How Much Does Legal Translation Cost?

How Much Does Legal Translation Cost for Arabic <> English?

 As a translator or client engaged in the translation service, you definitely want to know the fair cost of translation and how it is calculated. In this article, we will discuss this important topic and answer an important question which is often asked by clients: “How much does legal translation cost?”

• What are the criteria for specification of the translation cost?
• How is the translation cost calculated?
• Why is the translation expensive?
• How much does legal translation cost from English<> Arabic?
• How much does legal translation cost in the United Arab Emirates?
• Is low cost an indicator of low quality?

What are the criteria for specification of the translation cost?

This question can’t be simply answered. There are three parties involved in the translation industry: client, freelance translator, and translation agency. If you are a client, you can’t get high-quality translation unless you pay more. As a freelance translator, you can expect to be paid more as long as you focus on providing high quality and being specialized in difficult fields which require the specialist’s knowledge. As a translation agency, you can offer a higher price because you provide a certified translation approved by governmental bodies such as courts and embassies. In addition, translation agencies assume full responsibility for the quality of translation. They also provide additional services such as project management and terminology management. Consequently, their translation is more reliable.

The translation cost depends on several criteria: complexity of text, language pair, level of expertise, urgency, certification, and region.

Criteria for specification of the translation cost can be summarized as follows:

1. Complexity of Text

You can’t expect to pay the same price for translating a general easy document and legal complex document. General translation for materials like simple emails and social media reviews, comments, and posts will never be equal to legal, financial, marketing, medical, and technical translation. Each industry has specialized terminology and a specific linguistic structure. For example, legal translation is one of the most highly demanded translations worldwide because of the global business relations. Legal documents contain specialized terminology and sensitive texts which need deep understanding and high-level of specialization. That is why we will allocate a section for answering this question: “How Much Does Legal Translation Cost?”

2. Language Pair

The language pair significantly affects the translation cost. Common languages such as (English to Spanish or English to French) cost a lower price. The price for rare language pairs such as Hebrew to English is higher due to the lack of translators. Additionally, the translation cost also varies according to the difficulty of language systems. For example, Chinese and Arabic languages have a difficult language system and it isn’t easy to find a qualified translator who can understand such linguistic styles.

3. Level of Expertise

If you need a high level of expertise, you can expect to pay a higher price. To get high expertise in the translation industry, a translator gets university degrees, diplomas, and long years of practical experience. All these factors are taken into consideration when a translator decides his/her rate. Junior translators and experienced translators aren’t equal as regard to their prices.

4. Urgency

Turnaround time also affects the translation cost. There are standard deadlines for translation projects. Accordingly, standard rates are definitely charged. However, translators and translation agencies apply urgency higher fees for urgent tasks because they will prioritize your project over other projects.

5. Certification

There are two types: professional translation and certified translation. Professional translation is provided when a client needs to translate a content for his/her own use. Certified translation is required for contents to be submitted before governmental bodies such as ministries, embassies, municipalities, airports, etc. Certification of translation definitely adds higher costs to the translation fees and is an important pricing factor.

6. Region

The location of translator or translation agency also affects the translation cost. The translation is priced as per the cost of living. In countries with high cost of living, translators and translation agencies charge higher fees on contrary to countries with low cost of living. Clients may be tempted to employ translators in low-cost countries. However, they will compromise the local knowledge. For example, if a client needs to introduce products in a new market, the local translator is the only one who can properly connects such client with the local people. Native translators are more cognizant of local expressions, terminology, and culture. Another example is that if you need to translate a legal document, a native translator is more aware of the local legal system than any other foreign translator.

 

How is the translation cost calculated?

There are three common methods for the calculation of translation cost: per-word, per-page, and hourly.

• Per-word method: it is the most common method under which the translation fees are calculated as per the total word count. Per-word calculation method is preferred because it is fair and transparent. The cost is specified according to the accurate work volume.
• Per-page method: this method applies when a document contains images or the texts which are unevenly distributed. Per-page method is also calculated on the basis of (250 words) per page.
• Hourly: this method is suitable for small tasks, repetitive content, or post-translation editing.

Additionally, it is worth noting that the translation cost is calculated as per the target text, not the source text.

Why is the translation expensive?

Clients sometimes wonder why the translation service is expensive. They think that a translator puts a document on a machine translation tool and gets the automatic translation. Languages are very complicated. Each language has a different grammar, structures, terminology, idioms, and writing style. In addition, each field of expertise has more specialized terminology and linguistic structure. A translator doesn’t only study the language, he/she should also have experience in different industries such as legal, medical, or technical professions. Translators shouldn’t be only academically qualified, but they should also have the practical experience. They spend long years in studying a language and gaining practical experience in order to be professional accurate translators. The answer of this question can be summarized in one sentence: “The more efforts you exert, the more money you get.”

How much does legal translation cost for English<> Arabic? 

Legal translation is highly demanded worldwide due to the expanded business networks as a result of globalization. In the modern world, every legal paper needs to be translated. Examples of legal documents are birth certificates, immigration papers, contracts and agreements, leases, litigation documents, consulting reports, audit reports, etc. We can’t make an exclusive list of legal documents which need legal translation. Legal industry is a specialized field with specific terminology and linguistic system. This makes clients ask: “How much does legal translation cost?” Where the legal industry is a specialized field and the legal content is sensitive and important, clients can expect high fees for the legal translation service.

Arabic language has a complicated linguistic and grammatical system. It also has a writing style different from the Latin languages. Therefore, when we ask: “How much does legal translation cost for Arabic <>English?” you must take two complex factors into consideration: Arabic language and legal field.

As explained herein above in this Article, there isn’t a simple answer for this question: “How much does legal translation cost for Arabic<>English?” However, we can say that the translation cost for Arabic<> English Pair varies in Arab countries based on the cost of living and incurred expenses.

 

How much does legal translation cost in the United Arab Emirates?

The United Arab Emirates is a big business market and attracts various nationalities while the official language is Arabic language. Consequently, the legal translation for Arabic<> English is flourishing and highly-demanded. Individuals, law firms, audit firms, and big companies need the legal translation service.  According to the pricing factors explained in this Article, the translation cost for Arabic<>English Pair ranges from 25 to 100 dirhams per page (250 words).

Is low cost an indicator of low quality?

Generally speaking, low cost is always an indicator of low quality in any industry. Translation service isn’t an exception. If you find that a translator or translation agency offers an unexpectedly low rate, you can’t expect to get high-quality translation. Affordable standard prices are offered according to above-explained factors.