Urgent translation is a service that provides you with a quick turnaround translation. Although it is not recommended for clients to seek urgent translations frequently, it is unavoidable in the real world where some situations demand it.

One must understand that language translation is a very delicate process where meanings tend to be distorted when rushed. Yet, we often find ourselves lacking an important translated official document before the day of applying for visas or attending legal proceedings, and this is when urgent translations come into the picture.

Urgent Translation Process

Having said that, urgent translations can still be done within a short time and to a high standard. The important thing is to look for a reputable translation service provider. The average industry standard for a normal translation of 6000 words would take up to 3 to 4 days. However, when it comes to an urgent translation, it is wise to give it a 24 hours window for a quality translation. What happens behind the scene is that the project manager will take up to 2-3 professional translators to translate your document in order to meet the deadline. The document will be split into a few sections so that each translator will be responsible for one or two sections. When the whole text is translated, the project manager will then take it to another professional translator for proof reading. This proof reading process ensures that the urgent translation is of high quality and also helps to standardise all the words or terms used in the translated text. Urgent translations are more expensive than normal translations because of the increased in number of translators doing the work. It is normal to have up to a 50% surcharge compared to the normal rates.

In order to make things even quicker, the client should send the documents needing urgent translations in electronic format. The translators will be able to translate quicker with the aid of Word, Excel, Power Point or PDF Viewer. These electronic formats are able to facilitate smoother coordination between the project manager and several translators. On the other hand, picture files such as .jpeg or .gif are not translator friendly. The final proof reading translator will also help to arrange all the translated text according to the original format before delivering it to the customer.

Certified Translations

If the document being urgently translated is an official document requiring certification, the clients will have to make sure that the translators working on the urgent translations are all certified translators.