Passport Translation Services

What is a certified passport translation service in the UK?

A certified passport translation service is the professional conversion of a foreign-language passport into English by a qualified translator, accompanied by a signed certificate of accuracy accepted by HM Passport Office, the Home Office, UKVI and UK courts as proof of identity.

How much do passport translation services cost in the UK?

Certified passport translation services in the UK start from £25 per document for a single-page biographic passport, with longer or multi-page passports quoted at £0.10–£0.20 per word depending on language pair and subject.

How long does it take to translate a passport?

Standard turnaround for a certified passport translation is 2–3 working days for both single-page and multi-page passports.

How do I get my passport translated and certified?

To get a passport translated and certified, attach a clear scan of the biographic page, request a free quote, approve the fixed price, and receive the certified translation with signature and stamp within 2–3 working days as a PDF and posted hard copy on request.

What is the difference between certified, notarised, sworn and apostilled passport translation?

Certified passport translations carry a signed statement of truth from the translator and are the UK default; notarised translations add a solicitor or notary public signature; sworn translations are produced by court-appointed translators for EU or overseas use; apostilled or legalised translations add a Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office stamp for international recognition.

Do you need a certified translation of your passport for the UK Passport Office, UKVI or an embassy?

A certified translation of your passport is required whenever HM Passport Office, UKVI, the Home Office, a UK court, a university or an embassy processes an application involving a foreign-language passport as identity evidence, including first-time British passport applications, spouse visa endorsements and academic admissions.

Passport translation is the certified conversion of a foreign-language passport into English by a qualified translator, accompanied by a signed certificate of accuracy accepted by HM Passport Office, the Home Office, UKVI and UK courts. Our passport translation service starts from £25 per document, covers 150+ languages, and is delivered in 2–3 working days under ISO 17100. This page sits under our parent hub, Document Translation UK: Certified Services for Visas, Legal, Academic and Business Documents.

What is a certified passport translation service in the UK?

A certified passport translation service is the professional conversion of a foreign-language passport into English by a qualified translator, accompanied by a signed certificate of accuracy accepted by HM Passport Office, the Home Office, UKVI and UK courts as proof of identity. The translation carries a statement of truth, the translator's signature and stamp, and the credentials of the translation company. It is the UK default form of official translation for identity documents.

Every certified passport translation we produce contains seven concrete elements to meet HM Passport Office acceptance criteria:

Which parts of a passport are translated?

The biographic page is always translated, and endorsement pages, visa stamps and observations are added when the receiving authority requires the full identity history for a visa, settlement or citizenship application. For most HM Passport Office applications, the biographic page alone is sufficient. UKVI settlement and citizenship files usually require endorsement pages as well.

• Biographic page only: first-time British passport by descent, university admission, employer right-to-work, UK bank KYC.
• Biographic + endorsement pages: spouse visa, indefinite leave to remain, naturalisation, some student visa extensions.
• Biographic + observations page: where the passport records a name change, a note on nationality, or a court order.

Who legally accepts a certified passport translation?

HM Passport Office, the Home Office, UKVI, HM Courts, UK ENIC, universities, employers and UK banks accept certified passport translations produced by a registered translator or an ATC-member translation company. The certificate of accuracy is the document these institutions check against, not the credentials of a solicitor. Where a passport translation supports a name-change file, we recommend pairing it with a Marriage Certificate translation in one certified bundle to prevent name-mismatch rejections.

How much do passport translation services cost in the UK?

Certified passport translation services in the UK start from £25 per document for a single-page biographic passport. Longer or multi-page passports are quoted at £0.10–£0.20 per word depending on language pair and subject. Same-day and weekend delivery add a 30–50% surcharge. VAT applies to UK business clients; personal clients are quoted gross.

Service	Fee	Turnaround	Included
Certified passport (biographic page)	From £25 per document	2–3 working days	Certificate of accuracy, PDF
Multi-page passport with endorsements	£0.10–£0.20 per word	2–3 working days	Certificate of accuracy, PDF
Same-day delivery (Central London)	+30–50% surcharge	Same working day	Standard certification
Weekend delivery	+30–50% surcharge	Saturday/Sunday	Standard certification
Notarised passport translation	Quoted per job	3–5 working days	Notary public signature added
Apostille / legalised passport translation	Quoted per job	7–10 working days	FCDO apostille added

What is included in the £25 passport translation price?

The £25 fee covers translation of the biographic page into English, a signed certificate of accuracy on company letterhead, a second-linguist QC pass under ISO 17100, and a PDF copy suitable for HM Passport Office and UKVI submission. A posted hard copy is available on request at cost. There is no separate certification fee.

When do additional fees apply to a passport translation?

Additional fees apply for endorsement pages beyond the biographic page, notarisation, apostille legalisation, embassy attestation, rare language pairs, and same-day or weekend turnaround at a 30–50% surcharge. VAT applies to UK business clients. Rare language pairs sit at the top of the £0.10–£0.20 per-word band because of linguist scarcity.

How does passport translation pricing compare across language pairs?

Common European languages such as French, Spanish, Italian, German and Polish sit at the £25 per-document floor. Rarer pairs such as Amharic, Pashto, Tigrinya or Uzbek are priced individually within the £0.10–£0.20 per-word band because of linguist scarcity.

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How long does it take to translate a passport?

Standard turnaround for a certified passport translation is 2–3 working days for both single-page and multi-page passports. This window covers every stage of the ISO 17100 workflow: initial translation by a qualified native-speaker, second-linguist quality review, and final certification with a signed statement of accuracy. The result is a document that is accurate, professionally verified and ready for submission to the UK Passport Office, the Home Office or UKVI without further revision.

Same-day and weekend delivery are available for clients based in or near Central London, subject to a 30–50% surcharge on the standard rate. If you need a certified translation urgently — for example, ahead of a visa appointment or a court hearing — our team can confirm availability and a firm delivery time when you submit your request. Complex passports containing multiple endorsement pages, residence permits or visas in rare languages are quoted individually, and a revised delivery estimate is provided before work begins.

Every translated passport is proofread by an in-house professional before the certificate of accuracy is signed, so the finished document reflects the source text with complete fidelity. This double-check stage is built into the standard 2–3 working day window and is not an optional add-on, meaning there is no trade-off between speed and accuracy on any order.

How do I get my passport translated and certified?

To get a passport translated and certified, attach a clear scan of the biographic page, request a free quote, approve the fixed price, and receive the certified translation within 2–3 working days as a PDF and posted hard copy on request. The process is fixed-price, not a bespoke quote. Follow the four steps below.

1. Attach your documents (colour scan or clear phone photograph) to the online quote form or email.
2. Confirm target language, receiving authority (e.g. HM Passport Office, UKVI) and deadline.
3. Approve the fixed quote and complete payment.
4. Receive the certified translation as a signed PDF within 2–3 working days.

What do I need to send to get an instant quote?

Attach your documents as a clear colour scan or phone photograph of the biographic page, confirm the target language (usually English), the receiving authority and the deadline, and a fixed quote is returned within business hours. Every field on the passport must be legible in the scan. Cropped or blurred images are the most common cause of quote delays.

What does a certified translation of your passport look like when delivered?

A certified passport translation is laid out exactly like the original biographic page, with fields labelled in English, and is bound to a signed certificate of accuracy carrying the translator's name, credentials, date, signature and stamp. The PDF is print-ready and mirrors the original layout field by field. The translation you provided to HM Passport Office or UKVI is verifiable against the translator's CIOL, ITI or ATC listing.

What is the difference between certified, notarised, sworn and apostilled passport translation?

Certified passport translations carry a signed statement of truth from the translator and are the UK default; notarised translations add a solicitor or notary public signature; sworn translations are produced by court-appointed translators for EU or overseas use; apostilled or legalised translations add a Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office stamp for international recognition. The tier you need is set by the receiving authority, not the translator.

Tier	What is added	Primary UK use case
Certified	Signed statement of truth from the translator	HM Passport Office, UKVI, Home Office, UK courts, universities
Notarised	Notary public or solicitor signature verifying the translator's signature	Some embassies and overseas universities
Sworn	Produced by a court-appointed sworn translator	EU jurisdictions (arranged through partner network)
Apostilled / legalised	FCDO apostille or embassy legalisation on the certified translation	Hague Convention countries and non-EU foreign use

When does a passport translation need to be notarised or apostilled?

Notarisation is required when an embassy, foreign court or overseas university insists on a notary public signature. An apostille or embassy legalisation is required when the translation must be recognised in a Hague Convention country or outside the UK or EU. For UK-only use, certification is sufficient.

Do sworn translators exist for UK passport translation?

The UK does not operate a state-appointed sworn translator system; instead, CIOL, ITI and ATC-registered translators produce certified translations that carry equivalent legal weight for HM Passport Office, UKVI and UK courts. Foreign sworn translations are arranged through partner networks when a receiving country requires one. The distinction between UK certified translation and foreign sworn translators is explained in full on our Certified Translation page.

Do you need a certified translation of your passport for the UK Passport Office, UKVI or an embassy?

A certified translation of your passport is required whenever HM Passport Office, UKVI, the Home Office, a UK court, a university or an embassy processes an application involving a foreign-language passport as identity evidence. This includes first-time British passport applications, spouse visa endorsements and academic admissions.

UK Passport Office and HM Passport Office applications

HM Passport Office requires a certified English translation of any supporting document not in English or Welsh. This includes parents' foreign passports used to prove citizenship by descent, and foreign birth or marriage certificates supporting the application. Provide certified translations with each foreign-language document.

Visa, settlement and UKVI applications

Applying for a visa or settlement with UKVI requires certified English translations of every foreign-language identity document. This covers passport biographic pages, endorsement pages showing prior travel history, and any residence permit stickers referenced in the application. See our Immigration Documents service for the full visa bundle, including birth and marriage records paired with the passport translation.

Universities, employers, banks and UK courts

Universities under UK ENIC, UK employers running right-to-work checks, UK banks completing KYC and UK courts handling civil matters accept the same certified passport translation. The condition is that it carries the translator's signed statement of truth and the company's ATC membership reference. One certified translation covers all these use cases; no separate versions are needed.

Who is qualified to translate and certify a UK passport?

A UK passport can be translated and certified by a professional translator who is a member of the Chartered Institute of Linguists (CIOL) or the Institute of Translation and Interpreting (ITI), or by an ATC-member translation company working under an ISO 17100 process. A solicitor cannot certify the accuracy of a translation they did not produce. Certification is a translator's professional duty.

Can a solicitor certify a passport translation?

A solicitor cannot certify the linguistic accuracy of a translation because certification of accuracy is a translator's professional duty. A solicitor's role is limited to notarising signatures on an existing certified translation when a foreign authority requests it. The translator remains responsible for the quality and content of the translation.

How does an ISO 17100 workflow protect the accuracy of a passport translation?

Every passport translation is produced by a native-speaker professional translator working into their mother tongue, checked by a second qualified linguist and reviewed by a project manager under an ISO 17100 workflow. The signature and stamp of the responsible translator appear on the certificate of accuracy. This second-linguist QC step is the difference between the £25 fixed price and unregulated cheap alternatives.

Which languages do you translate passports from and into?

Passports are translated from and into 150+ languages, covering all EU official languages as well as major Asian, African, Middle Eastern and Latin American languages. Every translation is assigned to a native-speaker professional whose subject specialism is legal and identity documentation, ensuring that the terminology used on a passport biographic page — nationality designations, place-of-birth spellings, document numbers and validity dates — is rendered with complete precision. Each job is matched so that the translator's mother tongue corresponds to the target language of the translation.

Our network of translators holds membership with recognised professional bodies including CIOL, ITI and the Association of Translation Companies (ATC). This means that every certified passport translation we produce meets the acceptance criteria set by the HM Passport Office, which requires translations to be completed by a registered translator or an ATC-member company and accompanied by a signed certificate of accuracy. The same standard satisfies Home Office and UKVI requirements for visa, settlement and citizenship applications, as well as the evidentiary standards applied by UK courts.

Most requested passport translation language pairs

The most requested passport translation language pairs into English are Arabic, Polish, Romanian, Russian, Ukrainian, Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, French, Turkish, Farsi, Urdu, Mandarin, Hindi and Bengali. These language pairs reflect the largest migrant, student and settled communities across the UK. All are handled under the same rigorous ISO 17100 workflow — with second-linguist QC and a signed certificate of accuracy — regardless of how common or rare the language pair is. Rarer combinations, from Tigrinya and Pashto to Mongolian and Khmer, are supported through our wider professional network and carry no compromise in certification standard.

How do I get a free quote for passport translation services near me in London?

Getting a free, fixed-price quote for a certified passport translation is straightforward: attach a clear scan or photograph of your passport biographic page to our online enquiry form, and a confirmed price will be returned to you within business hours. Pricing starts from £25 per document for standard single-page passports, with longer or multi-page passports priced on a per-word basis in the £0.10–£0.20 range. There are no hidden fees — the figure quoted includes certification, the signed statement of accuracy and standard PDF delivery.

You can also reach us directly by phone or visit our London office in person. Our team handles passport and identity document translations on a daily basis, so turnaround estimates and pricing are confirmed quickly. Once an order is placed, the certified translation is delivered as a signed PDF within 2–3 working days as standard, with hard-copy posting available on request. Same-day or weekend delivery can be arranged at a 30–50% surcharge where your timeline requires it.

Every quote covers the full ISO 17100 workflow, including second-linguist proofreading and a signed certificate of accuracy, so the document you receive is accepted by the UK Passport Office, Home Office, UKVI and UK courts without the need for any additional certification steps.

Five broad questions come up most often about passport translation services: how to translate a passport quickly, who can legally translate a passport, how much a 1,000-word translation costs, whether a passport needs translation for a UK visa, and how translation services are priced.

Frequently asked questions

How to get your passport translated?

To get your passport translated, submit a clear scan or photo of every page you need translated to a certified translation service, then receive a completed translation with a signed certificate of accuracy. For UK purposes — such as applications to the Home Office, HM Passport Office, universities or employers — the translation must be certified. The process is straightforward: share your document, confirm the target language and deadline, approve a quote, and the translated document is delivered digitally (and by post if required) within the standard 2–3 working-day turnaround.

Who can translate a passport?

A passport must be translated by a qualified, professional translator — not a friend, family member or unverified online tool — particularly when the translation is needed for official UK purposes. For Home Office, HM Passport Office, court or university submissions, the translation must be certified, meaning it is accompanied by a signed certificate of accuracy attesting to its completeness and correctness. Certified Translation Services UK works under an ISO 17100 process, uses translators qualified in the relevant subject, and has every job checked by a second linguist across 150+ languages.

How much should I pay for translation services?

For certified translation in the UK, expect to pay £0.10–£0.20 per word depending on the language pair and subject matter, or a fixed price per document for short personal certificates. Single personal documents — such as a passport, birth certificate, marriage certificate or diploma — start from £25 per document, with a signed certificate of accuracy included at no extra cost. Urgent same-day or weekend delivery carries a 30–50% surcharge. Large legal, technical or regulatory projects are quoted individually based on volume and complexity.

How long does it take to translate a passport?

The standard turnaround for a certified passport translation is 2–3 working days. This applies whether the document is a single page or spans multiple pages. If you need the translation sooner, same-day and weekend delivery is available at a 30–50% surcharge. To arrange an urgent translation, contact the team directly on +44 20 4569 1419 or visit the office at Suite 544, Unit B, 63-66 Hatton Garden, London EC1N 8LE, Monday to Saturday, 9:00–18:00.

How much does it cost to officially translate a document?

Official (certified) translation of a single personal document — such as a passport, ID card, birth, marriage or death certificate, or diploma — starts from £25 per document, with a signed certificate of accuracy included at no extra cost. For longer or more complex documents, pricing is £0.10–£0.20 per word depending on the language pair and subject. Same-day or weekend delivery is available with a 30–50% surcharge. For projects involving large volumes of legal, technical or regulatory content, pricing is quoted individually — contact us for a free quote.

How do you translate documents quickly?

The fastest way to get a certified document translation is to choose a provider that offers same-day or urgent delivery — available at Certified Translation Services UK with a 30–50% surcharge over the standard 2–3 working-day rate. To speed up the process, submit a high-quality scan of your document, confirm the language pair and intended use upfront, and approve the quote promptly. You can reach the team on +44 20 4569 1419, Monday to Saturday, 9:00–18:00, to arrange an urgent turnaround.