Included free with every order — and done correctly, with the translator and the notary kept in separate hands.
A notarized translation is a certified translation whose certificate of accuracy has been signed in front of a notary public. We include it with every order at no additional charge — most companies charge $20 for exactly this step.
This is the single most misunderstood point in the translation industry, and misunderstanding it costs people money. When a notary public notarizes a translation, the notary is not reading the translation, not comparing it to the original, and not attesting that anything in it is correct. Notaries have no authority to do any of that.
What the notary does is take the translator’s oath. The translator appears in person, presents government photo identification, swears aloud that the statements in the certificate are true, and signs the certificate in the notary’s presence. The notary then attaches a jurat — “Subscribed and sworn to before me on this date” — signs, and applies the seal.
So the seal proves one thing: that a specific identified human being personally swore to the accuracy statement, under penalty of perjury, on a specific date. That is genuinely valuable — it makes the certificate much harder to repudiate later — but it is a statement about the signer, not about the translation.
If your attorney or the receiving office has told you the document must be notarized, take them at their word — institutional practice often runs ahead of what the regulation strictly requires, and there is no downside to having it. Since we include it free, you are covered on both lists without having to work out which one applies to you.
There is a structural conflict that many translation companies quietly ignore. A New York notary public may not notarize their own signature, and may not notarize a document in which they hold a direct financial interest. If the person who translated the document is also the person who stamps it, the notarial act is defective on its face — and a sharp opposing attorney or a careful consular officer will spot it.
We keep the two roles in separate hands as a matter of standing policy. The translator signs the Certificate of Translation Accuracy; a separate, disinterested notary public takes the oath and applies the seal. It costs us slightly more to run it this way. It also means the document holds up when someone looks closely at it.
You do not need to be in New York, or to come to an office. New York permits commissioned electronic notaries to perform notarial acts remotely, with the signer appearing by live audio-video connection. For clients anywhere in the United States we can complete the notarization this way and deliver a digitally signed PDF with a tamper-evident certificate.
One important exception: if the finished document is going to need an apostille, we deliberately use traditional wet-ink notarization instead. New York does not currently issue electronic apostilles — only a small number of states do — and a county clerk will not authenticate a printed-out electronic notarization. Tell us at quote stage if an apostille is coming and we route it correctly the first time.
| Provider | Notarization fee |
|---|---|
| RushTranslate | $19.95 per order |
| Kings of Translation | $20.00 per page |
| Typical local translation office | $15–$25 |
| Certified Translation Center | Included — $0 |
Not better — different, and additive. The certification is what attests to accuracy. The notarization only confirms the identity of the person who signed that certification. A notarized translation is a certified translation with an extra layer of identity verification attached. If the receiving body asks for notarization you need it; if it does not, it changes nothing about how the translation is evaluated.
No, and no notary anywhere is permitted to. A notary public verifies the identity of a signer and administers an oath. They are not evaluating the language. Anyone implying that a notary seal certifies translation quality is misdescribing what the seal does.
Because our clients rarely need the document for only one purpose. The same birth certificate that goes to USCIS this month goes to a university, a consulate or a court next year — and those bodies often do require notarization. Charging you $20 later for a step that costs us very little now is not how we want to run this.
No. Under New York law a notary may not take an acknowledgement of their own signature or notarize a document in which they have a direct financial interest. We keep the roles in separate hands: the translator signs the certificate, and a different, disinterested notary public administers the oath. Any provider whose translator and notary are the same person has a defect on the face of the document.
Yes, for clients outside New York. New York permits electronic notarial acts by commissioned electronic notaries, with the signer appearing over audio-video. The finished document is delivered as a digitally signed PDF. Note that if you will later need an apostille, we use traditional wet-ink notarization instead — New York does not currently issue electronic apostilles.
Send us a photo or scan of your document. We reply with a firm price and delivery time — usually within one hour during business hours. No payment needed to get a quote.
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