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WCAG 2.1.2 No Keyboard Trap

WCAG 2.1 Success Criterion 2.1.2 requires users who move keyboard focus into a component to be able to move it away with a keyboard interface. When a component uses an unfamiliar exit command, users also need instructions for that command.

OpenKeyNav mode exits​

  • Escape leaves Click Mode and Move Mode.
  • Q is the default alternate exit for temporary modes.
  • Alt + R reliably exits Structural Navigation.
  • Shift + O turns the OpenKeyNav command layer off.

When an application configures these keys, keep the resulting exits available, documented, and free from conflicts with the host application and supported assistive technologies.

OpenKeyNav
Provides documented keyboard exits from its interaction modes and Structural Navigation.
You
Preserve those exits, document configured commands, and verify that users can leave every application component.

ResultUsers can move into, through, and away from the complete interface with a keyboard.

Verification checklist​

  1. Enter and exit each OpenKeyNav mode from every target type and application state.
  2. Confirm that exiting removes labels, mode indicators, and temporary movement state.
  3. Confirm that focus remains visible and useful after exit.
  4. Test dialogs, composite widgets, editors, embedded content, and scrollable regions for traps created by the host application.
  5. Place instructions before any component that requires an unfamiliar exit command.
  6. Repeat the tests with screen readers, speech input, switch interfaces, and supported browsers.