Document Translation for Germany

With Turkish documents sent to Germany, the trouble usually comes not from the language of the translation but from a file that has been put together incompletely. German institutions do not read a document on its own; they read it as a whole, within their own systems of recognition, and they want to see which institution issued it, which programme it relates to and how many years of study lie behind it. Below we set out what that way of looking at things means in practice, and where preparation from Türkiye tends to get stuck.

The typical situations in which a file comes back

Most of the files returned to applicants in Germany go back not because of an error in the content but because a part of the document is missing. It happens often enough that what looks like a single sheet of paper in Türkiye counts as two separate documents in Germany; the applicant has only one of them translated, and the file is treated as unfinished.

• Diploma yes, academic transcript no. German institutions generally assess a graduation certificate together with the record of marks. A translation of the diploma alone does not go far enough in most applications.
• The reverse of the academic transcript left untranslated. Where the back of the sheet explains the marking system or gives contact hours or credit equivalents, skipping it makes assessment impossible.
• Seals, stamps and signature notes not carried across. The wording of the wet seal on the document, the QR code caption and the certification annotation all belong in the translation; a field left blank counts as a deficiency.
• The spelling of the name does not match from one document to the next. If the Latin-script spelling in the passport differs from the spelling in the civil status documents, the institution cannot be sure it is dealing with the same person.

Which document is wanted for which application

In Germany the list of documents changes considerably with the purpose of the application. The same person will put together two entirely different files for a student application and for family reunification. The table below summarises which set of documents comes to the fore for which purpose.

The anabin classification comes before the translation

Here is where the trap peculiar to Germany lies. Turkish universities and programmes are listed with a classification in the German information database; the institution and the degree have separate entries, and those entries produce results independently of each other. Even where your institution is recognised, a particular programme at that institution may be assessed differently. Discovering the classification after you have had the translation done and sent the file off means two months lost.

The practical consequence is this: how the names of the institution and the programme are written in the translation is no trivial detail. The university’s official style, the name of the faculty and the name of the department have to be carried across so that they match the entry in the database. A freely translated department name makes the entry harder to find and pulls the file into needless correspondence. When you send your document through the quotation form, telling us which university and which programme is involved lets us set that match up correctly from the start.

The order of the process, and a realistic timetable

In German files most of the time goes not on the translation but on the steps before and after it. Establishing the order at the outset shortens the total noticeably.

1. Obtain a current original of the document from the institution that issued it; old photocopies are not accepted in most applications.
2. Confirm the recognition position and the list of documents required, in writing, with the institution you are applying to.
3. Have the certification annotation added; this step has to be completed before the translation, as an annotation added afterwards will not appear in it.
4. Complete the translation and, where needed, the notarisation, and submit the file in one go; sending it piecemeal lengthens the assessment.

In professional recognition the file grows

In regulated professions such as health care, engineering, teaching and law, translating the diploma is where the work starts rather than where it ends. These applications also call for the curriculum, contact hours, internship and practice periods, and documents evidencing earlier work experience. The course contents obtained from the Turkish university often run to dozens of pages, and the volume of translation climbs to several times that of the diploma. To see the cost of such a file in advance, look at our per-page rates, which will let you plan the budget properly from the beginning.

A last check before you submit

Before sending the document, look at three things: that your name appears exactly as it is written in your passport, that every page of the document has been scanned, and that the name of the institution is given in its official form. Those three checks head off most of the delays that arise in German files. If you are not certain which documents need translating, you can look at the scope of our services so that we can define it together.

What is described here reflects common practice; national legislation and institutional habits can change. For definitive information, rely on the current announcements of the institution concerned.