Preparing document translations for an immigration application

There are two options in current IRCC guidance.

Option 1. Certified translator

An Express Entry Certified Translator is a person who has a current, unrestricted membership in a professional translator association in Canada or another country.

Its status is confirmed by a seal or stamp with a membership number.

When applying via Express Entry:

• translation must be into English or French;
• seals and stamps in another language are also translated;
• a scan of the original document is attached;
• if the translator worked with a certified copy, this copy is attached.

With this option, a separate affidavit from the translator is not required under the current Express Entry instructions.

IRCC also allows a short letter stating that a separate affidavit is not needed because a certified interpreter was used.

Option 2. Translator without such certification

Under current Express Entry guidelines, this option is used if the translation cannot be completed by a certified translator.

Then the translation requires a sworn statement from the translator about the accuracy of the translation (affidavit).

This statement must clearly state:

• the translation itself;
• the original document from which it was made.

The original document or a certified copy is also attached if the translation was made from such a copy.

Not every translation agency automatically fits this definition.

For the current Express Entry statement it is useful to check:

• translator's name;
• name of the professional association;
• membership number;
• seal or stamp;
• the ability to link the confirmation of status specifically to your translation.

If the agency simply writes “certified translation” on the form, this in itself is not enough to understand the status of a particular translator.

A translator who is in the process of obtaining certification is not considered a certified translator under current Express Entry guidelines.

Even if a person knows the language well.

In the current Express Entry instruction, translation cannot do:

• the applicant himself;
• a member of the applicant's family;
• a representative or consultant of the applicant, even if he is also a translator, lawyer or notary.

For another program, the list of restrictions may be formulated differently, so you need to check its instructions.

This is a sworn statement by the translator, and not just a signature on the translation.

In the statement, the translator confirms the accuracy of the translation.

The translator signs it in the presence of a person who has the right to take such an oath.

According to the current Express Entry instructions:

In Canada

This could be, for example:

• notary;
• commissioner of oaths;
• commissioner of taking affidavits.

Outside Canada

IRCC specifies a notary or equivalent authorized person.

Authorizations vary by country, so local regulations should be checked separately.

The main thing:

Such a statement is necessary not because the document is foreign, but because the chosen translation method requires additional confirmation from the translator.

This is a copy that has been compared with the original by an authorized person.

IRCC calls it certified photocopy.

Such copy shall indicate, among other things:

• name and signature of the certifying person;
• his position or status;
• title of the source document;
• date of certification;
• confirmation that the copy matches the original.

For Express Entry, such a copy is not always needed

If the translator worked with the original, the current instructions allow you to upload a scan of the original.

If the translation was made from a certified copy, you need to upload this certified copy.

Therefore the rule:

“for each translation it is necessary to first have a notarized copy” - not universal.

But if a particular program specifically requires a certified copy, you need to follow its instructions.

The general article and the instructions for a specific program can be worded differently.

Canada.ca has:

• general Help Center;
• instructions for specific programs;
• personal lists of documents;
• separate rules for different submission methods.

For example:

• the general Help Center now talks about translation, affidavit and certified copy unless otherwise advised by IRCC;
• detailed Express Entry instructions allow the option of using a certified interpreter without an affidavit.

Therefore, when preparing documents:

1. determine the exact program and type of feed;
2. open its current instructions;
3. check your personal list of documents if it has already been generated;
4. Only then assemble the translation package.

There is no need to automatically add notarial acts “just in case” if your filing does not require them.

For Express Entry, yes, as long as they are not in English or French.

Current Express Entry regulations specifically require translation of such seals and stamps.

It is therefore a mistake to translate the main text of the certificate but leave the following untranslated:

• organization seal;
• stamp on the back;
• additional entry;
• note from the authority that issued the document.

If part of the text is difficult to read, you should not invent content.

The translator should work only with what is actually visible in the document.

See if all the necessary information is in English or French.

Sometimes a document is immediately issued in two or three languages.

If all relevant information is already fully and formally presented in English or French, a separate translation of the same information may not be necessary.

But check separately:

• printing;
• stamps;
• handwritten marks;
• applications;
• reverse side;
• text that is only present in a third language.

For Express Entry, untranslated seals and stamps in another language must be translated.

A notary can participate in the process, but his role must be understood precisely.

In different countries, “notarized translation” means different procedures.

For IRCC, it is not the everyday name of the service that matters, but whether the requirements for a particular submission are met.

A notary can, for example:

• certify a copy of the document;
• accept the translator's statement under oath;
• perform another role as permitted by local law.

But the phrase “the translation is notarized” by itself does not answer the questions:

• who translated;
• is the translator certified;
• Is an affidavit required?
• from which document the translation was made;
• whether the correct source document is attached.

The order should help the officer quickly see the connection between the documents.

If the portal provides one upload field for a document, it is convenient to combine the materials into one understandable PDF.

This is not a universally required IRCC sequence, but it is practical to use this order.

If the translator is certified

1. translation;
2. a separate page confirming the translator’s status, if the agency uses it;
3. the original document or certified copy from which the translation was made.

If you need an affidavit

1. translation;
2. sworn statement;
3. the original document or certified copy from which the translation was made.

Main task:

The officer should be able to easily understand which pages refer to the same document.

Check not the bureau logo, but the entire chain.

The agency may have a standard template, a general seal, a separate translator confirmation page, or firmware.

The same template in different translations in itself is not a problem.

Another thing is more important:

• Is it clear who exactly made the translation;
• is it possible to check the status of the translator;
• is it clear which document the confirmation relates to;
• whether the translator's affidavit is related to the specific translation and the source document;
• Is each document assembled into a separate, understandable set?

If a separate confirmation page looks like it could be attached to any translation, it is worth asking the agency to make the connection to a specific document more obvious.

This is a practical design improvement and not a separate universal IRCC requirement.

1. Do not translate the document yourself. For Express Entry, the applicant cannot be his or her own translator.
2. Do not ask a relative to translate the document. Even if the relative knows the language professionally, current Express Entry rules prohibit this option.
3. Do not consider any agency to be a certified translator. You need to understand the status of a particular translator.
4. Do not automatically make a translator affidavit. If the translation was performed by a certified translator, the current Express Entry instructions do not require a separate affidavit.
5. Do not automatically certify all copies. First, check to see if your submission specifically requires a certified copy.
6. Do not leave seals untranslated. For Express Entry, IRCC expressly requires seals and stamps to be translated into another language.
7. Do not use machine translation as an official translation. Google Translate, ChatGPT or other machine translation does not replace the translator and confirmation required by IRCC.
8. Do not assemble pages in such a way that it is unclear what goes with what. The relationship source document → translation → translator's confirmation should be obvious.

A separate check is especially useful if:

• you have several different translation agencies;
• the translator's confirmation is placed on a separate standard page;
• the translator's affidavit looks the same for several documents;
• the document is bilingual or trilingual;
• some of the seals have not been translated;
• the bureau does not display the translator's membership number;
• the translation was made outside of Canada and it is unclear who has the right to take the affidavit;
• the document has already been certified by a notary, but it is not clear whether a sworn statement from the translator is still needed;
• you need to combine many pages in one download field;
• Your program's instructional requirements differ from the general IRCC Help Center.