Why Ulster University?

Your Country

Events for International Applicants

Scholarships for International Students

Global Buddy Scheme

International Student Reviews

Ready for UU for International Students

Study Abroad

International Foundation Year at Ulster University

Join our Global Community

When selecting a user interface component with the keyboard, the focus indicator must 
not be completely obscured by anything in front of it.

## Why this matters

When using a keyboard, it is important that the user can see where they are on the page.
If the focus indicator is obscured, the user may not know where they are, and may not
be able to interact with the page.

## Examples

Most common examples include:

* Banners at the top or bottom of the page, such as cookie banners
* Fixed navigation bars
* Fixed footers
* Popup modals, such as cookie consent modals

## How to fix

With elements that cover part of the screen, such as cookie banners, ensure
that the user can scroll to see any content behind the banner, without having to close
the banner.

With popup modals, it should usually be impossible to focus anything behind the modal.
Most common modal frameworks will automatically trap focus within the modal, so that
this is impossible. Example: [Bootstrap Modal](https://getbootstrap.com/docs/5.2/components/modal/#live-demo).

## Further reading

This is part of the draft WCAG 2.2 specification and is subject to change.

* [WCAG 2.4.12](https://www.w3.org/WAI/WCAG22/Understanding/focus-not-obscured.html)

ensure-focus-is-not-obscured-minimum

March 2025

February 2025

Ulster University

Title / URL	Issues
Why Ulster University?www.ulster.ac.uk/global/why	2
Your Countrywww.ulster.ac.uk/global/apply/country	2
Events for International Applicantswww.ulster.ac.uk/global/events	2
Scholarships for International Studentswww.ulster.ac.uk/global/apply/scholarships	2
Global Buddy Schemewww.ulster.ac.uk/global/buddyscheme	2
International Student Reviewswww.ulster.ac.uk/global/student-reviews	2
Ready for UU for International Studentswww.ulster.ac.uk/global/ready	2
Study Abroadwww.ulster.ac.uk/global/study-abroad	2
International Foundation Year at Ulster Universitywww.ulster.ac.uk/global/ify	2
Join our Global Communitywww.ulster.ac.uk/global	2

Ensure focus is not fully obscured

Ulster University

Where this issue has occurred