Access for low vision symbol

An eye paired with a hand or text, marking provision for partial sight.

Also known as: Low vision symbol, Partial sight symbol, Low vision access

AccessibilityEveryday & digitalStandard profile

Meanings

The low vision access symbol marks provision made for people who have some sight but not enough for ordinary print or displays — magnification, tactile guidance, or a described tour. It covers the large territory between full sight and no sight, which is where most sight loss actually sits.

Officially standardisedVerified fact
Indicates provision for people with low vision, such as a magnified, tactile or described version of an exhibit, display or document.
Contexts: Public information
Common modern usageVerified fact
Addresses partial sight rather than blindness: most people registered with sight loss retain some useful vision, and the provisions this symbol marks are built around using it.
Contexts: Public information
Common modern usageCommon usage
Varies in drawing between implementations, commonly pairing an eye with a hand reaching toward text or an exhibit.
No single canonical artwork is asserted here.
Contexts: Public information

Visual description

An almond outline with a round pupil at its centre, shown beside or above a hand reaching toward a panel of text.

Symmetry: none
Orientation: upright

Confidence

IdentityHigh confidence: High confidence because the identity is defined by a current official standard.
Historical originModerate confidence: Moderate confidence because the historical origin is documented in encyclopedic references, but early or supporting evidence is limited, but the regional or cultural match to this specific claim is not precise.
Current useHigh confidence: High confidence because the current use is defined by a current official standard.
Visual matchHigh confidence: High confidence because the visual match relies on informal or self-published sources.

Sources

Vision impairment
Wikipedia · retrieved 2026-07-31
Tertiary reference. Used for widely-agreed identity, origin summary and adoption context, not for contested detail or exact dates.
Disability Access Symbols
Graphic Artists Guild · retrieved 2026-07-31
The Guild is the issuing body for this set and defines each symbol, so it is authoritative for what these marks mean and how they are drawn. It is not a standards organisation: the set is a voluntary design resource with no legal force, and displaying a symbol from it is not evidence that any legal accessibility obligation has been met.

Last reviewed 2026-07-31

Part of

Accessibility and assistive-provision symbols

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Meanings

Officially standardisedVerified fact

Indicates provision for people with low vision, such as a magnified, tactile or described version of an exhibit, display or document.

Contexts: Public information

Common modern usageVerified fact

Addresses partial sight rather than blindness: most people registered with sight loss retain some useful vision, and the provisions this symbol marks are built around using it.

Contexts: Public information

Common modern usageCommon usage

Varies in drawing between implementations, commonly pairing an eye with a hand reaching toward text or an exhibit.

No single canonical artwork is asserted here.

Contexts: Public information

Confidence

IdentityHigh confidence: High confidence because the identity is defined by a current official standard.
Historical originModerate confidence: Moderate confidence because the historical origin is documented in encyclopedic references, but early or supporting evidence is limited, but the regional or cultural match to this specific claim is not precise.
Current useHigh confidence: High confidence because the current use is defined by a current official standard.
Visual matchHigh confidence: High confidence because the visual match relies on informal or self-published sources.

Sources

Vision impairment
Wikipedia · retrieved 2026-07-31
Tertiary reference. Used for widely-agreed identity, origin summary and adoption context, not for contested detail or exact dates.
Disability Access Symbols
Graphic Artists Guild · retrieved 2026-07-31
The Guild is the issuing body for this set and defines each symbol, so it is authoritative for what these marks mean and how they are drawn. It is not a standards organisation: the set is a voluntary design resource with no legal force, and displaying a symbol from it is not evidence that any legal accessibility obligation has been met.

Last reviewed 2026-07-31