Translation
Legal & financial translation
A translation that a court, a registry or a bank will not accept is worthless, however fluent it reads. We translate legal and financial texts to the standard the receiving authority requires. And we manage the certification chain, notarisation, apostille, legalisation, that makes the document usable abroad.
What this covers
- Translation of legal, economic, financial, banking and taxation texts.
- Notarised and apostilled translations for use before foreign authorities, courts and registries.
- Revision and editing of existing translations, including for consistency across a large set of documents.
- Translation of constitutive and corporate documents. This includes articles, memoranda, resolutions, powers of attorney and certificates of good standing.
- Translation of specified judicial literature and case materials.
- Translation of the companies laws and regulations of foreign countries.
- Oral consecutive interpreting for meetings, signings and negotiations.
Scope & conditions
- Certified translation
- Translation certified by a qualified translator, accepted where a simple certification suffices — the base layer under everything else.
- Notarisation
- A notary certifies the translator's signature or the copy, required by many registries, banks and courts before a translated document is accepted.
- Apostille & legalisation
- For use abroad, a document is legalised either by apostille (between the 120+ states party to the Hague Convention of 1961) or, for non-member states, by full consular legalisation. Which one you need depends entirely on the destination country.
How it works
- The right level of certification is set by the authority that will receive the document, not by preference. We confirm the requirement first, so the translation is accepted the first time.
- Legal and financial translation is a specialist discipline. A statute, a set of accounts and a court pleading each carry their own terminology, and a mistranslated term can void a document.
- For consecutive interpreting, we brief in advance on the matter and its terminology. An interpreter who does not know the subject is a risk at the table.
- An apostille and a notarisation are not interchangeable. Using the wrong one means the document gets rejected at the counter. Confirm what the destination authority actually requires before ordering either.
- Not every country belongs to the Hague apostille convention. For those that do not, you need full consular legalisation, which takes longer.
- A cheap translation of a legal document turns expensive fast if a court will not accept it. The certification is the point, not the word count.
Frequently asked
What is the difference between a certified, notarised and apostilled translation?
They are three separate layers. A certified translation is signed off by a qualified translator as accurate. A notarised translation adds a notary certifying the translator's signature or the copy, something many registries and banks require. An apostille is a further step that makes the document valid abroad under the Hague Convention of 1961. Which one you need is set by the authority receiving the document, not by preference. Confirm the requirement before ordering.
When do I need an apostille versus consular legalisation?
It depends on the destination country. If it is one of the 120-plus states party to the Hague Apostille Convention of 1961, a single apostille is enough. If it is not, the document has to go through full consular legalisation. That means certification by the foreign ministry, then by the destination country's embassy, a slower and more involved process. The two routes are not interchangeable. Using the wrong one means rejection.
Can you translate company documents and foreign legislation for a transaction?
Yes. We work with constitutive and corporate documents, including articles, resolutions, powers of attorney and certificates of good standing. We also handle the companies laws and regulations of foreign countries, specified judicial and case materials, and legal, financial, banking and tax texts. Where a signing or negotiation calls for it, we provide oral consecutive interpreting as well, briefed in advance on the matter so the terminology is right in the room.
Need legal & financial translation done properly?
One named person on your file, and an honest answer on scope, timeline and cost.