What Is a Certificate of Accuracy?

A certificate of accuracy is the signed statement that turns a translation into a certified translation. It declares that the attached translation is a true, complete, and accurate rendering of the source document, and it is signed and dated by the translator or the translation company standing behind the work.

It is one page, it sits in front of the translation, and it is the page the receiving office reads first.

What a certificate of accuracy says

The wording varies between providers, but the substance is fixed. The statement identifies the document, identifies the direction of the translation, and asserts accuracy. The certificate we issue reads as follows.

Eagle Translate, a service of Future Gen Sync LLC, hereby certifies that the attached document, identified below, is a true, complete, and accurate translation from Spanish into English of the source document provided to us, to the best of our professional knowledge and ability.

A second paragraph handles the practical points a reviewer needs. It records that the translation was produced and reviewed by a qualified professional translator, explains that non textual elements such as stamps, seals, signatures, and codes are described in bracketed form at their position in the document, and states that the certification attests to the accuracy of the translation only, not to the authenticity of the source document.

That last clause matters more than it looks. It draws a clean line between two different questions, so nobody reads a certificate of accuracy as a verdict on whether the original is genuine.

What appears on the certificate

Our certificate carries a fixed set of fields so a reviewer can match it to the document in front of them without hunting.

• The source file name, as uploaded
• The document type, for example birth certificate or academic transcript
• The language pair, written out in full
• The order reference for the job
• The ATA membership number the certification is issued under
• The date of certification
• The printed name and signature of the certified translator who approved the work
• The company approval stamp
• A QR code linking to a verification page for that order reference

Everything on that list is specific to one order. There is no generic version of the page.

Why the certificate stays attached to the translation

A certificate of accuracy is only meaningful next to the translation it describes. Detached, it is a signed statement about a document nobody can see.

For that reason the certificate and the translation are delivered as a single file, certificate first. When you submit the translation, submit the whole thing. Sending only the translated pages means sending an uncertified translation, and that is one of the more common reasons a filing comes back.

How stamps, seals, and signatures are handled

Official documents are covered in marks that are not text. A raised seal, a registrar's signature, a revenue stamp, a barcode, a handwritten annotation in the margin.

None of those can be translated, and leaving them out silently would make the translation incomplete. So each one is described in brackets at the exact position where it appears, for example [round official seal of the civil registry] or [signature, illegible]. A reviewer holding the original next to the translation can then account for every mark on the page, which is precisely what a reviewer is trying to do. The full picture of what a certified package contains is in what is a certified translation.

What the certificate does not certify

Three things sit outside it.

The certificate does not confirm that the source document is authentic. It does not carry a notary's signature, which is a separate step that confirms the identity of the signer and nothing about the translation. It is not a sworn translation of the kind issued by court appointed translators in Spain, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Turkey, and other countries with that system. The differences are set out in certified vs notarized vs sworn translation.

It also does not decide acceptance. The office receiving your document decides that, against its own published instructions, and those instructions govern. Read them before you order, and if they leave you unsure, ask that office or contact us.

How a receiving office checks the certificate is genuine

Every certificate we issue carries an order reference and a QR code. Scanning the code opens the verification page for that specific order, so an admissions officer, a case worker, or a clerk can confirm that the certificate came from us and matches a real job.

That check takes a few seconds and needs no account. It is there because a certified translation is only as good as the ability of the recipient to trust it.

Which orders come with a certificate of accuracy

Certified, at 24.95 per page, includes the signed certificate and is delivered in 2 to 3 business days. Premium, at 39.95 per page, includes the same certificate and is translated ahead of other orders for a delivery of 1 to 2 business days.

Standard, at 19.95 per page, is the same professional translation without the certificate, delivered in 3 to 5 business days, for work that does not need to be filed anywhere. That distinction is worked through in certified translation vs standard translation, and all three levels sit side by side on the services page.

A page is up to 250 words of the source document rather than a physical sheet, so most single page vital records count as one page. You upload a PDF, we measure the real document, and the price appears before you pay by card. Orders run up to 50 pages online. The how it works page covers the four steps, and the FAQ answers the rest.

If a certified translation is rejected

If a certified translation is rejected because of a translation error we made, we correct it at no charge, and if the corrected translation is rejected again for that same error we refund what was paid for it. Notice within 30 days, with the written rejection, is required. The refund policy sets out the conditions and what is not covered.

Start an order at /account/new. Upload the document, choose Certified, and the signed certificate of accuracy arrives attached to the translation, ready to submit as it is.