Information about certified translations
The Translations Section undertakes translations in some 25 languages for both members of the general public as well as government Departments. It accepts company documents, school-leaving certificates, diplomas, birth certificates, international or bilateral agreements between Cyprus and other states, letters, legal and medical documents, etc.
The Section also certifies translations.
The PIO provides certified translations for the benefit of the public. It also undertakes translations for government departments provided they concern languages other than Greek or English.
The Section verifies copies of original documents. Each copy is certified as a «true copy of the original» provided it is presented together with the original document.
To avoid any problems concerning the acceptability of the translated documents, the public is advised to present the originals on delivery of the documents for translation. The originals are not retained except in cases of hand- written or illegible documents.
With respect to certificates or documents bearing the names of persons, it is essential to clarify the exact spelling of the name in the translated text (e.g. Γεώργιος may be written as George or Georghios). It is important that the name in the translated text is spelt exactly as in a person’s other official documents such as their passport, birth certificate or diploma.
The languages in which the Section provides certified translations are: Albanian, Arabic, Armenian, Bulgarian, Czech, Dutch, English, French, Georgian, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Japanese, Persian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Serbian , Slovakian, Spanish, Swedish, Turkish and Ukrainian.
The services of external translators are employed. The external translators engaged by the PIO must hold a translator’s or interpreter’s degree in their specified language/s.
Should no candidates be available who meet these requirements, the translators may be selected among: holders of a literature degree in the specified language/s, or persons awarded a degree or diploma in any other discipline by a tertiary educational establishment abroad who have an excellent knowledge of the language spoken in the country in which they received their higher education. Persons interested in registering with the PIO as translators will have to sit examinations in the language or languages they have indicated.
The Section is open to the public at the following hours:
Monday - Friday 8.00 - 13.30, Wednesday afternoon 15.30 - 17.30
July-August: Monday - Friday 8.00 - 13.30
Categories of Documents to be Translated
All documents to be translated are divided into two categories, with different charges for each category: Category A which includes simple documents, and category B, which includes specialized documents.
Category A, simple documents, includes the following:
Certificates of birth, christening, marriage, death, marital status, criminal records, certifying statements, driving licenses, passports, medical reports not containing specialized terminology, residence permits, witness summons, Apostille (when submitted individually for translation), personal documents-private letters, school documents, (school leaving certificates, grading, certificates of school merits, citations etc), documents in proof of study (degrees, diplomas), certificates of study transcripts of university degrees, recommendation letters, solemn declarations, curriculum vitae, and, finally, all manuscripts the authenticity of which can be proven.
Category B, specialized documents, includes the following:
Medical diagnostic reports, medical certificates containing specialized terminology, court decisions, proxies, court proceedings, documents on legal issues (court decisions and proceedings, international and European warrants etc), Memoranda of Associations and Companies, documents which contain technical-scientific terminology, wills, speeches and conference proceedings and legal documents.
RATES FOR CERTIFIED TRANSLATIONS
A. Rates for certified translations of non-specialized documents:
Translation and certification of documents €22.00 per translated page.
B. Rates for the translation of educational documents
School leaving certificates, diplomas etc €19.00 per translated page.
Brief educational documents belonging to
the same person (merits, citations,
good conduct certificates etc)
(school leaving certificate included)
- first document €19.00
- each additional document € 7.00
C. Rates for certified translations of specialized documents
Translation and certification of documents €25.00 per translated page.
D. Rates for certified translations from and into Turkish
each page €22.50
E. Checking and Certifying Translations
Each page €11.00
F. Re-issuing Translated Documents
each document €10.00
G. Rates for urgently required documents
Each page € 8.00
A request for an urgent translation can be accepted provided that the document does not exceed ten (10) pages and a translator is available to undertake and complete the translation within the specified time limits.
H. Translation of brief Documents
Brief documents the length of which does not exceed 10 lines or 70 words, provided they are submitted on the same day, the first one is €22.00 and all others are charged 13.00 each document.
The above does not apply to educational documents.
CERTIFICATION OF COPIES OF ORIGINAL DOCUMENTS
For one–page documents € 3.40
For documents of more than one page,
initial charge € 3.40
For each extra page. € 1.70
Certification of copies of educational documents
First document € 3.40
Other documents of the same person submitted on the same day
Each document € 1.70
NOTE:
A translator may refuse to undertake a specific translation because of a heavy workload or because the document contains very specialized terminology, e.g. medical texts.
Payment of the full amount is made in advance. However in those cases where it is not possible to make an exact estimation of the number of pages, about half of the amount is paid on delivery and the rest is paid on the collection of the translated documents.
The characteristics of a translated A4-size page are: 250 words or 25 lines in length.
Members of the public are advised to keep their receipt and always present it when collecting their translated documents. They are also advised before coming to collect their translated documents, to telephone the number 22801130 and make sure that their translation is ready, always quoting the reference number written on their receipt.
For further information please contact the telephone numbers: 22801132, 22801133, 22801134, 22801193, and 22801192. You can contact the Translations Section also by e-mail at dhasikos@pio.moi.gov.cy.
Last update: 12.10.2009 |