How to get a sworn translation of the driving licence

Sworn translations allow foreign documents to carry the same legal value both within and outside the country in which they were issued.

In Italy, the process for correctly producing a valid sworn translation of a driving licence, for example, is very detailed and must be followed to the letter.

Sworn driving licence translations: when do you actually need one?

A licence issued in a foreign country does not automatically give its holder the right to drive a vehicle in Italy. This is because the contents of a foreign document is essentially unknown.

In order for an Italian court or public authority to accept a foreign driving licence, the document in question must be translated by a professional, who must take an oath before a court official to attest that the translation corresponds to the original foreign document.

Who can carry out a sworn licence translation?

Unlike other countries in the world, Italy does not have an official list of translators, which means that you can’t just consult a register to find a reliable translator.

Any professional translator is essentially allowed to produce a sworn translation of a driving licence (or any other document) provided that all formalities necessary ‘to officially approve the translation’ are in place.

Where does the taking of the oath take place?

The act of taking an oath must be carried out by the translator and is not the responsibility of the person who commissioned the job.

A translator may take an oath before a court official in any Italian court. Once the act has been completed and the necessary signatures, stamps and seals have been affixed, the sworn translation is valid in any municipality in Italy.

It is extremely easy to visit a court in a small city centre to quickly carry out the translation certification procedure, while in larger, more congested courts dealing with a greater numbers of requests, the wait can sometimes be a lot longer.

Who should you contact to get a sworn translation?

Translating official documents from one language to another carries great responsibility and can be difficult due to the technical nature of the subject matter in question. By taking an oath, professional translators are assuming complete legal liability for their work and must be prepared to appear before a judge to prove their good faith in the case of a dispute.

It’s therefore advised that you enlist the help of an agency such as Eurotrad when looking to translate official documents, we can assist you with bureaucratic procedures and will be able to complete all steps required by law autonomously.