is read by a decisions model (TypeSafe's Jev) from its label, name and placeholder, in any language, for what it asks the visitor to enter: it fails a field it is at least 80% sure collects the visitor's own name, address, email, phone, card or birth date, naming the token to add, and exempts one it takes to be about something else (search, a coupon, a gift recipient). Anything between asks for review.
How to fix it. Add an autocomplete attribute using a token from WCAG 2.2 section 7 to every field that collects the user's own information, for example autocomplete="email", "given-name", "postal-code" or "tel".
All WCAG 2.2 criteria · Next: 1.4.1 Use of Color
Questions
Is WCAG 1.3.5 required by the ADA?
The ADA doesn't name a technical standard for businesses, but the Justice Department's 2022 guidance points businesses to WCAG, and its 2024 rule for state and local governments adopted WCAG 2.1 Level AA, which includes 1.3.5.
Can an automated tool check WCAG 1.3.5?
Mostly. BearScan checks it automatically (reads the HTML). A clean result still isn't proof every page passes, only the pages scanned.
How do I fix a WCAG 1.3.5 failure?
Add an autocomplete attribute using a token from WCAG 2.2 section 7 to every field that collects the user's own information, for example autocomplete="email", "given-name", "postal-code" or "tel".