I am wondering what experience people have had, if any, of the need, or not for translation of birth certificates, given the eu change of law in 7/16. I know countries were being given 2.5years to implement and wonder whether anyone has experienced this change happening. We are hoping to marry here and have 4 documents to get translated which works out quite dear, so if we can avoid the need for official translations it would be great. I have tried finding links to the multi lingual standard forms for citizens to use with no joy, has anyone else found and used it? Or is it still pay up and get translation done officially?
Thanks for any advice.
Briony
Hello Briony,
It must be still done officially as far as I know. Best to avoid pricey
agencies but look up Traducteurs Assermentés and type in your closest town
or get a quote with everything done by registered post unless the official
translator needs to stamp the original docs.
Warm regards,
Anna
40€ a document so no not a fortune, state will provide you with a list of accepted translator’s. My daughter is now in the process of seeking French citizenship and this is the info given to her by our prefecture.
Hi I needed a translation and got it done 3 weeks ago for 27 euros by an approved translator. Let me know if you want their details. Scanned the original, emailed them and got it 2 weeks later in post.
It all depends on who is asking for a document to be translated. For certain things, you must use state approved translator’s or your documents will not be accepted.
I would start by asking the Marie where you are going to be married what they want. Whatever the official line is on this it is likely that your particular Marie will want particular documents and they will tell you whether they want them translated. Even if it is no longer required by law they may still want translations and won’t budge even if you quote the law to them. Also, be aware that for birth certificates they must be less than 3 months old so you will need to get certified copies from the UK (assuming you are British of course!)
I was married in France in 2009 and it was a tortuous process so I suggest you get started on the paperwork several months before you plan to get married.
I am in the process of getting the documents from England. As we have to arrange for our witnesses to be available on the correct day I approached the Maire’s office to discuss dates, but they won’t do this until we have all the documents, including the witnesses details. I explained that without a date it is hard to say whether the witnesses, who work, will be available. I was informed if they weren’t available for the date we chose when we went with our paperwork, we would have to choose different witnesses. Not that easy, when the majority of our French friends work and also not sure why then, all their details have to be given when our documentation is handed over. But we will tackle that when we have collated all the paperwork.
I know how hard this is and I have sympathy for you. When I was getting married we collected all the documents listed on the form with translations and took them to the Marie only to be told there were other documents they needed that were not on the list. When we finally got a date sorted the birth certificates were nearly older than 3 months and, had there been any further delay, we would have had to get new ones.
It was a horrible bureaucratic nightmare, almost as bad as swapping my UK driving licence for a French one. But that is a whole other horror story!