UKVI & Home Office Certified Translations

When UKVI requires a certified translation

The Home Office and UKVI require certified translations whenever a supporting document is not in English or Welsh. This applies to all visa routes and immigration applications, including: Spouse and Partner visas (Family visas), Skilled Worker and Global Talent visas, Student and Child Student visas, Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR), Indefinite Leave to Enter, British citizenship (naturalisation and registration), ETA and eVisa applications, and any administrative review or appeal submissions.

Failure to provide a certified translation of a required document can result in delays, requests for further information or refusal of your application. Submitting an uncertified or self-produced translation is generally not accepted by UKVI.

Documents commonly required for UKVI applications

The documents most frequently translated for immigration purposes include: birth certificates (to prove identity, parentage or relationship), marriage or civil partnership certificates (for spouse or partner routes), divorce decrees (where a previous marriage must be evidenced), death certificates (for bereavement-related applications), police certificates and criminal record checks (required for some routes), bank statements and financial records (to evidence maintenance requirements), employment letters and pay slips, educational certificates and transcripts (for student routes), and national identity documents or foreign passports.

We also translate supporting documents for children, including guardianship letters, school records and adoption documents, when these form part of a family application.

What the Home Office expects from a certified translation

A certified translation submitted to UKVI or the Home Office should be a complete and accurate translation of the entire document, including any stamps, seals, handwritten notes and official annotations. The translation should be accompanied by a statement from the translator or translation company confirming that the translation is accurate and that they are competent in both languages. The certification should include the translator's full name, contact details or company name, and the date of certification.

Do not submit partial translations, machine-translated documents without professional review, or self-certified translations. If your solicitor or the application checklist specifies particular wording for the certification, share those requirements with us and we will apply them.

How it works

1. Upload your document using our secure online quote form. You can upload a scan or clear photograph. 2. We review your document and send you a fixed price and delivery date, usually within a few hours. 3. Confirm your order and pay securely online. 4. A qualified translator completes the certified translation. 5. You receive your certified translation in PDF format by email, ready to upload to the Home Office portal or include in a postal application pack. We can also post printed copies if required.

Pricing for immigration document translations

Standard single-page documents such as birth or marriage certificates cost £28 per page, including the certificate of accuracy. Same-day or express processing is available from £40 per page. Full immigration packs with multiple documents are priced per project after review.

We recommend requesting a quote for your full document set at once, as we can often offer a package price for multiple certificates submitted together for the same application. All quotes are fixed with no hidden extras.

Turnaround for urgent immigration cases

Standard delivery is 24 to 48 hours from payment confirmation. For applications with tight deadlines, same-day service is available for most standard documents when ordered before midday. We handle urgent cases regularly and understand the consequences of missed immigration deadlines.

If your visa appointment or application deadline is within 24 hours, contact us directly before ordering and we will confirm whether we can meet your requirement.

Multi-document immigration packs

Many immigration applications require translations of several documents at once — for example, birth certificates, marriage certificates, bank statements and police clearances for a spouse visa. We can handle the complete document set as a single order, which saves time and ensures consistency of name spelling and terminology across all translated documents.

Business clients, solicitors and immigration advisers regularly use our service for ongoing client translation needs. Our Business Pack is available for organisations with regular or volume requirements.

After you receive your translation

Once you receive your certified translation, check that all fields including names, dates, places and document numbers match exactly what appears in your passport and other application documents. If you notice any discrepancy in the source text (for example, a name that differs between your passport and the original certificate), contact us before submitting so we can note the variation correctly in the translation.

Keep a copy of both the original document and the certified translation. Some case officers request to see both together at interview or during biometrics.