Certified, sworn or notarized translation: What's the difference?

There is a subtle (but still worth mentioning) distinction, and since I've noticed a lot of confusion regarding certified, sworn and notarized translations, both among those who request them as well as among the translators themselves, I decided to write this article in the hopes of making the topic more comprehensible. So, let's dive in.

Often times, when it comes to translating official documents, you will encounter terms such as certified or sworn translator and certified, sworn or notarized translations, which can be indeed confusing. Let's start with what it means to be a certified or sworn translator.

A certified translator is a translator whose knowledge, expertise and proficiency have been evaluated by a qualified jury through a written exam in a specific language combination (such as English into Portuguese and Portuguese into English) and sometimes even a specific domain (such as legal). In Portugal, this is done by the Portuguese Association of Translators (APT). In other countries, such as the U.S., the assessment and certification process falls within the competence of the American Translators Association (ATA). Whether we are talking about APT-Certified Translators or ATA-Certified Translators, the truth of the matter is that this kind of credential makes all the difference. Why? You may ask. Well, first of all, it means that the translator is experienced and qualified, otherwise they wouldn't have passed the exam. Second of all, it also means they are proficient in the language combination they were evaluated for. And last but not least, it also shows they mean business.

A sworn translator is a translator who has been authorized by the government or a court to provide legal translations. This is the case for example in France, Germany, Italy, Spain and Brazil, where, following a rigorous examination, translators take an oath, hence the name sworn. So, you could say that a sworn translator is a certified translator as well.

The first clear distinction between the two categories of translators is the body granting them accreditation. Nevertheless, both certified and sworn translators gain the right to use an official/authorized stamp and seal stating their name, credentials and language combination in order to certify their own translations. Also, both are usually added to an official court list of approved translators. However, the real distinction lies in the translations they are able to provide. See, sworn translations have legal validity and are recognized as official translations. On the other hand, certified translations do not hold legal value on their own. For that to happen, certified translations need to be notarized. This is usually done by a notary public, although under the Portuguese legislation, in Portugal other entities (such as a lawyer, a solicitor, or a Chamber of Commerce) have the power to place a translation at the same legal level as the original document. It is important to note that only the translator can certify that their translation is a true and complete representation of the original. The third parties mentioned above merely confirm the translator’s identity, credentials (if any) and signature. They do not attest to the accuracy of the translation. And why is that? There are two main reasons that come to mind right away.

As authors of the translation (and taking into account the fact that translation is an intelectual activity), translators acquire specific rights in that matter, namely:

- to be the holder of copyright and consequently have the same privileges as the author of the original work, which means they are entitled to proper acknowledgement and legal protection of their work, therefore third parties cannot take credit for something they didn't do, nor they can give their opinion on the accuracy of the translation, unless the translator agrees to it;

- to modify the translation;

- to authorize its publication, presentation or re-translation;

- to be entitled to remuneration;

- to prohibit any improper use of their translation;

among many other rights, according to Section II of the Translator's Charter as approved by the International Federation of Translators. I will be talking about this more on some other time.

There are many situations in which a person may need to request a certified, sworn or notarized translation. These include when dealing with: Government entities, educational institutions, authorities, courts, insurance companies, hospitals, banks, airlines, etc. This is not an exhaustive list, but if you're applying for a visa, green card, naturalization, or residence permit, if you're looking to have your diploma, certificate, or academic transcript recognized in another country, if you're facing criminal charges, if you're getting married, filing for divorce, or adopting a child, if you're receiving treatment and therefore need your medical records translated in another language so doctors can assist you properly, if you're planning to open a bank account or travel abroad, or whatever the case may be, you will probably need a certified, sworn or notarized translation of your documents, depending on the case, i.e. the requesting body and the country at issue.