A frequent request we receive from private individuals is for a "certified", "official" or "legal" translation. We can deal with all...
What is a certified translation?
A certified translation is a translation that has been formally verified for use as an official document. Documents that may require a certified translation include certificates (birth, marriage, divorce, academic, etc), official transcripts (such as school, work, medical related reports, etc), regulatory documents (power of attorney, contracts, etc) and many others.
How can a translation be certified?
A translation can be certified in different ways. The service depends on the nature of the document and who requires it. It is important to check what is meant by a "certified translation" from the organisation requesting it.
For most purposes, a certified translation comes in 3 forms:
1. A qualified (sometimes known as a "sworn") translator (i.e. a member of the Institute of Translation and Interpreting) may translate your document and then sign a certificate stating that they have carried out the translation.
2. A translation agency can carry out the translation and provide a certificate attesting that the translation is accurate.
3. A translation can also be notarised before a Notary Public or Notary Scrivener (usually listed in Yellow Pages). In such cases you would need to request the attendance of a translator at an office to carry this out.
You can read the Association of Translation Company's document on this here > ATC Certified Translations.
How long will it take and at what cost?
The cost of a certified translation very much depends on the type of document you have and the length. We charge per 1000 words - our price list is available at Translation Prices. We also operate a minimum charge of £50 + VAT.
Kindly note we can only ever confirm costs once we have the document(s) before us.
Short translations will usually take around 3 days - very often the next day. In addition to the time it takes to translate the document you must also factor in the time it would take to post the translation plus certificate. For this reason we advise customers it can take 3-5 working days.
What do I do now?
Simply contact us. To offer a quote all we need is to see the document(s) which can be scanned and emailed, faxed or photocopied and posted.
If you have any questions, then we will walk you through the steps you need to take and arrange everything for you.
