Sworn English translator online: officially valid Spanish-English sworn translation

A sworn translation (traducción jurada) is a translation made and certified by a sworn translator appointed by Spain's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation (MAEC). It carries the official certification wording, the translator's signature and stamp, and is attached to a dated, stamped copy of the source document. That is what gives it official status before the Spanish authorities, courts, notaries, universities and companies that require a foreign document to be filed in Spanish, or a Spanish document to be issued in English with the guarantees of a licensed professional.

The difference from an ordinary translation is not the language or the quality of the text but the liability: when I sign a sworn translation I am personally vouching that it is faithful and complete. That is why I cannot leave out stamps, handwritten notes, apostilles or margin annotations: everything on the document appears in the translation, and anything unreadable is marked as illegible. If you need to file a document with an official body in Spain, this is what they will ask for.

If you are not sure whether your procedure requires a sworn translation or a plain one, I will tell you before charging you anything. The page on the official validity of sworn translations (in Spanish) explains what it must contain and how it is checked.

Only a Sworn Translator-Interpreter appointed by the MAEC for the English-Spanish pair, either by passing the exam set by the Ministry's Office of Language Interpretation or through recognition of a professional qualification obtained in another EU Member State. The appointment is personal and non-transferable: the translation is signed by the appointed individual, not by an agency, and the number on the stamp identifies that person in the Ministry's public register.

My appointment number is 7310, for English. You can check it yourself, without asking me, on the MAEC's official list of sworn translators and interpreters: download the English list and look for my name or number. It is the only check an official body needs to know the signature is valid, and it is the check I recommend you make with any sworn translator before sending them a document.

These are the documents I translate most, each with its own page (in Spanish) explaining which procedures ask for it, whether it needs an apostille and how to send it:

• Birth certificate — citizenship, marriage, children's NIE, Civil Registry.
• Marriage certificate — family reunification residency, pensions, registering the marriage.
• Criminal record certificate (ACRO, DBS, FBI, Garda) — visas, residency, citizenship, job offers.
• University degree and transcript — recognition of qualifications, UCAS, professional bodies, master's admissions.
• Driving licence — exchange or recognition with the DGT or the DVLA.
• Employment certificate and payslips — work visas, digital nomad visa, mortgages, rentals.
• ID card or passport — files where a translation of the identity document is required.
• Contracts and deeds — property purchases, powers of attorney, company formation.
• Wills and inheritance documents — estates with assets in Spain and the UK (grant of probate).
• Medical certificate — visas, sick leave, insurance and evidence before the authorities.
• Sworn Spanish-English translation — the general page for the language pair.
• Official validity — what a sworn translation contains, how it is verified and who accepts it.

If your document is not listed, choose "other document" in the catalogue and I will quote for it all the same. For complete files (digital nomad visa, citizenship, recognition of qualifications with several documents) I work with a single deadline and a single price for the whole batch; see urgent and large projects.

The prices in this table apply to standard one-page documents (certificates, degrees, licences) and are the same ones you will see in the catalogue. For long or complex documents (contracts, deeds, multi-page transcripts) the price depends on length, and you get it fixed, in writing and within 2 hours once I have seen the document; I never quote per word blind or add surcharges you have not seen before accepting.

The price includes the complete translation, the certification with signature and stamp, the electronically signed PDF and the stamped copy of the source document. There is no surcharge for the ordinary 24/48h turnaround. Paper copies can be couriered outside Spain; the courier cost is stated in the quote. Payment is by card through Stripe (any international card, charged in euros) or by bank transfer, and you receive an invoice. See the full pricing page, including certified translation for USCIS and digital nomad visa files.

A certificate, a degree or a driving licence is normally ready within 24 hours of confirming the quote, and within 48 hours at most if several arrive at once. When you write to me I tell you the real deadline before you pay, and that is the deadline I keep: I do not promise "same day" as a blanket rule because it depends on workload, but if you need it for a specific appointment, tell me and I will confirm whether I can make it.

For large batches and multi-document files we agree a schedule in writing; I can take on up to 500 pages per week. Office hours 9:00 to 20:00, mainland Spain time (CET/CEST); if you are writing from the UK, Ireland or the Americas, bear that in mind when working out when you will hear back.

PDF with electronic signature. This is what I deliver by default. In 2020 the MAEC's Office of Language Interpretation confirmed that sworn translations may be signed electronically, and the Spanish authorities (immigration, civil registries, universities, social security, tax office) accept them as a matter of course, especially for procedures filed online. The signature is verified with one click inside the PDF and the document can be forwarded as many times as needed without losing validity.

Paper with handwritten signature and stamp. Some bodies, notaries or registries still ask for a paper original, and this is more common outside the EU. In that case I print the translation, sign and stamp it by hand and courier it to you: the day after digital delivery in Murcia and within 24/48h elsewhere in Spain; abroad, the courier cost is stated in the quote. You can ask for both versions at once; the translation is the same.

Apostille. The Hague apostille is not part of the translation: it is a stamp that legalises the original document so that it takes effect in another country, and it is obtained before translating, in the country that issued the document (in the UK, the FCDO Legalisation Office; in the US, the Secretary of State of the issuing state or the US Department of State). If the document carries one, I translate it too. Between EU Member States, Regulation (EU) 2016/1191 exempts many public documents (birth, marriage, criminal records…) from the apostille, but a British or American document normally does need one for Spain. If in doubt, ask me before applying for it.

In Spain, any public or private body accepts a sworn translation signed by a MAEC-appointed translator; it is what the law requires when a foreign document is filed with the authorities. Outside Spain there is no sworn translator by that name, but English-speaking bodies ask for a certified translation with specific requirements that my translation meets or that I adapt when needed:

• Spanish immigration offices and National Police: NIE, TIE, arraigo, family reunification, citizenship by residence, digital nomad and non-lucrative visas.
• Civil Registry: registering births and marriages that took place abroad, citizenship and marriage files.
• Universities and the Ministry of Education: recognition and equivalence of degrees, admission to undergraduate and master's programmes, Erasmus, scholarships.
• Notaries, registries and courts: property purchases, powers of attorney, estates, court proceedings with documents in English.
• Home Office / UKVI: visas, settlement and citizenship; it asks for a full translation with the translator's confirmation, the date, their full name and contact details, all of which my certification includes. See the guide for British residents in Spain.
• USCIS: requires a certification of accuracy and competence under 8 CFR § 103.2(b)(3), which I provide with every document; no notary is needed. See certified translation for USCIS.
• IRCC (Canada): asks for a translation by a certified translator or, if the translator is not certified in Canada, accompanied by a translator's affidavit; I explain which option fits your case on the Canada page.
• Irish Immigration, Home Affairs (Australia), universities and employers in English-speaking countries: certified translation with the translator's details. Guides under sworn translation by country.

If your body has a specific requirement (a format, a declaration, a certified copy), send it to me with the document and I will build it in. I would rather tell you I cannot do something than hand you a translation that gets rejected.