Certified, notarized, sworn, apostilled, attested: the document translation world uses a small vocabulary in confusing ways, and agencies rarely stop to define their terms. This glossary explains 30 terms you will meet on government checklists, consulate websites and translation quotes, in plain English, with notes on how each one applies in Massachusetts. Bookmark it and read any requirement list with confidence.

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• Certification terms
• Authentication terms
• Document terms
• Process and industry terms
• Frequently asked questions

Certification Terms

Certified translation. A translation delivered with a signed statement confirming completeness, accuracy and the translator’s competence. The standard for USCIS, courts and schools. Full details in our Massachusetts certified translation guide.

Certificate of accuracy. The signed page itself. Seven elements make it complete; our certificate of accuracy breakdown lists them.

Notarized translation. A certified translation whose signature was witnessed by a notary public. The notary verifies identity, never quality. USCIS does not require it; some schools and consulates do.

Sworn translation. A translation by a translator officially appointed by a court or government, a system used in countries like Italy, Spain, France and Brazil. The United States has no sworn translator system; the certified translation fills the role here.

ATA certified. A credential from the American Translators Association earned by exam in a specific language pair. A mark of skill, never a legal requirement for USCIS work; see our post on ATA certified translations.

Official translation. A loose phrase agencies use meaning “a translation we will accept.” Read the rest of their sentence to learn whether they mean certified, notarized or sworn.

Authentication Terms

Apostille. A state-issued certificate authenticating a public document for use in another Hague Convention country. In Massachusetts, issued by the Secretary of the Commonwealth. Our apostille service page covers the local process.

Hague Convention. The 1961 treaty that created the apostille. Members accept each other’s apostilled documents without embassy involvement.

Consular legalization. The longer authentication chain for non-Hague countries includes the state, the U.S. Department of State, and the destination country’s embassy.

Attestation. A broad word for an official confirming a document or copy is genuine. Common on Middle East checklists, where it usually means legalization.

Certified copy. A copy issued or verified by the record holder: a registry, court or notary depending on the document. Apostilles attach to certified copies, not photocopies.

Notary public. A state-commissioned official who verifies identities and witnesses signatures. In translation work, the notary appears only in the notarized-translation and apostille chains; our notary page explains this role.

Document Terms

Vital record. A government record of a life event, such as birth, marriage, divorce, or death. The core of most immigration translation sets.

Long-form birth certificate. The full version showing parents’ names and registration details. USCIS generally expects this one; the short-form extract often lacks parentage.

Marginal annotation. A note a civil registry stamps onto a record after the fact: divorces, corrections, name changes. It is legally part of the document and is always translated.

CORI. Criminal Offender Record Information, the Massachusetts criminal record report. Foreign equivalents are the police clearance certificates and immigration filings request.

Police clearance certificate. A statement from a country’s police authority about your record there. A qualifying period of residence is required for many visa categories.

Credential evaluation. A report converting foreign education into U.S. equivalents, ordered from agencies like WES after translation. Our transcript guide explains the sequence.

Mark sheet. The term many countries use for a grade transcript, which lists courses and marks by term.

Affidavit. A sworn written statement. In translation work, affidavits of birth substitute for lost certificates and translator affidavits appear in some court settings.

Process and Industry Terms

Source language / target language. The language you translate from and the language you translate into. A Spanish birth certificate for USCIS has Spanish as the source and English as the target.

Language pair. The combination includes languages such as Portuguese and English. Pricing and turnaround vary by pair because translator availability varies.

Transliteration. Rendering names from one script into another: Cyrillic, Arabic or Chinese into Latin letters. Several valid options exist, which is why passport spelling drives the choice.

Word-for-word (complete) translation. The USCIS standard: everything on the page in English, including stamps and notes, with nothing summarized.

Extract translation. A partial translation of selected sections. Some countries accept extracts for specific purposes; USCIS does not.

[Illegible]. The bracket notation professionals use for genuinely unreadable text. Marking it honestly beats guessing every time.

Translator’s note. A bracketed explanation of a convention or ambiguity is added without altering the record itself.

Request for Evidence (RFE). A USCIS letter asking for more or corrected documentation. Incomplete translations are a classic trigger; our mistakes guide covers the prevention list.

Certified true copy. A notary’s confirmation that a photocopy matches an original shown to them. It is different from a certified translation, and people constantly confuse the two.

Turnaround time. Business days from order confirmation to delivery, driven by page count, language pair and legibility. A quote turns it from an estimate into a commitment.

Frequently Asked Questions

The checklist says “official translation.” Which product do I order?

Start with a certified translation, which is the U.S. default. Then check the same checklist for the words “notarized,” “sworn,” or “apostilled,” which signal extra steps. Please send us the checklist, and we will review it with you.

Is a certified true copy the same as a certified translation?

No. A certified true copy verifies a photocopy matches an original. A certified translation converts content between languages with an accuracy statement. Some filings need both.

Why does the U.S. have no sworn translators?

The U.S. system relies on the translator’s signed declaration instead of a government appointment. Different mechanism, same goal: accountability for accuracy.

Still Decoding a Requirement List?

Send the checklist and your documents through our secure order form and we will quote exactly what it calls for, nothing extra. Or contact our Tewksbury, MA office and ask; translating requirements into plain English is half our job.