The International Symbol of Access (ISA), also known as the International Wheelchair Symbol, denotes areas where access has been improved, mostly for those with disabilities. It consists of a usually blue square overlaid in white (or in contrasting colours) with a stylized image of a person in a wheelchair. It is maintained as the international standard ISO 7001, image of the International Commission on Technology and Accessibility (ICTA), a committee of Rehabilitation International (RI).

In the late 1960s, with the rise of universal design, there grew a need for a symbol to identify accessible facilities. In 1968, Norman Acton, President of Rehabilitation International (RI), tasked Karl Montan, chairman of the International Commission of Technology and Accessibility (ICTA), to develop a symbol as a technical aid and present in the group's 1969 World Congress convention in Dublin.

The project was arranged with the Scandinavian Students Organization (SDO) in Konstfack's College of Arts. The symbol which would become the ISA was designed by Danish design student Susanne Koefoed. She presented an early version of the symbol at the July 1968 exhibition held during the end of the SDO seminar. Koefoed's symbol depicts a stickfigure on a wheelchair. It is influenced by the contemporary design movement of Scandinavia in the 20th century, especially that of Austrian-American designer and lecturer Victor Papanek.

The committee founded by Montan selected Koefoed's sketch alongside five other symbols. The revised design was modified with the addition of a circle for a head to give the impression of a seated figure, as Montan noted: "a slight inconvenience with the symbol is the equally thick lines, which may give an impression of a monogram of letters. With a 'head' on the symbol this inconvenience would disappear". This was done without Koefoed's knowledge according to her own recounting.

The design was made public in 1969 and was widely promoted around Sweden. It was approved in the conference, gained prominence and usage through convenient signage created by 3M Corporation, and was later incorporated into the ISO 7001 standard published by the International Organization for Standardization. In 1974, it was formally accepted by the United Nations in an experts' meeting on disability.

The symbol is often seen where access has been improved, particularly for wheelchair users, but also for other disability issues. Frequently, the symbol denotes the removal of environmental barriers, such as steps, which also helps older people, parents with baby carriages, and travellers. Universal design aims to obviate such symbols by creating products and facilities that are accessible to nearly all users from the start. The wheelchair symbol is "international" and therefore not accompanied by Braille in any particular language.

Specific uses of the ISA include:

Building codes such as the California Building Code, require "a white figure on a blue background. The blue shall be equal to Color No. 15090 in Federal Standard 595B."