NVC certified translation requirements, in plain English
NVC certified translation requirements generally call for a certified English translation only when a civil document is in neither English nor the official language of the country you apply from. For a Brazilian applying in Brazil, Portuguese civil documents usually do not need one at this stage; when they do, ours are $19 a page, delivered within 24 hours, in exactly that format.
What the NVC checks
The National Visa Center reviews every civil document before your interview is scheduled, once your priority date is current on the monthly Visa Bulletin: birth certificates, marriage and divorce records, police certificates. The State Department asks for a certified English translation only when a document is not in English or in the official language of the country where you apply, so a Brazilian applying in Brazil usually does not translate Portuguese civil documents here, though a consular officer can still request one. When a translation is required it is complete, with a signed statement of accuracy and competence, the same format USCIS expects under 8 CFR 103.2(b)(3): a certified Portuguese to English translation of the whole record.
The pitfalls that delay interviews
Three things send CEAC uploads back: a translation without its certification page, a scan too poor to read, and a partial translation missing the verso or the averbações. Each bounce costs weeks, because review queues restart. Upload the original and the translation as one clean, complete document.
Get the set done in one pass
Send every civil document in one order: the certidão de nascimento, the Polícia Federal certificate, the marriage records. They come back consistent, certified, and CEAC-ready at $19 a page.
Every office sets its own rules, so check what yours asks for before you order. What we deliver is the same on every order: a complete English translation of the whole document, with a signed Certificate of Accuracy naming and dated by your translator. Our USCIS acceptance guarantee covers USCIS filings.
No agency queue and no machine draft: Ivy, a native Brazilian Portuguese speaker, translates your document and signs the Certificate of Accuracy USCIS requires on it herself.
Best translation service I have ever used. I sent it in the morning and by the afternoon it was ready! Accepted with no problem at all. I highly recommend it to anyone going through the immigration process.
Common questions
Can I reuse the translations USCIS already saw?
Yes. The NVC accepts the same certified format, so translations from the petition stage carry forward while the originals stay unchanged.
Does the NVC want the original document too?
Yes. Upload a scan of the original, and when a certified translation is required, put the original first and the translation right after it in the same file so the reviewer compares them side by side. At the consular stage the NVC asks for a translation when a document is in neither English nor the official language of the country where you interview, so check your consulate instructions before translating Portuguese records.
Price your whole document set
$19 a page, delivered within 24 hours, with a 4-hour rush at $9 a page. No account and no card to see your price.
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Includes a signed Certificate of Accuracy, signed and dated by your translator. Delivered within 24 hours.
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