The tool often does not fit the document
Whether it is a CAT tool like Trados or memoQ, an online translator like DeepL or an OCR program like FineReader — each of them is built for something else: CAT tools for large editable texts with translation memory, online translators for quick text, OCR programs for printed pages. The typical document of a sworn translator is none of these: a scan or phone photo with a table, stamps, seals and handwritten entries.
The usual route: one birth certificate, six steps
- Get the text out of the scan. CAT programs do not read image scans themselves — their makers recommend converting the file with a separate OCR program first.
- Clean up OCR errors. According to the manufacturer, common OCR programs only recognise printed text. Handwritten entries by the registry office stay blank or turn into garbage — you type them in.
- Translate. The actual part of your job — often the shortest.
- Rebuild the layout. Table, columns, position of stamps and seals — by hand, cell by cell. For school certificates and diploma supplements this often takes longer than the translation itself.
- Proofread everything. A tool that does not say where it was unsure forces you to check every word.
- Add the certification statement. In the wording your country requires — with place, date and, depending on the country, a register number or a note on what you translated from.
Then there is data protection: under its terms of use, the free version of the best-known online translator may not be used for content containing personal data at all — and an official document consists of nothing else. Uploaded texts may also be used there for training.
The same scan with Lingverra
You upload the scan or photo and receive a precise translation in the original layout:
- The layout is done. Tables, columns, the position of stamps and seals — reproduced as in the original. You rebuild nothing.
- Handwriting is read. Entries by registry offices, schools and authorities are recognised and translated.
- Names are transliterated — according to your country’s standard or the passport spelling, with a footnote.
- Uncertain passages are highlighted. You check exactly those instead of proofreading word by word.
- The certification statement is already there — in the wording your country requires. Set up for more than 20 countries, from Germany and Austria through Poland, Czechia and Slovakia to Spain, France, Italy and Romania — with place, date, register number and the source (“original”, “scan”) wherever the law asks for it. You can change any text.
What remains is what only you can do: check, stamp, sign.
From our own practice
A diploma supplement, about three standard pages, from a scan. In the end exactly one passage was highlighted: the patronymic. In the original its first letter is handwritten so that it looks like a different one. That is a passage you have to compare with the passport anyway — everything else, including the grade table, was translated correctly. Not every document is this clean, and hard-to-read handwriting brings more highlights. But that is exactly what they are for: they show you where to look.
The comparison at a glance
| Step | The usual route | With Lingverra |
|---|---|---|
| Text from the scan | separate OCR program | straight from scan or photo |
| Handwriting | type it in | read and translated |
| Layout | rebuild by hand | reproduced |
| Names | transliterate yourself | by standard, with footnote |
| Checking | every word | highlighted passages only |
| Certification statement | write it yourself | in your country’s wording |
| Cost | subscription or licence, plus learning time | per standard page, no subscription |
What Lingverra does not do
Lingverra certifies nothing. You sign the statement, and you vouch for the translation being accurate and complete. Lingverra produces the precise translation and marks uncertain spots; the responsibility stays with you — as the law requires.
What it costs
From €0.50 per standard page, no subscription, packages from €30. Lingverra for a three-page diploma supplement therefore costs less than €2. What you charge for the certified translation of such a document is many times that. New accounts get 5 pages free.
Your clients pay you for expertise and responsibility, not for retyping tables. Lingverra takes over the routine — and your time goes into what you are actually paid for.
Your data
Processing in the EEA, data processing agreement under Art. 28 GDPR, AES-256-GCM encryption, automatic deletion of source and translation after 72 hours (or manually at any time). Your documents are not used to train models.
Frequently asked questions
Does Lingverra replace Trados or DeepL?
Not if you translate large texts for regular clients with a translation memory — that is what CAT tools are built for. For scanned documents, where layout, handwriting and the certification make up the effort, Lingverra is the shorter route.
Can I adjust the certification statement?
Yes. Lingverra inserts the wording your country requires; you can change it for each country and for each individual document.
Which formats work?
Scans and photos as PDF, JPG, PNG or WEBP.
Do I need to install anything?
No. Lingverra runs in the browser.
How do I try it?
Sign up and upload your own document — the first 5 pages are free.
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