Why a translation prepared in Brazil may not be accepted in the USA

Let us say you went through the trouble of spending thousands of reais having your academic and personal documents translated by a "tradutor juramentado" in Brazil. Then you find out that the money was just wasted, because the documents were not accepted in the USA.

Frustrating and costly, isn't it?

What is the reason for this?

In Brazil, a Tradutor Juramentado has public faith, meaning that a document signed by him/her, as long as executed in his/her letterhead, should be accepted in Brazil. The trouble is, the Tradutor Juramentado is not a recognized "authority" in the USA as in Brazil.

In the USA, the translator's signature always must be notarized by a third party U.S. notary. Notice this, a US notary, not a Brazilian one.

That means that without a U.S. notary signature, the translations done by the Tradutor Juramentado might be considered worthless in the USA.

Adding insult to injury, Brazil is not the signatory of the 1962 Hague Convention, meaning that the only way to ensure such documents are accepted in the USA is to submit them to consular legalization in Brazil, which costs US$ 30.00 per document.

As certified translations of academic documents done in Brazil are generally more expensive than what Legal Translation Systems charge, the additional US$30.00 per document makes them even more costly.

To obtain further information about academic document translations, visit http://www.legaltranslationsystems.com

What is a certified translation

 

A certified translation in the United States is a translation that is prepared by a competent translator, accompanied by a document called an affidavit of accuracy. An affidavit of accuracy is a notarized statement whereby the competent translator assumes responsibility for the content of the translation (not the authenticity of the original, by the way). This affidavit of accuracy should be prepared in the translation company's letterhead.

Additionally, the translation cannot be prepared by the notary him(herself). This will result in the rejection of the translation.

Legal Translation Systems meets and exceeds these standards. In addition to providing the notarized affidavit of accuracy, since June of 2010 the authenticity of our affidavits can be verified on the internet by thde recipient authority. our translations also come with a seal. Our affidavits are also numbered.

http://www.legaltranslationsystems.com

Additional copies of Certified Translations

 

It is a very good idea to always order additional copies of your translations, to avert possible loss or misplacement of documents. Additionally, you might have to submit the documents in the future.

 

Legal Translation Systems makes additional copies of translations available at only US$20.00 per copy, regardless of the number of pages the document might have. Basically, you just pay for the cost of issuance of the affidavit.

 

An additional copy looks just like an original. The affidavit has a different number, and does not look like a copy at all.

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What is a word by word translation?

 

International students are required to provide translated academic documents, when these are not in English. Often the requirement states that the translation must be done "word by word".

The reason for the requirement is that translations cannot be interpretative, they must not attempt to interpret the academic equivalence of the document to the American system. Grades, credits and averages must be stated as provided in the original document. If the American counterpart requires an academic equivalency, the original document PLUS the translated document prepared by Legal Translation Systems must be submitted to the Academic Equivalency agency. They will then prepare an interpretative report.

A few universities and schools do not require academic equivalencies.

Legal Translation Systems does word per word translations of academic documents from the following countries: Brazil, Canada, Portugal, Haiti, Angola, Mozambique, Italy, Spain, France, Germany, Monaco, San Marino, Austria, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, Colombia, Honduras, El Salvador, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Venezuela, Mexico, Cuba, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Panama, Suriname, Netherlands, Belgium, Romania, Aruba, Curacao, St. Maarten, Dominican Republic, Togo, Ivory Coast, Rwanda, Morocco, Mauritania, Cameroon, French Guiana, Martinique , Guadeloupe, St. Barth, St. Pierre et Miquelon, French Polynesia, Algeria, Tunisia, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Congo (Brazzaville) Democratic Republic of the Congo, Guinea Bissau, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Guinea, Madagascar, Niger, Senegal, Seychelles

http://www.legaltranslationsystems.com

Certified translations of documents from Caribbean countries and territories

 

Although many Caribbean countries product documents in English, a few do issue documents in French, Spanish or Dutch. Legal Translation Systems translates document from these three languages, from:

 

Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Cuba, Guadeloupe, St. Martin, Aruba, Curacao, Bonaire, Haiti, Saint Barthélemy, Martinique, Saint Pierre and Miquelon.

 

Among the documents we translate are birth, death, baptism, marriage and divorce certificates, diplomas and transcripts from High School, elementary School and colleges, course outlines, good conduct certificates, business documents, banking reference, income tax returns, etc.

 

For pricing, send documents to info@legaltranslationsystems.com

Our site http://www.legaltranslationsystems.com

Standards of preparation of certified translations

There are few regulations per se concerning standards of preparation of certified translations.

 

However, there are some unwritten rules as to what constitutes an acceptable or unacceptable translation.

 

Summarized translations are by and large unacceptable, unless the party requesting the translation specifically requests it. For instance, mortgage companies might actually request summarized bank statement translations, to avoid being buried in paperwork.

 

Thus, templates are also not acceptable. Some companies and individuals simply prepare templates, extracting bits and pieces of information from documents such as birth certificates, and prepare nothing more than a summarized translation. The Immigration Department (DHS) is known to frown upon such template translations, and paying money to obtain such services is wasteful.

Some information can be omitted from translated documents. For instance, of the document happens to be a form, the translator may use his/her discretion to omit sections that are not filled in. Personal documents issued in various countries, such as Brazil and Germany, can come with extensive descriptions of codes that might be used in documents. As long as any such information is decoded, it is not necessary to include such text. The important thing is to include all information that pertains to the individual or company.

 

Bad translations can also include overtranslation. For instance, translating names of cities that usually, are not translated into English, such as Sao Paulo and Buenos Aires. Thus, the translator should be cultured and experienced enough, and know what city and country names should be translated, and which should not.

 

Names of academic institutions normally are left in the original language, and may be followed by the name in parenthesis. The reason is simple - academic institutions in the USA do have lists of colleges in other countries, and translating the name into English can actually hinder the identification of the institution in the other country.

 

The least you can expect of a translator is to hold a college degree in the U.S.A. or abroad. Normally, those that do will provide the degree held (B.S., B.A., M.S, PhD, etc.) after their name. Rather unfortunately, there are some people in the business who are buying degrees from degree mills, so that if in doubt, you should ask identification of the institution that issued the degree. Institutions such as Walden University, Liberty University, etc, according to several sources, are not serious colleges.

 

Membership in professional associations, such as the ATA, and Chambers of Commerce is also a good sign. Do not be overly impressed with logos of Fortune 500 companies - a lot of companies place those logos on their sites, and might have never done any business with them.

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FAQ - Do certified translations have expiration dates?

In a nutshell, no.

Every certified translation prepared according to USA standards has a date of issue, and must be notarized by a Notary Public who had a valid accreditation from the State at the time of issue of the document. The Notary's stamp mentions the expiration of the Notary's credential, however, this has nothing to do with the translation. As long as the expiration date of the Notary's credential occurs after the date of issue of the translation you are fine.

 

Which does not mean that a U.S. counterpart may not require a more recent translation of a certain document, for a number of reasons. For instance, a recent translation of a marriage or divorce record might be required, as proof of marital status of the person, for in some countries, these documents contain marital status updates.

 

The rule of thumb is, always provide what is being requested.

http://www.legaltranslationsystems.com