Financial Translation Rates

Financial Translation Rates

One cannot underestimate the importance of accuracy and integrity of information when it comes to numbers.  Financial translation plays a crucial role in international commerce. Imagine its importance in the European Union or in the commerce with the huge Asian and Middle-Eastern economies. With billions of dollars, pounds, euros, yen and many other currencies changing hands daily across virtual borders, there has never been a time when financial communication has been this important.

A small mistake could result in legal disputes, lost contracts and loss of huge amounts of money. There is too much at stake for companies to take a risk in order to save a few hundred pounds.  That’s the reason why the translators that you choose must be experts in the financial field, they must have a good knowledge about the specialised terminology and the recent advances in the financial and banking field.  Whether your financial translation involves financial statements, insurance claims, shareholders’ reports, marketing materials, or anything in between, you must hire someone who understand the issues regarding these documents while offering you a completely confidential environment.

Like so many other, the financial field needs translation in order to survive and expand.  This is why financial translators need to understand the needs of a business and what it takes to communicate its message globally. If you own a business or you are in the banking industry, you probably want to know all about the current financial translation rates. But what you also need to understand is that prices vary according to a number of factors that we will explain in detail. In addition to that, we will show you a few simple steps that you should follow when hiring a translation service.

1. The purpose of your translation

In order to have great results from a translation company, you must outline all your translation needs before asking for their financial translation rates. This way, you will get an accurate price from the start, which will help you set up your budget and understand all the underlying costs properly. For example, you should specify if you need the final text to be formatted, if you need SEO optimized translation, keyword research, proofreading, localization or other services.  If you discuss all the details from the beginning, you will also have the chance to make comparisons between different translation services easier and then you can decide which one suits your budget better.

2. The complexity of the text

It should not come as a shock when you see a higher price for certain types of texts. Specialized terminology and very long and complicated documents will cost more than the standard ones. People that translate this type of text are usually professionals in the field and this is another reason why the financial translation rates may be slightly higher. But the good part is that quality is guaranteed and you probably won’t have to worry about mistakes or confusions inside the text.  Some of the most difficult types of documents in the financial field are: financial statements, insurance claims, annual reports, mortgage applications and investors research.

3. The source and the target language

Probably the most important factor that determines the financial translation rates is the language itself. Complicated, rare languages such as the Asian ones (Chinese, Japanese, Arabic, Farsi etc.), which are increasingly required in the financial field, will cost you a bit more than the European languages like English, French, Spanish or German. European languages translation rates will normally be between € 0.12 and € 0.20, whereas the Asian ones will stand around € 0.15 and € 0.25. These prices vary according to other factors such as extra services and difficulty. In the financial field, Asian languages are becoming increasingly important due to the economic development of China and Japan.

4. The deadline

The deadline is also an important factor that can influence the financial translation rates. When you need something really fast, it will obviously cost you more. Usually, the price difference is not shocking, but then again it depends on how early you set the deadline for the translation company.  If you discuss things properly from the beginning with the translation service you chose, they will tell you exactly how much you have to pay in order to have things done as quickly as possible.

In some cases, translators will have to work in the weekends or bank holidays in order to meet your deadline. This is one of the reasons why they will increase their rates. Some companies will create translation teams in order to finish the work faster, which also results in a higher price per word.  Anyway, it is advisable to establish realistic deadlines in order to make sure that accuracy and quality are not compromised. Remember that translation requires verifying and proofreading after it’s finished, which also takes a bit of time, especially if the documents are very long and complex.

5. Extra services

In the case you need extra services the financial translation rates will increase depending on what you need and how fast you need it.  Some translators will ask for extra time if you want to have additional services, so you must have a good dialogue with them from the beginning.  The client, together with the translation team must make sure that all the strict financial regulations that vary across countries are adhered to.  If you need editing services, you might have to pay a bit more as well. It is strongly recommended to make sure that proofreading is a service they can provide. This way, you will avoid mistakes regarding terminology or even numbers.

6. The prestige of the translation service

If you are hiring a popular translation company that had contracts with the biggest names, the financial translation rates are going to be definitely higher compared to those of a new translation service. In this case, it depends on your budget, on the size of your company and on the services you request.

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