FAQ’s
Any questions? You’ll find the answers here.
QUOTATIONS AND PRICES
How much does a translation cost?
Every translation project is unique. The volume of text and degree of complexity vary, there are different language combinations, and sometimes there are additional tasks such as formatting.
Our absolute priority is quality of finished product, which makes it difficult to advertise a standard price for a translation. This is why we work on the basis of no-obligation quotations.
The more information you give us in your request, the faster our quotation will be provided.
That seems like a lot to pay for a translation! Is it possible to get a lower price?
It’s always possible, but not with us. We insist on quality, and that comes at a price. There are plenty of online translation services, but the quality of their output is generally proportionate to the prices they charge. If you use them, you’re likely to incur extra costs afterwards for checking and corrections, or because of errors that may lead to loss of earnings and adversely affect your company’s image.
Our prices are predicated on:
- Professional work by qualified translators
- Alertness to editorial quality
- Quality control
- Customer service
- Compliance with professional best practices and ethical rules
Why do you apply a minimum charge per project?
Whatever the size of the project, it requires administrative processing: project management and monitoring, file delivery, invoicing, etc. All of these steps take time and come at a cost.
DELIVERY TIMES AND PROCESSES
When will I receive my translation?
The delivery time depends on various factors: the volume of text, the level of difficulty and how busy we are when you place your order. We’ll let you know when we can deliver once we have obtained enough information about your translation request.
Do you have an urgent translation? Where there’s a will, there’s a way… at a slight additional cost.
How is a translation project organised?
Depending on the nature of the text, we select a translator whose in-depth knowledge of the field makes him or her suitable. The same goes for the reviewer.
We provide them with all the information they need and make sure that they have received and understood all the instructions. It’s our way of ensuring an excellent translation, delivered on time.
Can you reserve time to translate a file that I’ll send you later?
We’ve found from experience that, for various reasons, texts are rarely sent at the agreed time. The translator who has reserved the time then ends up losing income.
If you’re sure you’ll be sending your texts at the agreed time, we can schedule the translation, but please bear in mind that if the texts don’t reach us on time, you will be invoiced for loss of earnings.
LANGUAGES AND SECTORS
Can you also provide me with interpreting or subtitles?
Interpretation and subtitling are separate disciplines that require specific skills. Azimut Translations only takes on translation and proofreading work.
If you need an interpreter or a subtitler, we can refer you to professionals in those fields.
Quality
Can you take care of sworn or legalised translations?
Yes, Azimut Translations does also accept sworn translations.
When do you need sworn translations? They may be requested for a birth certificate, a marriage certificate, a diploma, a certificate of good character, a divorce certificate, an adoption application, a death certificate, a driving licence, a certificate of nationality, an extract from the criminal record, payslips, a declaration of single status, medical certificates, etc.
What’s the difference between a sworn translation and a legalised translation?
A sworn translation is produced by a translator registered with a Belgian court, who puts his or her stamp and signature on the translation. The authorities may request a sworn translation of official documents in connection with certain administrative procedures (marriage, house sale, death, equivalence of education qualifications, etc.).
A legalised translation is a sworn translation (see above) where the authenticity of the translator’s signature is verified by a Belgian court. A legalised translation may be required by the authorities in connection with certain administrative procedures.
Do I need a sworn or a legalised translation? Ask the government department requesting the document which type of translation is required.
Do you use Google Translate or any other machine translation tool?
We don’t use machine translation tools. No such tool can produce a translation of sufficient quality, not even Google Translate. The use of machine translation is highly risky in terms of quality, accuracy and consistency.
Google Translate can be useful in some circumstances, though. For example, if there is an article written in a language you don’t know, machine translation can give you a quick idea of what it is about. But there’s a big difference between that and associating your brand or company with texts produced by a machine translation tool.
FILES AND FORMATTING
I have a pdf document. Can you translate it?
Certainly, even if it’s a scanned PDF document. The process is more labour-intensive and will therefore cost you slightly more. At Azimut Translations, we make every effort to reproduce the layout as closely as possible to that of the original document.
What document formats can be translated?
The most common editable file formats are no problem. For less common formats and non-editable files, we can usually find a simple solution, but we’ll have to take a look on a case-by-case basis.
Can the original layout be kept?
In most cases, the original layout can be reproduced. Note that some languages may use more words to express the same idea, though, so make sure there’s enough space.