Accepting texts for translation
Deadlines
Translation Costs
The unit of translation – one PAGE
Notarization
Translations Certified by the Translator's Signature
PRICES
Types of texts we do not accept
Confidentiality

Accepting texts for translation

You can send us texts to be translated either in paper format (including by fax or scanned) or in Word or other format. As a rule, we complete translations in Word format. We can also make translations in Excel and other programs, using the file you send us for translation as a template. However, the cost of such translation will be higher and will be determined taking into account the necessary additional work.
The smallest volume accepted for each individual order is half (1/2) a page, if the quantity of text is up to 900 characters. If the quantity exceeds 900 characters, it is considered as 1 full page.
We accept different texts for translation. However, our clients turn to us most often for translation of legal texts, such as contracts, corporate documents - articles and memorandums of association, certificates of incorporation, court rulings, applications, legal counsel opinions, etc. We also translate various documents issued by state or private institutions, such as: certificates, diplomas, licenses, official letters and others. Our office has extensive experience in translating legal texts, especially in English, Latvian and Russian languages. We also make unofficial translations of laws and regulations.

Besides legal texts, we can also provide translation in different other fields, such as: engineering and other technical and specialized fields, information technology, popular science articles in various disciplines, articles from periodicals, historical, social and humanitarian texts.

Deadlines 

Since we perform orders concurrently for many clients, we have established a translation volume rate per one client a day. This rate is 5 pages (from/to English, Latvian, Russian), and 3 pages per day for other languages and for translations of complex texts.
Orders may be completed faster for the following rates: (1) express (30%, if the translation amount exceeds 5 pages per day to/from English/Latvian/Russian or 3 pages per day to/from other languages and for complex translations), (2) urgent (60%, if the translation amount exceeds 10 pages per day to/from English/Latvian/Russian or 6 pages per day to/from other languages and for complex translations), (3) super-urgent (120%, if the translation amount exceeds 20 pages per day to/from English/Latvian/Russian or 12 pages per day to/from other languages and for complex translations). Holiday / night rate (+120%)is applied to those orders which are fully or mainly performed during holidays and/or outside the regular business hours (from Friday till Monday, from the end of one workday till the beginning of the next one). If the volume to be completed during such time would otherwise correspond to the express (+30%), urgent (+60%) or super-urgent rate, the corresponding applicable rates will be summed up (+150%, +180%, +240%, respectively).

Translation Costs

What determines the price of a translation? As can be seen in our price lists, the first determinant of the price of a translation is the quantity of the text, which is measured by pages. So, what is a page? Often, clients initially ask us, "how much will it cost us to get an A4 page translated?" It's impossible to give an exact answer, because a single A4 page can contain very divergent quantities of text. For example, a standard insurance policy can contain ten times more characters than the same size page of a purchase-sale contract. This is because in the first case the font size is generally 8 or even less, while in the latter case the size used is generally 12 or more, and there are larger spaces between words and lines, wider margins etc. Therefore, the price for translating an "A4 page" can vary within a very wide range:  from a few lats/pounds* (for the minimum order of ½ a page) to 100 Ls/£* or more (if text is typed in a small font, and/or it is complex and/or the work has to be performed urgently). The translator's work depends on the number of characters in the text - not on the size of the page.

Therefore, for calculating translation prices, we use 1,800 characters as the benchmark of a standard (notional) page. The number of standard pages is calculated in MS Word by selecting the command Word count (under tools) and counting the number of characters, including spaces. The total number of pages is worked out by dividing the number of characters by 1,800. Therefore, how many physical pages the respective text is printed on isn’t important, although we can increase the font size to double the number of actual pages if the client wishes. This doesn’t change the price of the translation.

When we receive a client's text in paper format, we can only give an approximation of the total volume to be translated. If, however, we receive the text electronically, we can make a much more precise calculation (± 2/3 pages). As a rule, we calculate the maximum possible volume of the final translation. The actual price of the translation, for which we invoice out client, is calculated after the completion of the work, in accordance with the formula set out in the previous paragraph.

* The exchange rate between the GBP and the Latvian national currency, lat (LVL, Ls) has for a long time been approximately 1:1. However, since lat is linked to EUR, the value of GBP has fallen against lat this year and is 1 LVL = 1.135 GBP or 1 GBP = 0.0881 LVL in July 2008.

3 complexity degrees of translations

The cost of translation depends also on the level of complexity of the text. We divide translations into three broad categories:

Simple texts (I degree):
General texts, personal and simple business letters without any special terminology.

Medium complexity texts (II degree):
a) General texts with some special/sector-specific terms, incl. popular scientific articles in various fields, historical, social, humanitarian sciences texts; simple legal texts; documents and letters issued by state and municipal authorities and institutions; advertising, promotional and PR texts; accounting, economic, insurance and financial texts; literary texts, etc.;
b) 1st complexity degree texts with additional formatting and arrangement elements (including tables), texts that are difficult to read or hand-written, texts including many numerals, symbols, etc.;
c) 1^st complexity degree texts with notarization or certification by the translator.

Medium-high complexity texts (II/III degree):
These are texts of a complexity degree between medium and high, including such legal texts as statements of claim, court rulings, legal opinions, applications, submissions; loan, assignment, pledge, mortgage, leasing, advertising and other contracts, including extended purchase-sale, procurement, lease, employment contracts, as well as legal texts with additional terminology (insurance, accounting, technical etc.). The rates of medium-high complexity translations are also applied to 2nd degree translations with notarization or certification with translator’s signature.

High complexity texts (III degree):

a) Texts which include special terms, including high complexity legal texts (facility agreements, credit agreements, insurance, franchise agreements; court rulings and other documents; legal and expert opinions, etc.); technical texts; texts in various scientific fields including medicine, architecture, biology etc.; as well as texts whose translation requires the use of significant additional resources (lists of special terms, legislation, materials from the press and the internet, consultations with experts or the client, other translations, etc.);

b) 2nd complexity degree texts with additional formatting and arrangement elements (including tables), texts that are difficult to read or hand-written, texts including many numerals, symbols, etc.;

c) Medium-high complexity translations with notarization or certification with translator’s signature;
d) Completion of translations in other programs, apart from Word (Excel, PowerPoint, etc.).

High complexity translations with notarization or certification with translator’s signature:

If high complexity translations need to be certified, we proofread and check them additionally, therefore a separate rate is applied to such specially labor-consuming translations.

Costs of editing and adding to texts

For completion of similar texts (standard format contracts, power of attorneys, instructions, certificates etc.) and for introducing changes to texts already translated by us, for proofreading and editing texts submitted by the client, the price is calculated according to the amount of work involved, but not less than 30% of the price for the respective complexity degree and language.

Other services 

Sometimes, especially when working on draft contracts, our clients ask us to arrange translation in two columns along each other, so that texts in both languages could be read concurrently. This is an additional service, as it requires additional time. The costs of such arrangement (formatting) of translation parallel with the original text (in a table) are: LVL 1.42 (LVL 1.20, if VAT 0%) for each notional page (counting the number of standard pages in the translated text).

Notarization

A notarized translation is one that is signed by a sworn translator, whose signature is in turn certified by a notary public (called sworn notary in Latvia). A sworn translator is a translator who has been sworn by a notary and who undertakes to perform translations truthfully and accurately and assumes full responsibility for willfully false and/or incorrect translations. Notarization can be provided only for translations of documents (but not for newspaper articles, unsigned draft contracts etc.) In other words, to perform a notarized translation, we must receive a fully completed, legally valid document, signed and, in certain cases, sealed,

For a document to be legally valid, it must include the following details:
1) name of the author of the document;
2) date of the document;
3) name of the place where the document was issued, adopted or signed;
4) a signature (signatures) of or on behalf of the issuer(s).

In Latvia, notarization is not provided for translations of passports and other personal identity documents, parliamentarians' certificates of office, service certificates, or membership cards for political or social organizations. Similarly, notarization cannot be made for translations of documents written over several pages unless they are enumerated, sewed and bound, and their number affirmed by the stamp of the document issuer - a company, institution, organization or corporation - and a printed representation of the official's signature. It is also not provided for documents that include erasures, additions, crossings out or other unexplained corrections, and also for documents written in pencil.

Translations Certified by the Translator's Signature

In certain cases when the client does not need a notarized translation or when notarization cannot be provided, we can prepare translations certified by the translator's signature and our company seal. These translations are prepared in accordance with 2 August 2000 Cabinet of Ministers Regulation No. 291, “The Procedure for Certifying Document Translations in the Official Language”. See the original Latvian version of the Regulation .

Translation Prices and General Terms and Conditions

Please see our Translation Prices and General Terms and Conditions  to see the translation prices, depending on the respective languagecombination, the complexity degree of texts, and on whether a document needs notarization or certification with translator’s signature.

Types of texts we do not accept

We do not translate texts that contain personal insults, offensive or demeaning descriptions of any person, political, ethnic, racial or religious group, texts that incite racial, ethnic, religious or political intolerance, violence, terrorism or other forms of extremism. We reserve the right to decide according to our judgment whether a text includes the stated ideas or descriptions.

Confidentiality

Confidentiality is a vital and integral part of a translator's work. We are fully aware that any text may be sensitive. Therefore, we do not disclose any information about translation orders and/or clients to any person or organization, except and only to the extent such information is demanded by the Latvian law enforcement agencies in accordance with the applicable legislation.

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To find out about making translations of any type of text, and to receive information about deadlines and prices, please phone us at +371 67282599, or fax +371 67282518, or send us an e-mail to: .