A certified translation in the UK is a translation that arrives with a signed statement confirming it is a true and accurate translation of the original document. That is the whole idea, and it is deliberately simple: the receiving organisation needs to know who did the work, when, and how to contact them.
What trips people up is assuming there is one national standard. There is not. The UK has no register of sworn translators and no single certification body, so the requirements come from whoever receives the document. The Home Office, a county court, a university admissions office and the GMC each ask for slightly different things.
What the Home Office and UKVI check
For applications where documents are not in English or Welsh, Home Office guidance requires a translation that carries:
- a statement confirming the translation is accurate
- the date of translation
- the translator’s full name and signature
- the translator’s or translation company’s contact details
Some routes also ask for the translator’s qualifications or the company’s credentials. The point of all four items is verification: a caseworker must be able to contact the person who signed it. A translation with a signature but no contact details is the most common reason a document gets queried.
The rules differ by route, so the current guidance for your application takes precedence over any general guide, including this one. For the wider document requirements, see our Home Office certified translations page.
What the courts ask for
Court filings are different again. HM Courts and Tribunals do not maintain a list of approved translators, and the Civil Procedure Rules do not create a blanket sworn-translation requirement. What a court normally wants is a translation with a signed Statement of Truth, confirming the translation is accurate and complete, plus the translator’s details.
That statement is prepared when the file is going to court, not as a default. If you are filing a bundle, tell us at the point of order and the statement travels with the translation. More on the format is on our court translation page.
Organisations with their own rules
Several bodies publish requirements that override the general position. The ones we see most often:
- HM Passport Office, for foreign documents supporting a passport application
- UK ENIC (formerly NARIC), for statements of comparability on overseas qualifications
- GMC, GDC, NMC and GPhC, for registration of overseas clinicians
- DVLA, for foreign driving licences and supporting evidence
- Companies House, for overseas corporate documents
Where a body names a format, we follow it. Where it accepts a certified translation without specifying one, our standard certification covers it.
What a certified translation costs
A single-page document starts at £40. Longer files are priced from £0.09 per word after the first 400 words, so a three-page contract is quoted on length rather than per page. Notarisation, apostille and courier costs are quoted separately because each is a third-party step with its own fee.
See certified translation prices for the current rates and a worked example.
How long it takes
Single-page documents are usually finished the same day when the order and cleared payment arrive before 4pm on a working day. Later and weekend orders start on the next working day. Notarisation and apostille add time after the translation is complete, because the notary and the FCDO set their own timetables.
Why a translation gets queried
In practice, rejections and requests for further evidence come from a short list of avoidable problems:
- no contact details for the translator or company
- no date, or a date that does not match the application
- the translator’s name missing, or an unsigned certificate page
- pages, stamps, seals or handwritten amendments left out of the translation
- names transliterated inconsistently with the passport
- formatting that no longer matches the original, so the caseworker cannot match line by line
Our certification page carries the name, the date and contact details, and the translation mirrors the original layout, including notes in square brackets where a stamp or seal appears.
Notarisation and apostille, only when required
Certification is not the same as notarisation, and neither is the same as legalisation. A notarised translation has the translator’s or company’s signature witnessed by a UK notary. An FCDO apostille legalises a UK signature or seal for use abroad. Adding either when the receiving office has not asked for it is money spent for nothing.
Questions we are asked most
Is a certified translation the same as an official translation?
In UK practice, yes. Official translation is the phrase people use when a form asks for a translation they can rely on, and what the receiving office checks is the signed certification.
Do I need to send the original document?
No. A clear scan or photograph of every page is enough, including covers, stamps and any apostille page. Originals are only needed where a notary must see them.
Can I translate my own document?
No. UK bodies expect an independent third party, and a self-translation gives the receiving office nothing to verify.
Does a certified translation expire?
The certification does not carry an expiry date, but the receiving organisation may require a translation produced within a certain period. Check the instructions for your application.
Can you certify a document in a language you do not list?
Ask. We work across more than 200 languages, and the certification is the same regardless of the pair.
References
- GOV.UK, guide to supporting documents for visiting the UK, including translation requirements
- GOV.UK, Student and Child Student caseworker guidance
- GOV.UK, certifying a document, which explains certification and its limits
- GOV.UK, get your document legalised, for FCDO apostille eligibility, fees and timings
- Ministry of Justice, Civil Procedure Rules Part 32, on evidence in civil proceedings
Guidance changes. The current instructions issued by the organisation receiving your document take precedence over anything written here. This page is general information, not legal advice.