Use a screen reader to create a form in access desktop databases

This article is for people with visual impairments who use a screen reader program with the Office products and is part of the Office Accessibility content set. For more general help, see Office Support home.

Use Access with your keyboard and a screen reader to create a form in an Access desktop database. We have tested it with Narrator, JAWS, and NVDA, but it might work with other screen readers as long as they follow common accessibility standards and techniques.

Notes: 

• New Microsoft 365 features are released gradually to Microsoft 365 subscribers, so your app might not have these features yet. To learn how you can get new features faster, join the Office Insider program.

• To learn more about screen readers, go to How screen readers work with Microsoft Office.

In this topic

• Create a form using the Form Wizard

• Create a multiple item form

• Create a split form

• Add an input mask to a control

Create a form using the Form Wizard

You can create forms easily with the Form Wizard.

1. Open the table for which you want to add the form.

2. To open the Form Wizard, press Alt+C, F, Z. You hear: "Form Wizard window. Row 1," followed by the name of the first row in the Available Fields table.

3. Press the Up or Down arrow keys until you hear the name of the first field to add to the form.

4. Press the Tab key twice, then press Enter to add the field to the Selected Fields table.

5. To add further fields to the form, repeat steps 3-4.

6. Press F6 until you hear "Next button," and press Enter.

7. On the following screen, select the layout for your form with the Up and Down arrow keys.

8. Press F6 until you hear "Back button," then press the Tab key until you hear "Next button," and press Enter.

9. On the following screen, you can input a name for your form. Press the Tab key once. You hear the default name for the created form, which is identical to the name of the table. Enter a new name for the form.

10. Press F6 until you hear "Back button," then press the Tab key until you hear "Finish button," and press Enter.

Create a multiple item form

A multiple item form lets you show information from more than one record at a time, arranged in rows and columns.

1. Open the table for which you want to add the form.

2. To use the Multiple Items tool, press Alt+C, F, M, U. Access creates the form and displays it in the Layout view. In the Layout view, you can make design changes to the form while it is displaying data. The focus moves to the first field of the first row in the table.

3. You can now edit the form:

   • To change the view of the form, press F6 until you hear: "Status bar." Press the Right arrow key until you find the one you want, then press Enter.

   • To add a new record, press Ctrl+Plus sign (+). To move between the different fields, press the Tab key.

Create a split form

A split form gives you two views of the data at the same time — a Form view and a Datasheet view. The two views are connected to the same data source and are synchronized with each other at all times. Selecting a field in one part of the form selects the same field in the other part of the form. You can add, edit, or delete data from either part (as long as the record source is updatable, and you have not configured the form to prevent these actions).

1. Open the table for which you want to add the form.

2. To use the Split Form tool, press Alt+C, F, M, P. Access creates the form and displays the Form view in the top section of the screen, and the Datasheet view below it.

3. You can now edit the form:

   • To move between the Form view and the Datasheet view, press F6 or Shift+F6.

   • To move between fields in the Form view, press the Tab key or Shift+Tab key.

   • To move between rows and columns in the Datasheet view, use the arrow keys.

Add an input mask to a control

You set up an input mask to make sure only correctly formatted data is accepted by your form. For more information on input masks, see Control data entry formats with input masks.

1. When viewing a form, press F6 until you hear "Status bar," then press the Right arrow key until you hear "Design view," and press Enter.

2. Navigate to the control in your form that you want to add the input mask to.

3. Press Shift+F10 to open the context menu, then press the Down arrow key until you hear "Properties," and then press Enter to open the Property Sheet pane.

4. Press F6 to move the focus to the Property Sheet pane, then press Shift+Tab to move to the tab bar at the top of the pane.

5. Press the Right arrow key until you hear "All, tab item," and then press the Tab key to move out of the tab bar.

6. Press the Down arrow key until you hear "Row 57."

7. Enter the input mask you want to use. For more information on the input mask format, see About input masks.

See also

Use a screen reader to start Access

Use a screen reader to create tables in Access desktop databases

Use a screen reader to create a query in Access desktop databases

Technical Support for customers with disabilities

Microsoft wants to provide the best possible experience for all our customers. If you have a disability or questions related to accessibility, please contact the Microsoft Disability Answer Desk for technical assistance. The Disability Answer Desk support team is trained in using many popular assistive technologies and can offer assistance in English, Spanish, French, and American Sign Language. Please go to the Microsoft Disability Answer Desk site to find out the contact details for your region.

If you are a government, commercial, or enterprise user, please contact the enterprise Disability Answer Desk.