NAATI translation

What this service is

NAATI is Australia's national accreditation authority for translators and interpreters. A NAATI-certified translation is a translation done or endorsed by a translator who currently holds NAATI certification, accompanied by that translator's stamp or certification details.

On certifications, NAATI's website says that Certified Translator is currently the only certification for translators. The Recognised Practising Translator credential is granted where there is no test for that language pair and does not have the same standing as a Certified credential. You can look up translators in NAATI's online directory and check a credential using the Certified Practitioner Number (CPN).

Who needs it and when

According to NAATI, most Australian government agencies require documents to be translated by a person with NAATI certification where a qualified translator is available for that language. In practice, you usually need one when lodging a visa application with the Department of Home Affairs, court documents, enrolment applications or qualification assessments. An Australian Government page on visa applications also states that documents not in English must be accompanied by an English translation and a copy of the original document. Each application has its own checklist, so please read the guidance for your specific visa type or receiving agency before translating.

Documents usually needed

• Birth certificates, marriage certificates, divorce certificates, death certificates.
• School records, graduation certificates, academic transcripts.
• Residence confirmations, criminal record checks, certificates of single status.
• Passports, identity cards, court or police documents.
• The original or a clear scan, with every page, including the back and any stamps and margin notes.
• Tell us where the document will be lodged so we can choose a suitable format.

Steps

1. You send a clear scan or photo of the document and tell us where it will be lodged.
2. We check the text, stamps, proper names and dates, and tell you if anything is faded or hard to read.
3. The document is translated and checked against the original, including the spelling of names according to the passport.
4. A translator holding NAATI certification certifies the translation with a NAATI stamp (digital or paper), or, if the receiving agency allows it, with their name, practitioner number, language direction, certification expiry date and signature.
5. You receive the translation and use it to lodge your application.

Timing and fees

We could not find any fixed price or turnaround time published by NAATI. Time and price depend on the number of pages, how legible the documents are and how urgent the job is. We will give you a specific quote and timeframe after seeing your documents, before we start translating.

How TNT Global helps

We check your documents, tell you in advance what the receiving agency usually requires, arrange the translation through a NAATI-certified translator, check names and dates against your passport, and prepare the set of translations and copies for you to lodge or for us to send on your behalf. TNT Global helps prepare, translate and lodge documents; the receiving agency, such as the Department of Home Affairs, a court or a school, decides whether to accept the application. If you need a translation for use in Vietnam, please see the Certification page, because a Vietnamese translation meeting Vietnamese regulations is usually needed in that case.

Common mistakes

• A translation by someone without NAATI certification, or holding only Recognised Practising credentials when the receiving agency requires Certified.
• A missing stamp: some places only accept stamped translations. The stamp must keep its QR code intact so the recipient can scan it to check.
• Names in the translation spelled differently from the passport, or stamps and notes on the back of the document left out.
• Lodging only the translation and forgetting the copy of the original document that goes with it.
• Translating before knowing what the receiving agency requires, then having to translate again.