IRCC translation requirements say that any supporting document not in English or French must come with an English or French translation by a certified translator, together with the original or a certified copy. If a certified translator cannot do it, the translation needs an affidavit sworn before a commissioner. The applicant, their family and the applicant’s representatives or consultants must not translate. If you retain a translator, the CICC Code also requires you to check their certification.
- Documents not in English or French need a translation by a certified translator, submitted with the original or a certified copy.
- If no certified translator can do it, the translation needs an affidavit sworn before a commissioner.
- The applicant, their family and the applicant’s representatives or consultants must not translate.
- Under CICC Code s. 22(4), instruct any translator you retain and check that they are certified.
- Translations do not expire unless the original changed or expired, so keep them for reuse.
Translations cause avoidable trouble in many practices: a bilingual assistant “just helps” with a birth certificate, a stamp is missing from a certified copy, or a translation arrives after the file is ready. IRCC returns applications with untranslated documents as incomplete. This guide sets out what IRCC requires, who may not translate, what the CICC Code adds when you hire a translator or interpreter, and a workflow your office can use.
Sources, checked 9 November 2026: IRCC’s program delivery instruction Translation of supporting documents for applications, which applies to the immigration and citizenship programs; and the CICC Code of Professional Conduct (SOR/2022-128), current to 19 October 2026, sections 22, 24 and 31. Always check the instruction guide for the specific application as well. The workflow is our practical suggestion.
What IRCC requires for translated documents
| Rule | What the IRCC instruction says |
|---|---|
| When a translation is needed | Supporting documents not in English or French must be accompanied by an official English or French translation. Documents already in English or French need no translation. |
| What to submit | The translation, together with the original-language document, which can be the original or a certified photocopy |
| Certified copies | The translation must be of the certified copy, and the translator must stamp both the certified copy and the translation |
| Who counts as certified | A translator whose seal or stamp shows their membership number in a professional translation association in Canada or abroad. A translator still in the process of certification does not count. |
| Where the translation is done | In Canada, a certified translator in good standing; outside Canada, a translator accredited in the country where the translation is done |
| No certified translator available | The translation must come with an affidavit, sworn before a commissioner, about the accuracy of the translation and the translator’s language proficiency |
| Missing translations | Applications with untranslated documents are returned as incomplete |
| Retranslation | Officers may ask at any time for a retranslation by a different certified translator; IRCC does not pay translation fees |
Who cannot translate, or swear the affidavit
The IRCC instruction says translations must not be done by the applicants themselves, by members of the applicant’s family, or by the applicant’s representatives or consultants. Family includes a parent, guardian, sibling, spouse, common-law or conjugal partner, grandparent, child, aunt, uncle, niece, nephew and first cousin, even if that person is a lawyer, notary or translator. The same family restriction applies to affidavits.
For your office this means you, as the representative, must not translate a client’s documents for submission, even if you are fluent. Our cautious reading, for your reviewer to confirm, is that your staff should not translate them either, because they work on the representative’s behalf. Use an outside certified translator and keep their details on the file.
In Canada, the affidavit can be taken by a notary public, a commissioner of oaths or a commissioner of taking affidavits; outside Canada, by a notary public or equivalent. The commissioner must be proficient in English or French.
Your CICC Code duties when you retain a translator or interpreter
- Get help when necessary. Section 22(1)(e) includes obtaining assistance when necessary, including by retaining an interpreter or translator, as part of delivering quality services.
- Instruct them. Section 22(4)(a) requires you to instruct the interpreter or translator to translate accurately, without additions or changes, and to keep information confidential.
- Check their certification. Section 22(4)(b) requires reasonable measures to make sure they are certified by a body legally authorized to certify interpreters or translators for those languages, or, if no certification process exists, are fluent in the client’s language.
- Say so in the agreement. Section 24(3)(u) requires your service agreement to state that you will obtain assistance when necessary, including an interpreter or translator. See manage retainer agreements.
- Bill at cost. Under section 31(2), disbursements such as translation fees must not exceed their actual cost, and section 31(3) requires the client’s written agreement before charging disbursements that were not in the agreed estimate.
The interpreter rule matters for consultations too. If a family member interprets during a meeting, our suggestion is to record who interpreted and why, and use a certified interpreter for anything the client must understand precisely, such as the service agreement.
A translation workflow for your office
- Flag at intake. Ask which documents are not in English or French, and add “translation needed” to those checklist items. See client document collection workflow for immigration.
- Pair each original with its translation. Keep them as two linked checklist items with the same file name plus a language suffix; see how to organize immigration client documents.
- Send to an outside certified translator. Give them the accuracy and confidentiality instructions in writing, and record their name, association and membership number.
- Check what comes back. Stamp with membership number present? For a certified copy, are both the copy and the translation stamped? Is any stamp in another language also translated?
- Use the affidavit route only when needed. Note on the file why a certified translator could not be used, and check that the affiant and commissioner are not family members.
- Charge at cost. Pass the translator’s invoice through as a disbursement and get written agreement for anything outside the estimate.
- Keep it for reuse. A translation does not expire unless the original document changed or expired, so a later application can reuse it.
Do translations expire?
Not on their own. The IRCC instruction says a translation should be valid indefinitely unless the original document has changed or expired, and an expired signature of a certified translator or notary does not invalidate the translation. A renewed passport or a new police certificate needs a new translation.
General information about running an immigration practice — not legal advice. Rules change; confirm current requirements with official sources and your regulator.