Translation certification

We can provide you and your company with certified translations of contracts, certificates and other important documents from and into any language within our portfolio.  

Our qualified translators have all the necessary formal qualifications to produce certified translations, and are extremely precise and accurate in the translation of contracts, deeds, procedural documents and other legal documents. 

• What are notarized translations? 

• Notarial certification of documents 

• What documents need to be certified? 

• Sworn translators and interpreters 

• The apostille: an internationally recognized form of certification 

• We provide certified translations in all language pairs 

• Certified translation costs 

Request support for your certified translation now

For companies

What are notarized translations? 

What is colloquially referred to in Germany as a "certified translation" is, strictly speaking, something else entirely: rather than being a certification in the legal sense, it is the confirmation of the correctness and completeness of the translation by a (usually) court-appointed translator.  

"Sworn translator” is another frequently used term. In fact, the details are subject to state sovereignty and, in Germany, are regulated by the respective state laws. In Baden Württemberg, for example, such "certified translations” are produced by publicly appointed sworn translators. 

In a nutshell, however, it is true to say that certified translations are produced by sworn, publicly appointed or generally authorized translators and meet a number of formal criteria. For example, they must be clearly identified as certified translations in the heading, which also includes a note as to whether the document in question is a translation of the original, a certified or an uncertified document. Certified translations are only considered official if they contain the certification formula, place and date, signature and translator’s stamp. 

In anglophone countries, the so-called certified translation corresponds most closely to the German notarized translation. 

Notarial certification of documents 

A notarial certification is sometimes obtained or required in addition to the certified translation. In this case, a notary confirms that the translator's details are correct and that the signature is genuinely that of the person concerned, 

but gives no guarantee whatsoever as to the quality, correctness or completeness of the translation. It only confirms formal criteria concerning the translator (and possibly his or her qualifications). 

In the Anglophone world there is the so-called notarized translation, which roughly corresponds to the German notarization. 

What documents need to be certified? 

The documents that require authentication may vary from country to country. Certified translations may be necessary for a wide variety of certificates, deeds, legal documents and contracts used in international legal correspondence, including: 

• Diplomas and certificates from universities 

• School leaving certificates 

• Birth certificates 

• Marriage certificates 

• Contracts and agreements 

• Expert reports 

• Judicial documents 

The certified translation of documents may also be required in the case of work-related immigration, especially from non-EU countries. For example, if your company were to recruit a highly qualified specialist from abroad and you needed help with the official procedures. EHLION will provide you with competent and reliable support for all necessary translations.

Request support for your certified translation now

For companies

Sworn translators and interpreters 

EHLION can offer you professional and competent support, providing sworn translators and interpreters who work on behalf of companies, authorities, legal firms and notaries. 

Our sworn interpreters can provide simultaneous or consecutive interpretation services during court hearings, police interrogations and sworn statements. Our sworn translators translate contracts, court documents and deeds into the desired language and produce certified translations. 

While the requirements and formulations vary between the different German federal states, in general all sworn or authorized translators and interpreters will have taken an oath at a court or before an official authority. As a rule, they will have also proven their professional competence and personal aptitude and will have sworn an oath to produce faithful and conscientious translations into the respective foreign language. 

The formal and personal requirements include: 

• a diploma or master’s degree 

• or a state examination for the respective foreign language, in addition to 

• many years of experience as a translator/interpreter, 

• evidence that their financial situation is in good order, 

• a police certificate of good conduct, and 

• assurance of confidentiality and impartiality 

The apostille as an international form of authentication 

Under the Hague Convention, the so-called apostille represents a special form of authentication which can simplify the international legal process. However, it applies only in those states that have ratified the Hague Convention, and only to so-called authentic instruments. 

An apostille confirms, so to speak, a document’s certified character, or the authenticity of the respective document. A given form is used to confirm, among other things, who issued or confirmed the certificate, when and in which country. The Convention regulates which documents are considered to be an "authentic instruments". 

Apostilles also bear a clearly identifiable reference number, and the relevant authorities responsible for issuing the apostilles are obliged by law to maintain a register or index. 

Certified translations in all language pairs 

EHLION offers support with certified translations from and into all languages within our portfolio. 

Do you need your university certificate recognized based on a certified translation from English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, Dutch, Japanese or Chinese? Or do you need a notarial certification for your birth certificate? Our sworn translators for the desired language pair will translate your document reliably and professionally, in a faithful and conscientious manner. 

Or maybe you need an agreement to be translated into Italian, Lithuanian or Polish? EHLION’s professional translators will produce an expert translation of any document into the desired language, and will ensure that all requirements for the desired certification are fulfilled. 

Costs for certified translations 

Calculating the costs of producing a certified translation will require a precise analysis of the material in question, taking into account, among other things, text length, typesetting and file format, source and target languages, as well as a number of other factors. Need a certified translation of a specific document and want to know the exact costs? 

Request support for your certified translation now

For companies