German to Dutch Translation

This direction is used when a German document has to be submitted in the Netherlands or Belgium. The typical applicant has completed a stage of education or a career step in Germany, Austria or Switzerland and is moving to the Netherlands, or is dealing with a procedure in the Flemish region of Belgium. On the target side the two most decisive points are that the Netherlands requires the translation to come from a sworn translator entered in the official register (Rbtv), and that in Belgium the right language region has to be chosen.

Concrete examples make the direction clearer: the person applying to study or for professional recognition in the Netherlands with a German diploma, the business submitting German company documents to its Dutch subsidiary, the family taking the record of a child born in Germany to a Dutch authority. The source carries the German administrative world; the target assesses it according to Dutch administrative language and the Rbtv system.

Education and residence files predominate in this direction; for diploma applications IND (immigration) and DUO/Nuffic (recognition) ask for different sets of documents, and confusing the two is the most common mistake.

Translating these documents means placing German concepts within their Dutch administrative counterparts and complying with the Rbtv sworn translator requirement.

The first step in an application in this direction is to establish which institution the document is going to and, where Belgium is involved, which language region; IND and DUO/Nuffic ask for different sets of documents, and the Flemish and Walloon regions expect different languages. No translation is started before this has been established.

German diploma and degree names are given in their original form with an explanation, rather than according to their counterpart in the Dutch higher education framework; the recognition decision is made by the Dutch authority (DUO/Nuffic). Credit information is preserved in a comparable form.

German institutional abbreviations (i.V., i.A., for example) are not carried into the Dutch text as they stand; they are unpacked and, where necessary, given in their original form in brackets. In powers of attorney the formula setting the limits of authority is preserved to the letter.

Since the translation will be subject to the requirement of a sworn translator entered in the Rbtv register, the document layout is prepared in a way that fits that form of approval; the positions of the signature and seal areas are preserved.

In pension and insurance correspondence, transferring the periods worked and the employer names exactly has a direct bearing on the calculation in the receiving country; date ranges are given particular attention.

Technical issues specific to German into Dutch

The tussenvoegsel calls for attention in the reverse sense in this direction: if the German surname contains no such particle, the separate field on the Dutch form is left blank and no particle is invented; where there is one, it is placed in the correct field according to the Dutch layout.

German umlauts and the letter ß are matched to the machine-readable spelling in the passport. German’s long compound nouns are given in Dutch by unpacking them.

The company form GmbH is not automatically converted into the Dutch B.V. structure; the original abbreviation is kept and an explanation added. The grading system is not converted; the German 1–6 scale is explained, because the Dutch 1–10 system runs the other way.

The noun-phrase-based structure of German official style is rebuilt according to Dutch sentence order. Seals and registration details on the document are preserved with their position.

For diploma applications IND and DUO/Nuffic ask for different sets of documents; this distinction is clarified at the outset. If the language region applied to in Belgium is not chosen correctly, the document is rejected from the start.

The date stays in the German day-month-year order; in number formats the comma is used as the decimal separator. Registry numbers are not translated but given with a reference to the record.

Consistency of names and terms is maintained across documents belonging to the same person; since the translation will be subject to the Rbtv sworn translator requirement, the layout is prepared accordingly.

Which documents call for this direction

• German or Austrian diploma, Zeugnis and transcript
• Birth, marriage and residence records
• Trade registry extracts and signature documents
• Pension and social security correspondence
• Powers of attorney and court documents

For diploma applications IND and DUO/Nuffic ask for different sets of documents; confusing the two is the most common mistake. If the right language region is not chosen in Belgium, the document is rejected.

In family files, names and details of kinship are set out clearly. In commercial documents the company form and registry number are given in their original form.

The chain of approval

The Netherlands requires the translation to come from a sworn translator (beëdigd vertaler) entered in the Rbtv register. In Belgium the Flemish region expects a Dutch translation and the Walloon region a French one; a translation into the wrong language is rejected. The German document is expected to carry an apostille.

To see these distinctions and the approval regime of the target country, look at the country page and the requirements for the document type. Tell us which region and which institution the application is going to before you send anything.

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