For your knowledge

What is an official translation?

As the officialization process is not globally standardized, an official translation has a different meaning in each country. This usually means an officially accepted translation performed by a professional translator approved by the competent authority in the field in each country.

The United States and United Kingdom do not use the sworn concept. Nevertheless, you may be required to provide a “certified translation” or “notarized translation.” A certified translation is a translation with a letter (“affidavit” or “certificate of accuracy”) signed and dated by the translator or translation agency, stating that the translation performed is a true version of the original.

In Canada, a certified translation is a translation by a certified translator who has successfully passed the standardized translation certification examination CTTIC (Canadian Translators, Terminologists, and Interpreters Council), or who has been registered as a certified member of a professional association in one of the provinces of Canada. The translator signs each of his or her translations with the initials TA (“traducteur agréé”) or CT (“certified translator”).

In Australia, only NAATI-accredited translators (The National Accreditation Authority for Translators and Interpreters) are allowed to produce certified translations.

In Mexico, translators must apply to the Superior Court of Justice in one of the States of the Mexican Federation and pass a written and oral exam in order to obtain the official title of the translator (“perito traductor oficial” – expert official translator) and be authorized to affix their signature and stamp to documents.

In France, a “traduction assermentée” (sworn translation) is a translation performed by a sworn translator a person who has taken an oath before a court (Superior Court or Court of Appeals) and who is officially approved to provide a translation into the language combination in question.

In Italy, our translators must personally go to Court to attest to the translation’s conformity to the original text before a public official. This explains the higher management fees (US $80) we apply for this country.

Sworn Translations

The cost and delivery time depend on the translator’s availability, language pair, volume to be translated, requested delivery date, and mailing address destination. To the sworn translation price we add shipping by express courier and the cost of fiscal stamps.

Sworn translations are sent by mail directly to your address. Please be aware that in theory, a sworn translation has legal value only in hard copy format. This includes the original document (or a photocopy) attached to the translation, both authenticated by a signature and a stamp. If all you need is a digital copy via email, we will not charge any shipping fees.

Certified Translations

For certified translations there is a fixed additional cost o of 3% of the total cost of the translation (including any revisions) for large orders. If you need to receive a hard copy of the certificate with the original stamp and signature, we will add shipping costs to the quote based on the destination.

Sworn translation in one country valid for all other countries

A translation performed by a sworn translator is usually officially recognized throughout the country in question. However, its recognition abroad can only be assessed on a case-by-case basis, according to the specific needs of the requesting authority. For example, a translation performed in France by a translator sworn before a French court will not necessarily be recognized in Australia or Canada. That is why at Translated we always strive to choose a competent translator directly in the recipient country of the document to ensure its acceptance by the local requesting authority.