Resources · Extended FAQ
What it actually means for a signature to be "registered before a notary," and why that, not the quality of the translation alone, is the first thing a receiving institution checks.
An official translation gets its legal validity from the signature and seal of a State-certified translator. But many institutions, especially when the document will be used abroad, require an additional step: that signature must be registered before a notary, so its authenticity can be verified independently.
The translator files a sample of their signature with a specific notary. That notary keeps the sample on record and assigns it a registration number. When someone needs to confirm that the signature on a translated document is authentic, they can go to that notary (or, increasingly, an online verification portal) and compare the signature presented against the one on file.
No. This is the point that causes the most confusion. The notary certifies that the signature is authentic and belongs to the registered person; it doesn't evaluate whether the translation is correct, complete, or faithful to the original. That responsibility rests exclusively with the official translator, whose signature is precisely the guarantee that they take it on.
A registration can lapse or go inactive. If the receiving institution checks the registration and finds it expired, it can reject the document no matter how accurate the translation is. That's why keeping the registration current, and being able to prove it, matters just as much as the translation itself.
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