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There is some confusion over what a Certificate of Accuracy is, who may issue it and under what circumstances it is required.

A certificate of accuracy is a statement in writing that claims, “I was qualified to do this translation and I believe it is faithful to the original.” It does not claim the translation is perfect (there’s no such thing as a perfect translation), nor that a different translator wouldn’t have a different take. Nor does it claim, at least in the United States, that a certified translator performed the translation. For more on certified translators (or the fact they don’t exist) see my previous post on the topic. So a certified translation simply means that a certificate is issued with the translation.

A request for a certificate, however, should put the translator or agency on notice that they’ll want to do a translation they can stand behind and defend if necessary. Many agencies now offer two levels of service: certified or “for informational purposes.” Certified translations often undergo the agency’s Quality Assurance process before getting the stamp of approval. Translations labeled “for informational purposes” or draft normally undergo a cursory QA, therefore they can save the client time and money. As an aside, draft translations should nonetheless be assigned to a translator that’s highly qualified in the relevant field. Just because it’s a draft doesn’t mean corners should be cut.

Certificates of accuracy can be issued by the translator who did the translation or by an agency. And even if an agency provides the translation, a client can request that the translator issue the certificate. The wording in this case will be different and will usually read something like, “I, Mary Translator, declare under penalty of perjury that I am fluent in language A and language B and that I performed this translation, which is accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge, etc.” Sometimes the qualifications, educational background, experience, etc., of the translator will be requested, too.

A certificate issued by an agency will be a bit different because the person signing it is not normally the translator. And if the agency has edited, proofread, or altered the translation, the translator should not approve it unless he has read it and agrees with it, in which case the wording of the certificate will need to be changed.

The agency’s certificate will read something like, “the attached is to the best of my knowledge a complete and accurate translation of the original document,” and will be notarized. As you lawyers know, the notary stamp on the certificate doesn’t support the accuracy of the translation, it only attests that the person signing is who he says he is.

Certificates of Accuracy are required when filing a translation with a court. Certain regulatory bodies in other countries may enforce the practice, too, and they are often required in the medical arena and other regulated industries. Essentially, unless you need the document for internal purposes — so that you can gleen the information in order to act on it — it’s safest to ask for a certified translation. Agencies often add a nominal processing fee for the certificate itself, but it’s usually worth it.