News

New requirements for DFAT translations

From 1 July 2018, the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) is only able to accept translations completed by Translators with NAATI Certification (this includes Recognised Practicing Translators). The department will no longer be able to accept translations done by an Accredited Translator after 1 July 2018. Translations dated before 1 July 2018 are not affected and will still be accepted. What does your translation for DFAT need to look like?  A translation submitted to DFAT must include all of the following: the certified translator's NAATI...

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On finding the best translator for your requirements

At Language Professionals, we produce NAATI certified translations where possible. But there are situations where this is not necessarily required. NAATI is the accreditation authority for translators and interpreters in Australia. They test and approve professional linguists so that you can be sure your translations are completed by a skilled translator who has enough knowledge to provide translations from one language to another. A NAATI stamp is like a seal of approval. Translations completed by NAATI translators can be used for...

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Language Professionals celebrates 30 years in business

This year Language Professionals celebrate their 30th year in business. That’s quite a feat! To mark this milestone, we had a chat with managing director Max Doerfler and manager Françoise Le Cossec about the highlights of the past three decades, working in the language industry, NAATI and giving an outlook for the future. Q: Language Professionals has been established in 1988 in Sydney. How and why did you start your translation and interpreting company? Max: I had recently graduated with a degree in translation...

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Extract translation versus full translation – what are the advantages?

In some cases Language Professionals can provide translations as extract translation. Find out here what can qualify a document to be translated as extract rather than a full translation. Extract translations provide only the important information of a given source document; omitting non-vital details such as the information from stamps or small print or full contact details. This saves you money, and can also save time as less work is involved. Language Professionals use approved templates that are accepted by the...

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Creating Accessible Documents Course

Last month, Françoise attended a Digital Access course run by Vision Australia on how to create accessible documents, especially PDFs. This is because a growing number of government departments have been asking Language Professionals for accessible PDFs. PDF accessibility is needed for the visually impaired with the use of a specific software or equipment. Accessible PDFs allow users of adaptive technologies to comprehend and navigate web content. PDF tags provide a hidden structure of the content that is understood by screen readers. So accessible...

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Thank you to our interpreters at the ASEAN-Australia Special Summit 2018 in Sydney

Language Professionals’ Max Doerfler and Bertold Schmitt would like to thank all of the interpreters who joined their team at the ASEAN-Australia Special Summit in Sydney this month, as well as the onsite interpreting coordination team (Suzanne, Ann and Micheal) for their outstanding professionalism in performing this vital role at such a high-level event. The positive feedback received from various stakeholders and individual delegations is testimony to the judicious recruitment of the best available professionals and to thorough assignment preparation and management. Simultaneous interpretation...

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Language Professionals provides conference interpreting services at the ASEAN-Australia Special Summit 2018 in Sydney

Following a request for tender in September 2017, Language Professionals was officially selected by the Australian Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet as the provider of simultaneous interpretation services to support the ASEAN-Australia Special Summit in Sydney which will be held between 16-18 March 2018. Language Professionals’ Max Doerfler in collaboration with conference services manager Bertold Schmitt was entrusted to manage the recruitment of 15 highly trained and experienced conference interpreters (Filipino/Tagalog, Bahasa Indonesia, Khmer, Lao, Thai and Vietnamese) for this high-profile...

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Getting seared in translation

Translation is a fun business, or a funny one. You plough along through thousands of words and then suddenly a single word or phrase disrupts your day, might even take up your whole day. One such word that came our way recently was “seared”. Seared salmon, I think it was.

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NAATI is phasing out “accreditation” and introducing “certification” for translators and interpreters

NAATI is phasing out “accreditation” and introducing “certification” for translators and interpreters. But under the accreditation system, NAATI had two kinds of practitioners. Those who were accredited before 2007 were granted permanent accreditation. Those accredited after 2007 have had to renew their accreditation every three years by demonstrating professional practice and development, and paying a sum of money. Under the new system to be introduced early next year, all NAATI registered practitioners will have to hold “certification”, and renew that...

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Everyone needs a father – English translation by Barbara McGilvray of the play by Stefano Pirandello

Sydney based translator Barbara McGilvray has translated the comedy Un padre ci vuole by Italian author Stefano Pirandello. This is the first translation into English of this play, although translations exist in French, Greek, Bulgarian, Arabic and Spanish, and are being prepared in Polish and Czech.

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NAATI proposes radical changes to its system of accreditation of interpreters and translators from January 2018

NAATI proposes radical changes to its system of accreditation of interpreters and translators from January 2018. The “accreditation” that has existed since 1977 will be replaced by “certification”. The “accreditation” that has existed since 1977 will be replaced by “certification”. NAATI plans to impose new requirements for ongoing registration and publish in its online directory only those translators and interpreters who become certified under the new scheme.

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NAATI Accreditation testing for 2017

NAATI offers accreditation testing in over 60 languages. For some languages, scheduling of test dates are dependent on the Expressions of Interest that are submitted for that language. NAATI has scheduled the following test dates for 2017: Korean - Paraprofessional Interpreter and Professional Translator, Somali, Burmese. Filipino and Swahili Paraprofessional Interpreter, Filipino Professional Translator, Sinhalese Professional Translator and Paraprofessional Interpreter.

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AUSIT | Monash University | Legal Interpreting PD Short Course | 25 November 2016

The short course examines the principles and practices associated with interpreting in legal settings. Topics covered include an overview of the Australian legal system, police interpreting, court interpreting, tribunals, and family violence interpreting. The face-to-face sessions are composed of presentations from experts in the legal field and experienced interpreters, and practical interpreting exercises to establish best practice when working in this field.

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Japanese Translation Association (JTA) extends an invitation to seminars to all NAATI translators

The Japanese Translation Association (JTA) have extended an invitation to all NAATI accredited practitioners to attend (via live stream) some of their upcoming PD seminars over October and November. They include: 1. The International Paralegal Profession and Legal Translation 2. Translating English Contracts into Japanese

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New NAATI Certification System – Recertification Policy

NAATI has been conducting briefing sessions on the progress of the improvement to NAATI Testing (INT) Project. One of the topics that has emerged during feedback is the proposal for re-certification of ALL practitioners, including those who were awarded a NAATI accreditation before 2007 and for whom the requirement to revalidate has so far been optional.

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New features for mobile Microsoft Translator apps

In other machine-learning-based translation news, Microsoft today announced that it was rolling out two new features for its mobile Microsoft Translator apps. They include a new Android-based translation engine that uses artificial intelligence and support for image-based translations using optical character recognition technology on iOS.

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Kylie reports on the AUSIT NSW Mini Conference: Identifying and Implementing Quality in Translation and Interpreting

The AUSIT mini-conference was held on Friday 13 November,at Macquarie University. About ninety people participated and shared ideas on quality in translation and interpreting. Participants included translators and interpreters, language service users, academics, practitioners and PhD students.

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Translation, the Internet and the age of social media: rethinking professional translation and training

The world of translation has changed dramatically over the last 20 years. New technologies are transforming translation practices, and also leading to new directions in translation research and theory. Online communities using social media and other software are today doing translations for money or for free in processes generally known as crowd-sourcing.

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NAATI yesterday, today, tomorrow

The symposium at the University of New South Wales on NAATI yesterday, today, tomorrow, held on 22 September, was well attended by a mixed group of translation and interpreting professionals and students. Adolfo Gentile, former NAATI Board member, spoke about the history of interpreting and translating in Australia.

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6th International Media for All Conference

The 6th International conference on MEDIA FOR ALL, on translation for audiovisual media, was held on 16-18 September at the Western Sydney University. It was a very interesting conference attended by participants from some 20 countries. Many sessions were held over three days to discuss future trends in translating and subtitling film, news and current affairs and other audiovisual media.

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NAATI yesterday, today, tomorrow

Kylie and Jacqueline will attend a symposium at the University of New South Wales on 22 September, on NAATI yesterday, today, tomorrow. The symposium will examine the origins and evolution of the National Accreditation Authority for Translators and Interpreters over its almost 40-year history.

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