What Is An Affidavit Of Translation?

Legal documents can be of many types. So much so that if we don’t have the right knowledge and experience, we cannot fathom them. This is why we have lawyers, legal advisors, and several other officials who can give us the right kind of guidance along the way. Handling legal procedures without professional help is like being stranded on an island with no boat in sight, you may have trees and a lot of wood but assembling a boat requires more than that. One such document that we often hear about is known as the affidavit of translation. But in order to understand how important these pieces of paper are and why and when do we need them, we must start with the very beginning.

What Is an Affidavit?

It is a sworn document that always contains a title. A written statement by an individual that is sworn to be true. It is more of an oath that the person takes of saying entirely the truth. This document is mostly used in legal procedures including courts to prove the truthfulness of a certain statement in a certain matter.

Anyone who is mentally healthy and considered sensible medically and physically can take an oath and submit a sworn document. In some matters, a judge may even require proof from a mental institution regarding the sanity and mental well-being of the oath-taker. It is crucial to mention here that the contents of the document are purely dependent on the personal knowledge of the person who’s submitting the sworn document. In case he fails to mention something, he wasn’t aware of, he will not be penalized for it. No legal charges would be pressed against the person in such an event.

In certain cases, sworn documents are also required by the court on behalf of others. This usually happens when the person in question is not an adult and thus their guardians have to provide a sworn document on their behalf.

When Are These Documents Needed?

These are mostly required in legal proceedings such as

Divorce proceedings when spouses have to submit proof of their truthfulness in front of the judge.

Property disputes or issues when both parties have to come to an agreement in front of a court.

Debt Case, when debt is outstanding and the lender has filed a case to get a date or time of the return.

There are other types of instances too when you might require this document. However, what’s more important that you must always be careful about stating the facts. Do not hide anything on purpose as you probably won’t have any chance in the future to change it. Also, the whole point of the oaths is to protect them and not saying anything which you didn’t intend to do. It is imperative to correct any errors before submission. With a legally binding document, you must ensure that there is nothing wrongly represented or could be mistaken for a wrong interpretation of the facts.

In the case of falsifying information in a sworn document which is legally binding, you could be charged with contempt of court.

Who Needs To Be Present?

When signing a sworn document, you need to have a solicitor present at the time of signature. This is important because they are the witness of the validity of your signatures. In some cases, the notary public appoints special officials who can receive oaths. If you are asked to do your signature in front of the notary public official, it is obligatory for you to do that.

If the process is done in court, the solicitors don’t charge any fee. However, if it takes place out of the court, there is a standard fee that solicitors charge. The fees can vary depending on the country.

What Is An Affidavit Of Translation?

In legal proceedings, the papers are not always in the same language. Sometimes, the person of interest is an immigrant and their papers are in a different language than the official langauge of the country. In such instances, professional translators are hired to translate the original document. In doing so, they take a big responsibility upon themselves. Since their translated content is going to be used in the court, they are asked to provide affirmation of accuracy and truthfulness in the form of a sworn document, also known as the affidavit of translation.

This sworn document must contain a statement by the translator starting with the name of the country, state, his own credentials, and of course the details of the translation. The document contains the translator’s signature and is submitted along the required document as a part of the procedure. There are different types of documents with which affidavits are considered mandatory and without their submission, you can even face refusal. For instance, it is required for a Green card application when you are translating your foreign language documents into English.

The form or sworn document is normally the same. There are samples and templates which are used by translators and professional translation agencies for this purpose. Businesses, events, property details, immigration matters and legal proceedings in court are always in need of new facts and evidence. This is why when such a document is transformed into another language, a certificate of accuracy is always required alongside. Governments want to ensure that every person is speaking the truth and prove their credibility to the court and relative institution.

Are They Required In The US?

USCIS, the immigration department of US specifically asks for certified translations. The immigrants who belong to a country where the official language is not English are required to submit the certified translation of their required papers. These could include birth certificates, divorce certificates, driver’s license, marriage certificate, and any other relevant document.

In a sense, certified translations are very similar to the affidavit of translation. The only difference is that certified translation is accompanied by a certification of accuracy which is signed by the translator or the company but doesn’t need any solicitor’s presence. Therefore, when you are translating your papers, it is advised to follow the instructions of the institution where they are going to be submitted.

A reminder in this regard is that every country is different. Their rules and regulations differ too. This is why you must check with your legal advisor. In most cases, they provide you with a good source to get your document translated. This could be a linguistic service or a lawyer turned legal translator. Maybe an embassy worker who understands how things work. So in a way, they save you from the trouble of finding the right people for the right job.

On the other hand, if you want to get in touch with a translation company which provides both certified translations and sworn document, you can always search for them online. With the booming translation industry, it is not that hard to find the right people. Most of the time, their communication channels are open all the time via live chat, phone and email. They respond to your queries immediately and provide you instant quotes in just a few minutes. You can also inquire them about other concerns. With their experience, they always guide you better. For detailed answers, you can refer to their FAQs.

So, this is it. Now that you have learnt so much about sworn documents, you can surely learn to create one if necessary.