What is a Sworn Translator?
A sworn translator is a professional authorized to certify the translation of any document into another language. In Venezuela, sworn translators are known as Intérpretes Públicos, and the certifying authority is the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Justice. Candidates for the title of Intérprete Público must pass three demanding examinations before a panel in order to receive the official certification. This certification is valid for one single language pair. Therefore, an Intérprete Público in the Spanish<>English combination may only certify translations performed in that language pair and that language pair only.
Other very popular international certifications are those granted by ATA and FIT. These certifications guarantee, to a certain extent, the quality of the final translation, but they also represent a guarantee of truthfulness and accuracy for the institutions, agencies, and organizations that will receive your application or submission (for visas, academic programs, etc.).
Why Is it Important to Choose Right?
Many reasons make it important to choose carefully. First, as in any industry, there are many fakes. Every sworn translator must deliver, together with their translations, a Sworn Statement of Accuracy. This is a legal document in which the translator certifies that the translations provided have been carried out to the best of their abilities and that their content is faithful and accurate to the original documents.
The services of sworn translators tend to be more expensive than those of non‑sworn translators, since the responsibility of this type of translator is very high, as are their skills. Therefore, an excessively low quote may be a sign that you are dealing with a false sworn translator. The consequences of this can be several: in the best‑case scenario, your translations will be rejected but you will have the possibility of submitting a new application. In the worst‑case scenario, your visa application or political asylum request will be denied due to the quality of the translations, with no possibility of appeal. A sworn translator who charges “very cheap” rates has no incentive to produce translations that are 100% original and faithful, but has every incentive to use automatic translators such as Google Translate to “get through” your documents as quickly as possible, so they can then take on other translations that will suffer the same fate.
A false sworn translator will also be unable to testify to their work if the institution, agency, or organization contacts them to request further details. In short, the conclusion is that it is not worth saving money if the price will be much higher when processing academic or legal procedures.
How Do I Know a Translator Is Legit?
In Venezuela, Intérpretes Públicos are officially appointed through the Official Gazettes of the Republic. For this reason, verifying that a person is truly a certified translator is very easy, since you only need to have their Official Gazette number to verify that they indeed are certified.