1. You need to send me the the original document or a facsimile of it by normal post or a scanned version by e-mail. You may choose to send valuable original documents by registered mail and tell me if you wish me to return them by registered mail to you as well.
If I do not have the complete text, I cannot send you a quote.

2. I will send you a quote including price and duration.

3. You need to pay the invoice amount by bank transfer or PayPal. If the translation is needed very urgently, you can send me the transfer receipt by e-mail in order to speed up the process. I will provide you with a proper invoice.

4. I will translate your document and acknowledge that the translation is accurate and complete by applying the official stamp, signature and certification note (this is referred to as the actual “certification”). I will put a note onto the translation saying whether I have received the document as an original document, as a certified or as a simple facsimile (in order to find out whether you need to submit the original for translation or whether a copy is sufficient, please do contact the institution, to which you wish to submit the translation, ). As required by law, I will attach a copy of the original to the translation in an inseparable way.

5. I will send you the translation and your original by post. If you prefer, I can return the documents to you by registered mail and/or send you an uncertified copy by e-mail.

PLEASE NOTE: I do need to see the complete document in oder to prepare a quote for you.

Certified translations are invoiced on the basis of the number of standard lines in the target text and the specifications of the German law about the remuneration of translators (one standard line corresponds to 55 keystrokes including spaces). For particularly complex formatting I charge a up to 30% extra.

My quote includes all costs, surcharges, shipping fees, and taxes.

Certified translations are required by government agencies, state authorities, universities and other institutions. They are executed by a number of certain special translators who are authorized to do so by a German court. Translators who wish to offer this kind of “official translations” must prove to the court that they have perfect language skills, sound knowledge of the legal terminology and their personal aptitude. In addition, they have to swear an oath (hence the word “sworn”, which is “beeidigt” in German). Apart from this, the law requires sworn translators to ensure absolute secrecy. Officially, they are called publicly appointed and sworn translators (in German, there are actually three terms: allgemein beeidigt, öffentlich bestellt or ermächtigt, all of them meaning more or less the same thing.)

A special goodie for language enthusiasts: Incidentally, the common German term beglaubigte Übersetzung for certified translation is a bit misleading. Only notaries and state authorities can execute a Beglaubigung of a document, which in the legal sense of the word means to confirm that it is a genuine document. The translator's certification, which in German is often referred to as Beglaubigung, is actually just the translator's acknowledgement that the translation is correct and complete. This is done by means of the prescribed certification note, the official stamp and the signature of the sworn (not certified!) translator.

Certified translations by sworn translators who were authorised by a German court are generally recognised throughout all of Germany. However, some government agencies and courts require translations from translators who were authorised in their federal state of Germany. Institutions in other countries may require a translation to be executed by a sworn translator who is resident in the respective country.

Please do make sure you do not have to order (and pay for) the translation twice by asking the government agency or institution for whom you need the document, whether they accept a translation by a translator sworn in Germany or in the federal state of Saxony.

Since I am a sworn translator authorized by a Germany court, I can only execute sworn translations from or into German. I cannot offer sworn translations from English into Polish or vice versa.