Authorisations and certifications within the translation industry

We are frequently asked whether we or our translators are authorised or certified. The question is perhaps asked because a client contact abroad has requested it, or simply because someone is looking for some form of quality stamp. Språkbolaget can offer certified translations, but the question is whether that is what you need?

There is no international standard for what a certified or authorised translator actually is, and what is required to call oneself certified or authorised. Different countries have different systems for this, or no authorisations at all.

The Legal, Financial and Administrative Services Agency's authorisation

In Sweden, we hold authorisation from the Legal, Financial and Administrative Services Agency (Kammarkollegiet). Translators who are authorised by the Legal, Financial and Administrative Services Agency have passed an examination consisting of a general, a legal and a financial text. This authorisation gives translators the right to use a special authorisation stamp with which they stamp the document, thereby certifying that the translation corresponds to the original. Consequently, it is the individual translator who is authorised; we as an agency can never be.

When is authorisation required?

Certain Swedish authorities, such as the Swedish Tax Agency and courts, as well as other institutions and organisations, require the stamp for foreign documents to be legally binding. This may involve school reports, certificates such as birth certificates and marriage certificates, extracts from registers, court records, etc. It is important to understand that the Legal, Financial and Administrative Services Agency's authorisation is not a quality mark in any other respect. There is therefore no Swedish authorisation for medical text, for example. The Legal, Financial and Administrative Services Agency also only authorises translators who translate to or from Swedish. If you want to translate a document from French into English, there is no applicable Swedish authorisation.

Other countries

In other countries, authorization or certification can look completely different. In the USA, for example, the industry association American Translators Association (ATA) offers a certification, and other certifications also exist. However, those certifications do not apply in the same way as Swedish authorization, but rather function as proof that the translator is reliable and professional. Instead, a certificate from a Notary Public may be required for the translation to be legally binding. It is the authority in the country where the document is to be used that determines which authorization applies.

Translator training and examination

In many countries, including Sweden, there are specific university degrees and qualifications for specialist translators. In some countries, a translator's degree also serves as authorisation for public authorities, while in others it does not. Regardless of whether it counts as authorisation or not, a master's degree (or equivalent) in specialist translation is at least as strong a stamp of quality as a passing grade in a professional body's examination.

Quality translations

For the vast majority of texts being translated, therefore, no authorisation is required. Instead, it is important that the translator has knowledge of the subject matter of the text and experience in finding the right tone and register to create a well-functioning text in the target language. Språkbolaget's translators always have the target language as their mother tongue, relevant training, experience in translation within their field, and have passed our quality tests. That is our stamp of quality. If you need a certified translation we will help you find an authorised translator in our network. We work exclusively with businesses. Private individuals are referred to the Legal, Financial and Administrative Services Agency.