Legal translation is one of the hardest and, therefore, costliest forms of translation. And while there are generally many factors that affect the cost of translation services, legal translation costs are a different story.
The factors that affect the cost of legal translation differ from those that affect the cost of other types of translation.
In this article, we’ll be talking about translation costs, specifically the cost of translating legal documents, and why they can be pricey.
What Impacts Translation Costs?
Before we explore what impacts the cost of legal translation, let’s first look at what affects translation costs in general.
1) Language Scarcity
One of the top factors that affect translation costs is the scarcity of certain languages.
It’s worth mentioning that a language may be widely spoken but still lacks professional or experienced legal translators.
This is often the case in countries where people speak multiple languages locally or speak and write several variations of the same language.
An example of this is the differences between Simplified Chinese and Traditional Chinese.
2) Language Difficulty
The complexity of certain languages contributes to the cost of translation.
Languages like Chinese, Arabic, and Japanese are considered difficult and therefore may require higher fees.
This is even clearer in legal translation, where language complexity combined with legal jargon results in higher translation costs.
3) Language Pairs
Some languages and, accordingly, language pairs, are more expensive than others. This is usually because of the scarcity or complexity of that language, or both.
Finding skilled legal translators–or certified legal translators–is hard. Finding those skilled translators in certain language pairs makes it harder and, therefore, costlier.
4) Deadlines
The delivery deadline is a major factor that impacts translation costs.
Need a document or project translated and submitted in record time? You can expect to pay double the standard rate for such a request.
5) Size or Volume of the Product
Another important factor when it comes to translation costs is the volume of the project. Most translation projects are calculated on a per-word basis.
That said, some projects like interpretation, consecutive, and on-the-spot translation are calculated per hour.
A 5,000-word project will cost less than a project in the same niche but comprising 10,000 or more words.
6) Project Requirements
Some projects combine several elements, such as creative translation and video translation such including scripts and voiceover, among other elements. Each of these elements has its pricing, which needs to be factored into the translation project.
It’s worth noting that this isn’t common in legal translation, but it is a cost-impacting factor.
Top Legal Translation Challenges
In addition to the above factors, legal translation comes with its own set of challenges. These include:
1) Complex Sentence Structures
Legalese, or the legal language, is known for its complex structures.
For example, you’ll often hear people saying that you shouldn’t have run-on sentences in English. While that’s 100% true, run-on sentences are a common element in legal writing and translation.
The situation is often similar in other languages worldwide, resulting in complex structures in the target language.
2) Complex Legal Jargon
Complex structures aren’t the only problem. Legal jargon is also widely known for its complexity and how variations in certain words can change the meaning entirely.
3) Expertise and Confidentiality
While translators have to start at the beginning at some point, you’re more likely to be searching for a skilled legal translator. This means they need to:
- Have experience translating contracts and legal documents
- Be aware of the legal jargon in the source and target languages
- Be familiar with legal structures in two languages
- Be capable of maintaining confidentiality while translating the legal document
What is a certified legal translation?
Legal terms and jargon are usually tricky and complex. That’s where certified legal translation comes in.
Certified legal translation services require hiring a professional translator or a translation agency that is certified and recognized by relevant legal authorities.
Unlike regular translations, a certified legal translation comes with a signed or stamped statement guaranteeing the accuracy of the translation.
These statements include certificates of accuracy and sworn statements. They verify the translation is true, correct, and holds the same legal weight as the original documents.
Legal documents often need certified translation to ensure they’re legally valid and accepted in another country. Some common examples are:
Contracts
If you’re dealing with business, rental, or employment contracts involving parties speaking different languages, you’ll need certified legal translation.This ensures all parties involved know about the terms and conditions of a contract. It prevents any potential misunderstanding or issues arising from language barriers.Birth, Marriage, Divorce, and Death Certificates
Submitting birth, marriage, divorce, or death certificates is required for legal or administrative purposes, like immigration or getting married.
So, a certified translation of these documents confirms that relevant authorities accurately understand them.Court Documents
Court proceedings involve lots of documents, such as pleadings, judgments, and witness statements.
A certified legal translation ensures everyone involved in the court case understands the proceedings, the legal process, the outcome, and everything that has taken place.
When Do You Need a Certified Legal Translation?
Laws and legal systems are deeply rooted in the language and cultural context of a country. Moreover, legal documents usually contain sensitive and confidential information.
To ensure your documents are handled with utmost confidentiality, you’ll need to hire a certified translator.
Certified translators are well-versed in the legal systems and cultural nuances of both the source and target languages.
They adhere to strict confidentiality agreements and take appropriate measures to protect the privacy of your legal documents.
But when exactly do you need a certified legal translation service? Here’s when you might need one.
1. Applying for Visas or Residency Permits
If you’re applying for a visa, residency permit, or citizenship in a foreign country, you’ll probably have to provide various documents. These documents include papers like birth certificates, marriage certificates, academic transcripts, and criminal records.
As immigration authorities mandate certified translation, these legal papers require translation into the language of the country you’re applying to.
2. Legal Proceedings
If you’re suing someone, being sued, or just giving testimony, you’ll need to get all the court documents translated correctly.
Certified legal translation enables you to fully grasp the content of the documents and engage effectively in the legal process.
3. Legal and Business Transactions
If you’re doing business internationally, you may have the involved legal documents translated.
Certified legal translation is essential when you’re conducting business internationally, like forming partnerships or dealing with a merger or acquisition.
This ensures your business complies with international regulations and adheres to legal requirements. It also minimizes the risk of any misunderstanding that may harm your business relationships.
4. Academic and Educational Purposes
If you’re applying to an educational institution abroad or seeking recognition of academic credentials in a foreign country, certified legal document translation is often a prerequisite.
Translating academic records and certificates affirms they’re valid and accepted in the target academic or professional context.
How Much Does a Legal Translation Cost in 2024?
Last but not least, while there are many factors that impact translation costs, we will provide a starting range for legal translation prices.
This pricing will differ based on the country where the translation service provider is located and the language pairs.
For example, legal translation from Chinese into Arabic or vice versa will be costlier than German to English legal translation or vice versa. At the same time, translation of legal texts from German to English or vice versa costs more than English-to-Arabic legal translation or Arabic-to-English translation.
If we’re to look at costs, English to Arabic and Arabic to English translation have a starting price of $0.09 to $0.13 per word. The average page of translation, in any field, is 250 words. This puts the starting price for English-to-Arabic legal translation (and vice versa) at about $23 per page. This figure can go up to $32.50.
Meanwhile, other language pairs–and again, we stress that the languages themselves impact pricing–have a starting range of $0.13 to $0.19 per word, making the per-page rate range from $32.50 to around $49.
Meanwhile, a certified translation is more expensive. Prices also vary based on factors such as document length, content complexity, the language pair, turnaround time, and the qualifications of the translator.
On average, the cost of a certified translation can range from around $0.12 to $0.39 per word, depending on the language pair and other factors.
This means that a single-page document with simple content may cost between $32.5 and $97.50.
A multi-page document with more complex content may cost between $130 and $650 or more.
However, it’s important to keep in mind that these are just rough estimates, and the actual cost of your translation will depend on factors that we’ll discuss.
Conclusion
Legal translation is by far one of the most complex and therefore most expensive forms of translation. It’s a type of translation that is unlikely to be seen as machine translation or artificial intelligence anytime soon.
In addition, there are several factors that affect the cost of legal translation. These factors are different from those that affect the cost of other types of translation, like translating online courses or website translation, and so on.
Another factor that you need to consider when translating legal texts is whether you want to do the translation in-house or work with a legal translation company.
If you need help translating legal texts and official documents, then get in touch with TranslationPartner, and we’ll help you deliver quality, certified, official, legal documents.
While we specialize in providing Arabic legal translation services, we also help businesses translate legal texts into multiple languages.
