Element “div” is missing one or more of the following attributes: “aria-expanded”, “aria-valuemax”, “aria-valuemin”, “aria-valuenow”, “role”.

The aria-required attribute tells assistive technologies that a form field must be filled in before the form can be submitted. However, this attribute is only valid on elements that function as interactive widgets. A bare div has no implicit ARIA role, so assistive technologies have no context for what kind of input is expected. The validator flags this because an aria-required attribute on a generic div is effectively meaningless without additional ARIA attributes that define the element’s role and behavior.

This matters for several reasons:

• Accessibility: Screen readers and other assistive technologies rely on roles to understand how to present an element to users. Without a role, aria-required provides incomplete information.
• Standards compliance: The WAI-ARIA specification defines which attributes are allowed on which roles. Using aria-required without an established role violates these constraints.
• Browser behavior: Browsers may ignore or misinterpret ARIA attributes when they appear on elements that lack the proper role context.

How to fix it

Option 1: Use native semantic HTML (preferred)

Whenever possible, use native HTML form elements. They come with built-in accessibility semantics, keyboard interaction, and validation — no ARIA needed.

Replace a div with aria-required="true" with an appropriate form control using the native required attribute:

<input type="text" required>
<select required>
  <option value="">Choose one</option>
  <option value="1">Option 1</option>
</select>
<textarea required></textarea>

Option 2: Add an appropriate role attribute

When you must use a div as a custom widget (styled and enhanced with CSS and JavaScript), add the correct role attribute to give it semantic meaning. Choose the role that matches the widget’s actual behavior — don’t just pick one arbitrarily.

Common roles that support aria-required:

• combobox — a custom dropdown with text input
• listbox — a custom selection list
• radiogroup — a group of radio-like options
• spinbutton — a numeric stepper (also requires aria-valuemax, aria-valuemin, and aria-valuenow)
• textbox — a custom text input

Option 3: Add other qualifying ARIA attributes

For certain widgets like sliders or spinbuttons, you may need aria-valuemax, aria-valuemin, and aria-valuenow in addition to (or as part of) defining the role. These attributes inherently establish a widget context.

Examples

❌ Invalid: aria-required on a plain div

<div aria-required="true">
  <div data-value="One">1</div>
  <div data-value="Two">2</div>
  <div data-value="Three">3</div>
</div>

This triggers the validation error because the div has no role or other ARIA attributes to define what kind of widget it is.

✅ Fixed: Adding the appropriate role

<div aria-required="true" role="radiogroup" aria-label="Pick a number">
  <div role="radio" aria-checked="false" tabindex="0">1</div>
  <div role="radio" aria-checked="false" tabindex="0">2</div>
  <div role="radio" aria-checked="false" tabindex="0">3</div>
</div>

Adding role="radiogroup" gives the div a semantic identity. Note that child elements also need appropriate roles and attributes for the widget to be fully accessible.

✅ Fixed: Using native HTML instead

<fieldset>
  <legend>Pick a number</legend>
  <label><input type="radio" name="number" value="1" required> 1</label>
  <label><input type="radio" name="number" value="2"> 2</label>
  <label><input type="radio" name="number" value="3"> 3</label>
</fieldset>

This approach uses native radio buttons with the required attribute, eliminating the need for ARIA entirely. The browser handles accessibility, keyboard navigation, and form validation automatically.

✅ Fixed: A custom spinbutton with value attributes

<div role="spinbutton"
  aria-required="true"
  aria-valuemin="0"
  aria-valuemax="100"
  aria-valuenow="50"
  aria-label="Quantity"
  tabindex="0">
  50
</div>

For a spinbutton role, you must also provide aria-valuemin, aria-valuemax, and aria-valuenow to fully describe the widget’s state.

Learn more:

MDN Reference

MDN - aria-required

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MDN Reference

MDN - aria-expanded

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MDN Reference

MDN - aria-valuemax

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MDN Reference

MDN - aria-valuemin

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MDN Reference

MDN - aria-valuenow

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MDN Reference

MDN - WAI-ARIA roles

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GitHub Repository

W3C Validation Errors on ActifeField radioList for Yii 2 PHP framework

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