LX Translation Services

2022-02-14 00:00

English Version

When applying for immigration or permanent residence, you may be asked to provide certified translations of your official documents into English or French – Canada’s two official languages.

An important step in the process of immigrating to Canada is submitting documents to support your application – for example, your birth certificate, marriage certificate, criminal record, or degrees.

This is true for permanent residence applications through Express Entry, as well as applications for work permits or family sponsorships, among many other immigration pathways.

If your documents are in a language other than English or French, they must be accompanied by an official translation of the original document in English or French. The translation will have to include seals and signatures and all elements appearing on the original document to be considered complete. The translation will also have to bear the name and signature of the translator.

What are the requirements for supporting documents that are not in English or French?

You will need to submit translations of your supporting documents if they are not in one of Canada’s official languages, and they will have to meet the requirements of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada or your application may be rejected.

When you submit documents in a language other than English or French, you must provide :

• a complete certified translation of the original document or of a certified copy of the original;
• the original document in the foreign language or a certified copy of the original document. When a certified copy of the original document is submitted, the translator must stamp both the certified copy and the translation.

If a translation cannot be provided by a certified translator, it must be accompanied by an affidavit and the original document.

You will be responsible for the cost of translations.

If, however, your documents are already in English or French they do not need to be translated, even if they are not in the language in which the application was completed. For example, if you complete your application in French, you can submit your supporting documents in English.

Who is a certified translator?

A certified translator is a person who is a member in good standing of an organization of professional translators and interpreters in Canada or abroad. A translator’s certification may be confirmed by a seal or stamp indicating his or her membership number in the professional association with which they are affiliated.

For translation in Canada, you will need to use the services of a translator who is authorized to translate documents and is in good standing with his or her provincial or territorial agency. Here are some examples:

• Ordre des traducteurs, terminologues et interprètes agréés du Québec (OTTIAQ)
• Association of Translators and Interpreters of Ontario (ATIO)
• Society of Translators and Interpreters of British Columbia (STIBC)

If, however, you are using the services of a translator outside of Canada, you must make sure that the person you are hiring is officially recognized or authorized to work as a certified translator in the country where the translation is being done.

Your translations must not be done by:

• yourself;
• a member of your family;
• your immigration representative or consultant;
• a member of your family who is a lawyer, notary, or translator is also not allowed to translate your documents.

What happens if I don’t submit translations for my documents?

Submitting documents without a translation will cost you time and money.

When IRCC receives an application that includes documents that should be accompanied by a translation but are not, you will be asked to provide it. You will also have to resubmit your application with the original documents and the corresponding certified translations.

Chinese Version

什么是加拿大认证翻译 Certified Translation？

在加拿大，提交给各个政府部门的文件可以自己翻译吗？答案是NO！不论是入籍、续枫叶卡、考驾照、入学、药费报销等等，只要是非英/法文的文件，都需要提交认证翻译件（certified translation）。在这篇问答中，我们将回答关于认证翻译的各方面问题。

– 什么是认证翻译？
认证翻译，英文是certified translation。是有资质的翻译人员做出的翻译件，在加拿大各级政府机关、学校、医院、各个行业协会等得到普遍认可。

– 谁可以做认证翻译？
经加拿大翻译协会（CTTIC）及各省的翻译协会授予认证翻译（Certified Translator）资格的翻译人员才能做认证翻译。
CTTIC有严格的发牌标准，只有符合CTTIC要求的学历、工作经验和专业背景的翻译，才有资格加入协会。CTTIC在加拿大各省共有7个分会，各省的分会有权代表CTTIC授予认证翻译资质。认证资格考试每年举行一次，只有会员才有资格参加考试，而只有成功通过认证考试的会员才是认证翻译。BC省的翻译协会的全称为STIBC（Society of Translators and Interpreters of British Columbia），ATIO（Association of Translators and Interpreters of Ontario) 是安省翻译协会，都是CTTIC的省级成员机构。获STIBC/ATIO发牌的认证翻译，也兼有CTTIC名下的全国认证资格，亦即STIBC/ATIO/CTTIC认证翻译的权威在加拿大全国都受到承认。

– 哪些文件需要做认证翻译？
各种与加拿大联邦和省级政府机构、各专业/行业规管机构（如律师公会、各类医生学会、专业工程师协会、教师协会等）、高等院校及其它正规机构打交道的文件，如果不是英/法文的，这些机构一般都指定其翻译须由STIBC认证翻译提供，以保证翻译的专业和权威性。

受法律授权，STIBC/ATIO认证翻译盖章签字的翻译件，属于“认证翻译件”(Certified Translation)，其内容的真实性具有法律效力，受到各级政府部门承认。正因如此，除非个别的特殊要求外，所有在加拿大使用的文件，譬如法律文件、移民文件、交通部文件证照、出生证、结婚证、毕业证书等，只需要经过STIBC/ATIO认证翻译师的翻译并盖章签字，即获普遍承认和接受。

– 如何找到认证翻译（Certified Translator）?
在STIBC的官方网站上，可以搜索到所有认证翻译的信息及联系方式：https://www.stibc.org/
安省的翻译协会是ATIO，所有ATIO认证翻译的查询网址在这里：https://atio.on.ca/directory/

各省翻译协会均有认证翻译目录，如果您找到的翻译无法在这些网站的目录中找到，那么可以肯定的说，这个翻译并非认证翻译，其翻译的文件不受政府认可。

当然，并非所有的翻译文件都需要具有法律效力的认证翻译。建议您在翻译前，咨询要求提供翻译的机构，确认他们的要求后，再按需要寻找适当的翻译提供服务。

另外需要注意的一点是，认证翻译的资质是有翻译方向的。拿中英翻译来说，有些认证翻译的方向是中译英，有些是英译中，有些是双方向均有资格的。您需要按照您要翻译的文件查找对应翻译方向的认证翻译。如果某认证翻译与您要翻译的文件方向不符，那么该翻译实际上在这个翻译方向上是没有资质的。比如，最常见的驾照翻译，您应该查找中译英方向、并在ICBC注册的翻译才有资格。

在STIBC/ATIO注册的翻译分两种，一种叫Associate Member，一种是Certified Translator。前者是符合协会各方面要求准予入会的会员，但还未通过认证翻译考试，因此并不是认证翻译。其做出的翻译是不是认证翻译，很多机构是不承认的、或者要求翻译后另行提供公证，这一点需要特别注意。

– 认证翻译和公证翻译有什么不同？
在加拿大，“公证”这个概念与中国国内略有不同。公证的内容是翻译文件者自己的声明。声明该文件是由该人翻译的，可能会加入“保证译文忠实于原文”等内容，公证的仅仅是文件上翻译者的签名，证明那个名字是其本人亲自签名，而不会公证、也不可能公证翻译的质量，因为律师/公证员并没有义务、更没有资格对译文的准确性和有效性负责。所以，被几乎所有政府机构和非政府组织普遍接受的只有STIBC/ATIO/CTTIC认证翻译（Certified Translation）。

在中国公证处进行的涉外公证一般包含翻译，但是这类中国公证处出具的翻译很多情况下是不被加拿大政府机构接受的，需要找加拿大的认证翻译师进行重新翻译。事实上，只要是与加拿大三级政府部门、学术、医疗、金融、法律及其它正规机构打交道，包括申请移民、入籍、留学、难民；申请高校、子女入学、入托、药费报销、驾照及各种牌照申领，凡是非英法文的文件，一般都要求由政府认可的认证翻译师进行，并且翻译件须加盖认证翻译师的钢印及签字，方为有效。