IRCC Translation Requirements for Canadian Immigration Documents

The short answer: every document for a Canadian immigration program that is not in English or French must be submitted to IRCC together with a translation — either done by a certified translator, or done by a regular translator and accompanied by an affidavit attesting to its accuracy. The translation must be complete, stamps and seals included, and translating your own documents or having relatives do it is not allowed. Below is how these requirements work in practice as of 2026, why applications most often get returned, and how to order a compliant translation from Ukraine or abroad.

The basic IRCC rule: two ways to certify a translation

IRCC (Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada) accepts documents only in English or French. If a document was issued in another language — a Ukrainian birth certificate, diploma, police clearance certificate, bank statement — it must be accompanied by a translation certified in one of two ways:

1. Translation by a certified translator. A certified translator is a member in good standing of a provincial or territorial organization of translators and interpreters in Canada. Such a translation carries the translatorʼs seal or stamp with their membership number, and no additional statements are needed.
2. Translation with an affidavit. If the translation is done by someone who is not a certified translator in the Canadian sense, it must be accompanied by an affidavit — the translatorʼs sworn statement that the translation is an accurate and complete rendering of the original.

Both routes are equally valid in IRCCʼs eyes. The second is the standard one for translations ordered outside Canada, including in Ukraine.

Who qualifies as a certified translator for IRCC

In Canada, the certified translator title is granted by provincial and territorial translator organizations: for example, ATIO (Ontario), OTTIAQ (Quebec), STIBC (British Columbia). The hallmark of a genuine certified translation is a seal or stamp with a membership number, against which the translatorʼs status can be verified. If a translator is only “in the process” of becoming certified, IRCC does not consider them certified — an affidavit is required.

For translations done outside Canada, IRCC looks at the translatorʼs status in their own country. Ukraine has no institution of sworn translators, so the universal solution is a translation by a degreed translator with an affidavit certified by a notary.

Translation with an affidavit: how it works

An affidavit is the translatorʼs written sworn statement that they are proficient in both languages and that the translation accurately and completely conveys the content of the original. The key rules:

• the affidavit is sworn before an authorized official: in Canada that is a notary public, a commissioner of oaths, or a commissioner for taking affidavits; abroad — a notary or another official with equivalent powers;
• the statement is made by the translator — not by the applicant or their family members;
• the affidavit includes the translatorʼs name, the language pair, the date, and a signature.

For documents from Ukraine, the scheme looks like this: a degreed translator produces the English or French translation and signs a declaration of accuracy, and a notary certifies the authenticity of the translatorʼs signature. This package meets IRCCʼs requirements for translations done outside Canada.

Who is not allowed to translate your documents

IRCC explicitly rejects translations done by:

• the applicant themselves;
• their family members — and IRCC interprets this broadly: parents, guardians, siblings, a spouse or partner, grandparents, children, aunts and uncles, nieces and nephews, first cousins;
• the applicantʼs immigration representative or consultant.

The ban applies even if these people are professional certified translators: IRCC treats it as a conflict of interest. A translation done by a relative is one of the typical reasons a document package gets returned or has to be re-certified.

Requirements for the translation itself

Requirement	What it means in practice
Completeness	The whole document is translated word for word — not an extract or a summary; IRCC does not accept document summaries
Seals and stamps	All seals, stamps, and handwritten notes are translated; stamps not in English or French — mandatory
Source of the translation	The translation is made from the original document or from a certified copy
Certification	A certified translatorʼs seal with a membership number, or an affidavit
Validity	A translation does not “expire” as long as the document has not changed

One practical note: as of 2026, most IRCC applications are submitted online, so good-quality scans of the translation and certification are sufficient. Keep the originals, though — IRCC may request them at any stage of processing.

Which documents are most often translated for IRCC

The list depends on the program, but in practice the following documents most often need translation:

• Express Entry and other permanent residence programs: birth, marriage, or divorce certificates, police clearance certificates from every country of residence, military ID, employer reference letters confirming work experience, diplomas with transcripts;
• Spousal sponsorship: civil-registry documents and proof of relationship — correspondence, joint accounts, and contracts, if they are not in English or French;
• Study permits: school certificates and diplomas, bank statements, proof of financial support;
• Work permits and citizenship: employment and personal documents — the certification rules are the same across all programs.

A simple self-check rule: any document containing even a single word that is not in English or French — including seals and stamps on the reverse side — must be submitted with a translation.

A separate nuance concerns education documents: for an Educational Credential Assessment (ECA), agencies such as WES have their own submission and translation requirements, which do not match IRCCʼs one to one. If you are ordering a diploma translation for an ECA and an immigration application at the same time, check the instructions of your specific agency in advance — we can advise on a package that works for both purposes.

Common refusal and delay reasons

1. No affidavit. A translation by a non-certified translator without a sworn statement is treated as non-compliant — the document counts as not submitted, and the application can be returned as incomplete.
2. Do-it-yourself translation. Translations by the applicant, relatives, or the representative are rejected regardless of quality.
3. Incomplete translation. Missing seals, the reverse side, an apostille, or handwritten annotations — the officer sees a discrepancy between the document and the translation and issues a request, which means weeks of delay.
4. No stamp with a membership number. A translation signed by a “certified” translator without the organizationʼs stamp cannot be verified — IRCC may ask for re-certification.
5. Inconsistent names and dates. The transliteration of names must match the international passport across every document in the package. Different spellings of the same surname invite additional queries.
6. Inaccurate translation. Material errors can cast doubt on the credibility of the entire package and, in the worst case, be treated as misrepresentation, with serious consequences for the applicant.

IRCC requirements are refined from time to time, so check the current instructions for your specific program on canada.ca before submitting — it is the single primary source we verify certification formats against ourselves.

How to order an IRCC-compliant translation from Ukraine

The process is simple and fully remote:

1. Send us scans of your documents — certificates, diplomas, clearances, statements.
2. A degreed translator produces a complete translation into English (or French — for Quebec programs).
3. The translator signs a declaration of accuracy, and a notary certifies the signature — this serves as the affidavit for IRCC.
4. You receive scans for online submission, and the paper package by Nova Poshta within Ukraine or to an address abroad.

We work the same way with clients already in Canada or elsewhere: documents do not have to be translated in Canada — what matters is meeting the certification requirements.

How MovaPro can help

For over 12 years, MovaPro translation agency has been preparing documents for immigration to Canada: Express Entry, spousal sponsorship, study and work permits, visas. We translate complete packages — civil-status certificates, diplomas, police clearance certificates, military documents, bank statements — with a translatorʼs affidavit certified by a notary, in a format IRCC accepts without objections. Send scans by email or messenger — we will quote the cost within 15 minutes. Our office is in central Kyiv: 9 Yaroslaviv Val St., Zoloti Vorota metro, phone +38 098 607-79-67. We deliver finished documents across Ukraine by Nova Poshta and email scans to any country in the world. More resources — in our Canada document guides.