Translation agency in Madrid

Translation for a specific purpose

A maintenance instruction must remain unambiguous when somebody uses the equipment. A contract must preserve the obligations of the parties. A medical document calls for careful handling of terminology, figures and personal information. Our translation services cover these different needs, along with the review of existing translations, website localisation and multilingual typesetting.

For technical translation, it helps to supply diagrams, earlier manuals and an approved list of component names. A legal translation needs to reflect the document's function and the jurisdiction in which it will be read. Medical translation and pharmaceutical material require their own subject knowledge and checks. The subject of a document matters as much as its word count when we plan the work.

Documents for use in Spain

If a Spanish university, registry, court or other authority has asked for an official translation, see our sworn translation service. In the Spanish system, the translation must be certified by a professional authorised by the competent authority for the relevant language combination. A general translation bearing an agency stamp is not automatically a sworn translation.

Please tell us which body will receive the document and whether it accepts an electronically signed file or requires a paper copy. It may also request an apostille or legalisation of the source document. Those requirements are separate from the translation, and the order of the steps depends on the procedure. Sharing the authority's instructions at the outset is the safest way to avoid ordering the wrong form of service.

Languages, audiences and terminology

Our languages section helps you find the language relevant to your project. A language name alone does not settle the brief: we need the direction, the audience and the kind of text. English for a British audience, for example, may call for different spelling and terminology from material intended for another English-speaking market. The distinction becomes particularly important in public-facing content.

If you have an established glossary, a style guide or previous publications, include them with the source files. We can use those references to keep product names, job titles and recurring terms consistent. Where several languages are involved, agreeing key terminology before work begins can prevent incompatible versions of the same message. Website and software localisation also requires attention to buttons, forms, screen space and the way the finished text appears in context.

Checks that fit the assignment

We first identify the intended reader and the parts of the file that need particular care. During preparation and review, figures, names and terminology are checked against the source according to the agreed scope. The final file must also be usable: a carefully worded paragraph is of little help if a table has lost a row or a label no longer fits. Read more about our approach to translation quality.

If you already have a translated text, translation review may be more appropriate than commissioning another version. The reviewer needs both the original and the translation to check whether information has been omitted or changed. A monolingual proofread alone cannot establish that.

Requesting a quotation from Madrid

Send us an editable document where possible, or a complete, legible scan. Please mention the source and target languages, any deadline and whether the finished work must be supplied in a particular format. A document with diagrams, handwritten notes or text embedded in images may involve additional preparation. We will confirm the scope after examining the material rather than assume that every file with the same number of pages takes the same time.

You can make an enquiry from anywhere in the Community of Madrid. If a physical delivery or a meeting is relevant, explain what you need so that the arrangements can be checked. For conferences or multilingual discussions, see the separate interpreting service in Madrid: live speech and written documents require different planning. To start, use our quote form and attach the material you can share.