Practical Information
Frequently Asked Questions
- I have some documents that need to be translated. How much will it cost and how long will it take to translate them?
- I have been asked to have my translations done by an official translator (« traducteur assermenté »). Are you on the official list of certified translators?
- Can I pay when I come to pick up the translations?
- Can I save time by faxing or emailing the signed quote back to you?
- Can I have someone else drop off my documents or pick up my translations?
- I had my birth certificate translated by your office and now I need another copy of the translation of my birth certificate. What is the process for this and do I have to pay the same fee again?
- Are the fees charged by certified translators regulated and do you all charge the same fees?
- I was told that my translations have to be legalized before I can send them abroad. Do you know what this means and how I can do it?
- Can you scan and email my certified translations to me?
- I was told that my documents need to have something called an apostille? Do you know what that is and how I can obtain it?
- Is the fee cheaper if I do not get the translation certified?
- Do I really need a certified translation?
- Can I pay for my translations using a credit card?
- Can I mail my documents to you and have them returned to me by the post?
1. I have some documents that need to be translated. How much will it cost and how long will it take to translate them?
If you are pressed for time, we recommend that you request a quote online. We will email you an estimate. The estimate details the cost per document and the amount of time necessary to process your translations. We will get back to you if we have questions regarding your documents.
If you are not in a hurry, you can come to our office. We are open for drop offs from 9:00 am. to 6:00 pm. Monday to Friday.
Cabinet Fields Juris Traducteur
37-39 rue Saint Sébastien
75011 Paris
The nearest metro stations are Saint Ambroise line 9, Richard Lenoir line 5 or Saint-Sébastien — Froissart line 8.
If you have even more time, once you receive the estimate, you can mail it back to us with your documents and payment. Please bear in mind that the delivery time indicated in the quote is valid for 15 days.
2. I have been asked to have my translations done by an official translator ("traducteur assermenté"). Are you on the official list of certified translators?
Yes. The term "traducteur assermenté" or "traducteur juré" means an official translator certified by a Court of Appeals in France. Mr. Fields has been certified as translator and interpreter by the Paris Court of Appeals since 2000.
3. Can I pay when I come to pick up the translations?
No, our individual customers are required to pay when they drop off their documents. We are a company committed to high quality and efficient service at a competitive price point to all of our customers. In order to provide each client with exceptional quality, value and on-time delivery, we require payment in advance so that we may adequately plan for and prepare each client’s requests. Your advanced payment ensures our ability to meet each client’s needs on time and oftentimes earlier.
4. Can I save time by faxing or emailing the signed quote back to you?
No, doing so may even slow down the process because your translations will be processed only once we have received your signed quote, hard copies of your documents and payment all together. Proceeding in this manner will save time in the processing of your translations.
5. Can I have someone else drop off my documents or pick up my translations?
Sure. For drop offs (11:00 am. to 2:00 pm. Monday to Friday), please make sure you give the person the quote (if you received one), payment and your documents to be translated. If there is any handwritten information that may be hard to read, please write or type out the information on a separate sheet of paper!
For pickups (11:00 am. to 2:00 pm. Monday to Friday), the person just needs to give us your last name or surname.
6. I had my birth certificate translated by your office and now I need another copy of the translation of my birth certificate. What is the process for this and do I have to pay the same fee again?
It is very simple and straightforward. If you have a photocopy of the exact same birth certificate that you had us translate and no changes have been made, the fee for a duplicate copy of the translation is substantially cheaper (on the order of €12) and it usually takes us no more than 1 to 2 business days to reissue certified translations.
Please note that if changes have been made to your documents for which new copies are required, the fee will be higher. We can provide you with the fee once we have ascertained the extent of the changes, if any.
7. Are the fees charged by certified translators regulated and do you all charge the same fees?
No, fees are not regulated and we do not, to the best of our knowledge, all charge the same fees. To get an idea of the variety of fee charged for similar services, we recommend you contact each translator separately to obtain a quote for their services.
8. I was told that my translations have to be legalized before I can send them abroad? Do you know what this means and how I can do it?
In any case, you should give us this information at the time you place your order because the translator will need to put his full signature on the translations. If you would like, we can handle this for you (the price of the service will depend on the number of documents and country in which you intend to use the translation, etc.) or suggest a company for you to use for this service. For further information regarding the legalization process, please click on the Legalization section of the current page.
9. Can you scan and email my certified translations to me?
A certified translation consists of an original hardcopy of the translation which is stapled to your source document—both stamped, signed and certified by the certified translator. Only when presented in this way is the certified translation legally valid.
A scan of a certified translation has no legal value and therefore we do not provide them.
10. I was told that my documents need to have something called an apostille? Do you know what that is and how I can obtain it?
For information, please click on the Apostille section of this page. If you would like, we can handle this for you (the price of the service will depend on the number of documents and country in which you intend to use the translation, etc.) or suggest a company for you to use for this service.
11. Is the fee cheaper if I do not get the translation certified?
No. Our practice is to provide superior quality translations. Certification is a service that we provide at no additional cost.
12. Do I really need a certified translation?
We are not able to tell you for sure. The agency or institution that requires the translation should be able to tell you. However, based on our extensive experience, if you are planning to use the translation for official purposes in connection with a government agency, academic institution or corporation, there is a good chance that a certified translation will be required.
13. Can I pay for my translations using a credit card?
A number of options are available. You can pay by credit or bank card at the office or on our website (provided that you have requested a quote first), by check, in cash or by electronic fund transfer.
For electronic fund transfers, here are our bank references:
CABINET FIELDS JURIS TRADUCTEUR
Address: 2 PASSAGE DU JEU DE BOULES
75011 PARIS
Bank name and code: BNP PARIBAS 30004
Branch name and code: PARIS VOLTAIRE 00826
Account number: 00010024392
IBAN: FR76 3000 4008 2600 0100 2439 208
BIC: BNPAFRPPPBY
14. Can I mail my documents to you and have them returned to me by the post?
Yes, you can. We suggest that you prepare your documents and include the payment and enclose a self-addressed stamped envelope (for the postage, double the weight of your documents so that we can return them to you: for instance, for 1-3 A4 format pages, you should include postage for up to 50g; for 4-7 A4 format pages, include postage for up to 100g).