Official Translations

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.

Some examples:

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 submit an application 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 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, that is to say, 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 Estonia, 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 (EUR 80.00) we apply for this country.