Corporate & Business Translation

Standard civil records translate in one working day; corporate documents and court judgments take two to three. Adding consular certification, plan for three to five working days end to end. Express handling can compress the whole chain to one or two working days when the source documents are already clean.

The parent company's Certificate of Incorporation, memorandum and board resolution must be notarized abroad, apostilled or legalized by the Royal Thai Embassy, then translated into Thai and certified at the Department of Consular Affairs. The DBD generally wants documents issued within six months, and the transliterated company name must match the name reserved in its system.

Fixed-format civil records are priced per document. Variable-length material — contracts, judgments, financial statements — is priced per standard page or per word. Rare language pairs carry a premium because the pool of translators whose work the consular office accepts is small.

Typically a certified translation of the passport, of marital status evidence — marriage certificate or divorce decree — and, where an attorney signs, a power of attorney whose signature has been certified and legalised. Purchases through a foreign company also need the home-country corporate certificate, fully authenticated and translated. Individual land offices apply detail differently, so confirm with the office handling the parcel.

Obtain a current extract from the home registry, authenticate it in the country of origin — apostille where the Convention applies, otherwise foreign ministry plus the Thai embassy — then translate into Thai and have the translation legalised by the Department of Consular Affairs. The DBD generally wants documents issued within six months and checks that director names match the power of attorney letter for letter.

In full, including letterhead, case number, court seal and closing annotations; nothing is summarised and no annex is skipped. Legal terms must map onto the destination legal system, with the original term in brackets where no true equivalent exists. Have counsel review the translation before filing — a single mistranslated term can change the legal effect.

Most Thai authorities still require the paper set with a wet stamp. PDFs are useful for draft approval and for advance review by counsel or the receiving company. Some embassies and foreign universities accept translations signed electronically or sent directly from the translator's address. Ask the receiving body in writing before choosing a format.

Several Arab states are not within an Apostille channel Thailand can use in every case. The reliable route is authentication by the origin-country Ministry of Foreign Affairs, then attestation by the Royal Thai Embassy in that country, then Thai translation and consular legalisation in Bangkok. Islamic family documents such as a marriage contract must be translated in full, including guardian and witness details, because the amphur checks those elements.

Two situations differ. Myanmar public documents such as birth certificates or household lists need authentication by the Myanmar Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Royal Thai Embassy in Yangon, or by the Myanmar Embassy in Bangkok under current practice. MOU labour documents such as CI/PI papers and employment contracts are more often accepted as translator-certified translations bundled with the employer's file — confirm the format with the provincial employment office first.

Fixed-format civil registry documents such as birth certificates, house registrations and name-change records are usually quoted per page, while contracts, pleadings and financial statements are quoted per word or per working hour because length varies. Price drivers are the language pair, urgency, the number of certification stamps required and layout work to mirror the original. Watch for quotes that omit government legalization fees and courier costs. We quote the file as a package with the stamp count shown, so the full route cost is visible before work starts.

Keep the account structure and every figure identical to the original, including the notes and the auditor's report. Never reformat numbers or convert currency; label amounts clearly as THB and keep account names consistent with the reporting framework used. Work from the stamped copy filed with DBD or the Revenue Department, translate the full set rather than the summary pages, then certify the translation. Foreign banks and registrars often reconcile against the corporate tax return, so translate that in the same batch.

Follow the official language of the receiving authority. Registrars and courts in Germany, Spain or Japan require their own language and frequently require a translator appointed in that country. For international banks and private counterparties English is usually sufficient. Avoid relaying a third language through an English version — proper names and official titles drift. Always translate from the Thai original.

Include a governing language clause stating which version prevails if the two texts conflict, and align it with the governing law and forum clauses. Contracts filed with Thai authorities such as the Land Department or DBD generally need a Thai version that prevails. Before signing, have the translation team prepare a clause-by-clause comparison table and a shared glossary so the same terms are used across the contract and every annex.