PDF Tag Tree Order Reversed from Layer Order Affecting ATS Compatibility

[Flatness1210]

Environment:

• MacOS 14.1 on an M1 pro
• Affinity Publisher version 2.2.1

Description: When exporting a document to PDF, the reading order (tag tree) is being set in reverse order to the layer stacking order within Affinity Publisher. This creates significant issues for text-based documents, particularly CVs, where Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) read the document content in reverse, starting from the bottom to the top.

Steps to Reproduce:

1. Create a document in Affinity Publisher with multiple text layers.
2. Stack the layers in the logical reading order (e.g., Header at the topmost layer, followed by Experience, Education, etc.).
3. Export the document to a PDF.
4. Open the exported PDF in Adobe Acrobat Pro and view the tag tree structure.

Expected Result: The tag tree order in the exported PDF should reflect the visual and logical reading order as laid out in Affinity Publisher.

Actual Result: The tag tree order in the exported PDF is reversed relative to the layer stacking order in Affinity Publisher, leading to a bottom-to-top reading sequence.

Reproducibility: The issue is reproducible every time a document is exported to PDF from Affinity Publisher with multiple layers.

Impact: This bug significantly affects professionals creating documents for job applications, as the reversed reading order severely impacts the ATS's ability to correctly parse and interpret the document content. It potentially hinders job seekers' chances due to misread qualifications and experience.

Attachments:

• Screenshots of the layer order in Affinity Publisher.
• The exported PDF showing the reversed tag tree order.

Workarounds: Currently, the only workaround is to manually adjust the layer order in reverse before exporting, which is counterintuitive and time-consuming.

Notes: The issue seems to be related to how Affinity Publisher structures the internal PDF objects upon export. A clear and correct tag tree is essential for accessibility and ATS parsing, and thus it is critical that the export functionality in Affinity Publisher aligns with standard document structure expectations.

orderCorrect.afpub orderCorrect.pdf

[MikeTO]

Hi, it's working as designed. Affinity orders content from bottom of the layer stack to the top. It works this way due to overlapping layers - if layer 1 is on top of layer 2 then layer 1 must come after layer 2.

I think if you take this into account you'll have no difficulty making your documents output the way you expect, it's just that you wanted it to work the other way.

In any case, why not use a single text frame for a CV?

Good luck.

[Flatness1210]

Hello,

Yes, this makes sense indeed. I will have to Group in a different way and reorder. A single text frame makes the placement and stylizing more difficult.

 

Thank you for the quick response.