Procedures for Basic Certification and Legalization of a Translation in Switzerland
(Keywords: Beglaubigung, beglaubigte Übersetzung, Legalisierung, legalisierte Übersetzung, amtliche Übersetzung, traduction certifiée, traduction legalisée, traduzione certificata, traduzione legalizzata, authenticated translation, certified translation)

…for the translation of documents into English for adoption procedures, immigration applications etc. for Australia, South Africa, the UK, the USA etc.

Source of information:	- Cancelleria dello Stato, Ufficio Legalizzazioni, 6501 Bellinzona, Switzerland, tel. 091 814 43 49;
	   (legalization department of the State Chancellery / Standeskanzlei / Chancellerie d’Etat)
	- Interpreters' and Translators' Association (DÜV), Zurich, Switzerland

 Before selecting one of the procedures below, check which type of procedure is needed with the authorities that have requested a translation of your documents.
 Please note that translators can only certify and legalize their own translations and NOT your original documents. For this you need to go to a NOTARY.

A) BASIC CERTIFICATION of translations

Qualified translators may sign their translations adding a standard statement such as the following:

“I, the undersigned (Tanya Harvey Ciampi (Dipl. DOZ, member of the Swiss Interpreters' and Translators' Association), born on [DATE OF BIRTH] and resident in 6673 Maggia, Switzerland), hereby certify that the English texts attached hereto are, to the best of my ability, knowledge and belief, true, complete and correct translations of the original documents:

- Title of document in target language (title of document in source language), person’s name, issuer, date if applicable (in target language);
- Title of document in target language (title of document in source language), person’s name, issuer, date if applicable (in target language).”

COST: SFr.25 (covers layout adjustments, statement, signing and postage)

The translator signs below this statement and on each page and sends the certified document to the client by post.

For official documents, a different certification procedure is required, i.e. legalization.

B) LEGALIZATION of translations

The procedure for legalizing a translation is as follows:

1)	The translator adds the following statement at the bottom of the translation(s):

"I, the undersigned (Tanya Harvey Ciampi (Dipl. DOZ, member of the Swiss Interpreters' and Translators' Association), born on [DATE OF BIRTH] and resident in 6673 Maggia, Switzerland), hereby certify that the English texts attached hereto are, to the best of my ability, knowledge and belief, true, complete and correct translations of the original documents:

- Title of document in target language (title of document in source language), person’s name, issuer, date if applicable (in target language);
- Title of document in target language (title of document in source language), person’s name, issuer, date if applicable (in target language).”

2)	The translator takes the translation bearing the statement above (not yet signed) to a notary or the registrar at the town hall of the place of residence of the translator (both have equal legal status as far as authentication of signatures is concerned), before whom the translator signs the statement and has his/her signature authenticated. The notary or registrar adds his/her own statement below the translator’s statement on the last page of the translations and stamps and signs it.

If the destination country is English speaking, then the translator should additionally include an English translation of the notary’s/registrar’s authentication statement so that the receiving country will understand the same. 

The translator then signs each page as well and sends the document to the client by post.

TOTAL COST:
–	Cost of notary/registrar: max. SFr.30; This cost is for each “legalization procedure” (i.e. each statement complete with authenticated signature) and is independent of the length of the text to be legalized. Notaries generally cost more than registrars. Maggia town hall, for example, charges SFr.10; some town halls offer the service for free.
–	Cost of translator: SFr.30 (covers layout adjustments, statement, legalization procedure, signing and postage)
 
=> Total: SFr.40

Should I have several documents legalized TOGETHER or SEPARATELY?

Legalization of several documents TOGETHER

If, for example, three separate documents (e.g. 1 three-page CV and 2 two-page reference letters from different employers: total of 7 pages) are legalized together, the translator adds the statement below once on the last page (page 7), listing the details of each of the documents translated (title of document in both languages, issuer, client’s name and date) as follows:

“I, the undersigned (Tanya Harvey Ciampi (Dipl. DOZ, member of the Swiss Interpreters' and Translators' Association), born on [DATE OF BIRTH] and resident in 6673 Maggia, Switzerland), hereby certify that the English texts attached hereto are, to the best of my ability, knowledge and belief, true, complete and correct translations of the original documents:

- Title of document in target language (title of document in source language), person’s name, issuer, date if applicable (in target language).
- Title of document in target language (title of document in source language), person’s name, issuer, date if applicable (in target language).”

The translator takes the translation, including the statement above (not yet signed), to a notary or the registrar at the town hall of the place of residence of the translator (both have equal legal status as far as authentication of signatures is concerned), before whom the translator signs the statement and has his/her signature authenticated. The notary or registrar adds his/her own statement below the translator’s statement on the last page of the translations and stamps and signs it.

The translator then signs each page as well and sends the document to the client by post.

E.g. Three documents legalized together: SFr.30 (translator) + SFr.10 (registrar) = SFr.40

This is the cheaper option and is the appropriate solution if all the documents are being sent to the same place at the same time.

Legalization of several documents SEPARATELY

If the three documents are legalized separately, the translator adds the statement below on the last page of each of the individual documents, listing the details of each document translated (title of document in both languages, issuer, client’s name and date) as follows:

“I, the undersigned (Tanya Harvey Ciampi (Dipl. DOZ, member of the Swiss Interpreters' and Translators' Association), born on [DATE OF BIRTH] and resident in 6673 Maggia, Switzerland), hereby certify that the English text attached hereto is, to the best of my ability, knowledge and belief, a true, complete and correct translation of the original document:

- Title of document in target language (title of document in source language), person’s name, issuer, date if applicable (in target language).”

If the three documents are legalized separately the cost of legalization is higher. For a list of prices, see the last page of this document.

Apostille

When documents are required for abroad, an apostille may be required, which the translator can also arrange. The procedure for obtaining an apostille is as follows (depending on the country for which the translation is required):

For countries that have signed the Hague Convention and therefore recognize this form of authentication (see the list: http://hcch.e-vision.nl/index_en.php?act=states.listing), the procedure is the following:

1)	Authentication of the translator’s signature by a registrar or notary (= legalization); This cost is for the legalization of each statement complete with authenticated signature and is independent of the length of the text to be legalized. Notaries generally cost more than registrars. Maggia town hall charges SFr.10; some town halls offer the service for free.
2)	Apostille from the cantonal authorities of the place of residence of the translator. E.g. for Ticino: Bellinzona. The translator sends his/her translation—no need to send the source text—to the following address, requesting an apostille for the country for which the translation is needed: 

Cancelleria dello Stato
Ufficio Legalizzazioni
6501 Bellinzona
Ticino

The Chancellery will send the documents (complete with apostille) and the invoice directly to the client.

TOTAL COST:
–	Cost of notary/registrar: max. SFr.30 per signature authenticated. This cost is for each “legalization procedure” (i.e. each statement complete with authenticated signature) and is independent of the length of the text to be legalized. Notaries generally cost more than registrars. Maggia town hall charges SFr.10; some town halls offer the service for free.
–	Cost of apostille: SFr.25 (in 2010)
–	Cost of translator: SFr.60 (30+30) (covers layout adjustments, statement, legalization procedure, signing, application for apostille and postage)

=> Total: SFr.10 + 25 + 60 = SFr.95 (for legalization and apostille for one document)

Some clients might opt for legalization (notarization) only, especially if the translation is for use within Switzerland, in which case the apostille is not required.

SUMMARY: cost of basic certification, legalization and apostille
Universal Currency Converter: www.xe.com/ucc 

No. of documents	Basic certification by translator (SFr.)	ALTERNATIVELY:
Legalization2) (by town hall registrar / notary) without apostille (SFr.)	Legalization2) (by town hall registrar / notary) plus apostille3)
(SFr.)	
1 document	25	40
=1*10 (MTH)+1*30 [20 minutes](TR)	95
=40+1*25 (BEL) + 1*30 [20 minutes] (TR)	
X documents together	25	40	95	
2 documents separately1)	50
=2*25	50+
=2*10 (MTH)+90.-/h [20+ minutes] (TR)	160+
=80+2*25 (BEL) + 90.-/h [20+ minutes](TR)	
3 documents separately1)	75
=3*25	60+
=3*10 (MTH)+ 90.-/h [20+ minutes] (TR)	225+
=120+3*25 (BEL) + 90.-/h [20+ minutes] (TR)	
4 documents separately1)	100
=4*25	70+
=4*10 (MTH)+90.-/h [20+ minutes] (TR)	290+
=160+4*25 (BEL) + 90.-/h [20+ minutes] (TR)	
X documents separately1)	X*25	
=X*10 (MTH)+ 90.-/h [20+ minutes] (TR)	
= X*40+X*25 (BEL) + 90.-/h [20+ minutes] (TR)	

1) The documents are part of the same translation order but are treated separately
2) Legalization by registrar at Maggia town hall (MTH) (same validity as legalization by a notary but less expensive)
3) The apostille (SFr.25 in 2010) is invoiced to the client directly by Bellinzona (therefore it is not included in my invoice to the client).

MTH	= Maggia town hall (registrar)
TR	= Translator
BEL	= Cancelleria dello Stato, Ufficio Legalizzazioni, 6501 Bellinzona, Switzerland (for translators based in Ticino)
              (legalization department of the State Chancellery / Standeskanzlei / Chancellerie d’Etat)

NOTES:
a)	If the documents are all being sent together (to the same place and at the same time), legalization of all documents TOGETHER (one stamp for all) is the ideal solution (less expensive).
b)	If you need more than one copy of the same document certified, then the cost is SFr. 25 for the first document and SFr.5 for each additional identical copy.

March 2010