Official Document Translation for Dual Citizenship: How Much Does it Cost?

If you decide to get a dual citizenship, you'll need to have your documents officially translated. Of course you can choose to apply in your own country or in Italy. In the latter case, I can help! And since this is a different procedure, let's break it down to see what costs are involved!

You have Italian ancestors and want to get your Italian dual citizenship. In my previous post I explained how to get your documents officially translated in Italy. 
Today we're talking specifically about the costs involved in in getting your translations done in Italy. 

As I explained in this post, if you apply in Italy you should hire a local official translator. 

The main costs you'll see in the Italian official translator's quote are:

Professional work:

Translation and certification (of course, it's the bulk of the professional work they're doing for you).

As in any other profession, it's a free market, so costs may vary.
Translators may charge by word or by page. I personally charge certificates on a per-certificate basis, since I've done hundreds of them and I know the number of words.

Some Italian translator may apply 22%VAT, others - like me - may not. The reason is this year's economic reform.
While I won't go into details here, just compare your quotes and check this aspect as well.

Administrative costs

In Italy we have to put stamp duties (marca da bollo) on each translation. Here again, things vary from court to court (I know, I know). So, I'll be speaking about the court where I work. 
In Rovigo, we apply a 3.87€ stamp duty (the minimum) on each certification page and on vital records certificates (which is the majority of the documents you need to submit for your dual citizenship application, so...yay!)
Other courts may apply a 16€ stamp duty+ €3.87 on the certification page.
Check this as well, as quotes may vary greatly due to this very factor - which the translator can do nothing about.

(If you're wondering how a stamp duty even looks like, check it out here).

International or national mailing?

This is the final part of the quote. If you hire an Italian official translator, you'll need to send her your original documents. At this point, you can choose between sending everything from where you live (usually the U.S. or Canada) or, as I usually suggest my clients, waiting until you get to Italy and send your documents from there.

Why?

Well, I bet it took you quite a long time to get all your documents ready and apostilled. Not to mention the money you spent. I truly understand that you may not like to send them across the ocean.
So, since you're coming to Italy anyway to file your application, you can consider mailing everything from here (it usually costs around 15€), preferably via a courier (the post is not as reliable).


Final tips: now you know what aspects to take into consideration when you decide to get your translations done in Italy. Be sure to request multiple quote to compare not only the price for the actual professional work, but also stamp duties and VAT. And consider mailing too!

​
If you have any doubts, just shoot me an email, or a voice message via WhatsApp!

LET'S TALK!