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Who is a certified translator, and how to find one?

  • Gina Byun
  • Dec 30, 2024
  • 4 min read

If you’re filing an immigration application to Canada without a representative, you might be wondering how to get your original document(s) such as a birth certificate or support letters translated into English or French. Who can translate your documents? Can it be anyone proficient in both languages?


IRCC (Immigration, Refugee and Citizenship Canada), the government department that accepts and processes immigration applications in Canada, has given clear instructions on this matter:



To reiterate, any supporting document that is not in English or French must be accompanied by an “official translation,” which can be obtained through two ways:


  1. Certified by a certified translator, OR

  2. Accompanied by an affidavit. 


IRCC gives us the second option because certified translators may not be available for some languages. The first thing you’ll need to do is to check whether a certified translator in your language is available in your area. 


You might be wondering: Who is a “certified translator,” and how can you find one?


IRCC defines a “certified translator” as follows:



There are national and regional “professional translation associations” in Canada and abroad that support the profession of translator in that specific country/region. Some examples of professional translation associations are the American Translators Association (ATA) and the Association of Translators and Interpreters of Ontario (ATIO). They offer certification examinations to qualified candidates and confer the “certified translator” title to successful candidates who have passed their certification exam. 


To summarize, a “certified translator” is a person who has successfully passed the certification exam offered by a professional translation association and been accepted as a member of that association. 


In order to remain as a member in “good standing,” the certified translator must pay the  membership fee to the association each year. 


If you need the service of a certified translator for your immigration or other types of application, the easiest way to find one is to visit the website of the professional translation association in your area and search for a member in good standing in your language combination in their directory. Almost every professional association offers an online directory for the public who require the services of their members. 




Here, you can search for a certified translator in your language and area by entering the source language (i.e. Korean), target language (e.g. English) and your city. If you know the name of a certified translator and wish to contact them, you can also search them by their first and last names. 


If you find a translator, you will get their contact information, as well as their certification status on their profile page.




This is my ATIO profile page. You can see my contact information (email, mobile number, website address) as well as my status as “Certified” in the Korean to English combination ("KO->EN") under “Qualifications”. Showing a screenshot or link to my ATIO profile page is a common way to prove my qualification as a certified translator. 


A candidate must write and pass each certification exam to be certified in each language combination. For example, a qualified candidate who is proficient in both Korean and English must write one certification exam to be certified in the English to Korean combination, and another certification exam to be certified in the Korean to English combination. I have written and passed the exam in the Korean to English combination, but have not done so for the English to Korean combination. That is why I am a “Candidate” in EN -> KO shown above.


If you have found a translator to translate your documents for your immigration application, make sure you ask them which professional translation association they are a member of, and search for their name in the online directory of that association to verify their “certification” status. If you cannot find their name in the online directory, or if they are merely a “candidate” of that association, they may not be able to provide you with an acceptable translation for your application. A “candidate” is a person who has not yet passed the certification exam to become a certified translator. Please note that IRCC does NOT accept translations done by a person who is “in the process of receiving their certification or accreditation.”


Summary:


To get your documents translated for  your immigration application, you must contact a certified translator, who is a member in good standing of a professional translation association such as the ATA or ATIO. You can search for a certified translator in your area in the online directory on the official website of the professional translation association. A translator who has not yet been “certified” or merely a candidate of that professional association may not be able to provide you with the “official translation” of your document that is acceptable for immigration purposes. 



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