Notarised Translation Services for ICA Applications in Singapore

Is Your ICA Application Waiting on a Translated Document?

Most people who contact us are close to submitting. One document stands in the way because it isn't in English. Does one of these sound like you?

• You're applying for Singapore Permanent Residence (PR) and your birth certificate is in Chinese, Tamil, Vietnamese or Bahasa Indonesia.
• You're applying for citizenship and your marriage certificate or household register needs an English translation.
• You're preparing a Long-Term Visit Pass (LTVP) application for your spouse or parent, and the checklist says "official translation".
• ICA has already sent back a translation, and you need a version it will accept.
• You're handling the paperwork for a family member. Many of our enquiries come from a husband, wife, son or daughter doing exactly this.

You don't need to take a day off work. We do the running around for you as a done-for-you notary proxy service: translation, notarisation and delivery, with updates on WhatsApp.

What ICA Asks for When Your Document Isn't in English

ICA's application pages for PR, citizenship and LTVP ask for official translations of any document in a language other than English. ICA accepts three kinds:

1. 1A translation provided by the embassy of the country that issued the document.
2. 2A translation produced by a Notary Public in Singapore, or in the country that issued the document.
3. 3A private translation that is attested by that embassy, or notarised by a Notary Public in Singapore or in the issuing country.

ICA also states that it does not endorse any private translation company. That matters. A translation with only a translation agency's stamp or "certified" statement is not on ICA's list. It needs to be notarised or embassy-attested to fit one of the three routes.

Our service fits the Singapore Notary Public route. We prepare the translation, and a Singapore Notary Public notarises it. You get one document that matches what ICA describes, without visiting an embassy.

For PR and citizenship applications, ICA also asks you to upload certified true copies of your original documents. Check your checklist for how ICA wants those copies certified. If a Notary Public's certified copy suits your case, we can arrange notary-certified copies of your originals at the same time. You can read ICA's own wording on its PR application page.

Requirements can change, and each application type has its own checklist. We check ICA's current wording for your application before we start.

Rejected Because Your Translation Wasn't Notarised? How to Fix It

A rejection feels like a setback, but it's usually fixable. One customer came to us after ICA turned down a translation that carried only a translation company's certification. It had never been notarised. That is the gap ICA's list closes.

Here's how we put it right:

1. 1Send us what ICA said. Forward the rejection message or request, plus photos of every page of the original document.
2. 2We check the fastest fix. We look at whether your existing translation can be reviewed and used, or whether a fresh translation is quicker and safer.
3. 3We match the names. Every name, date and place is checked against the passports of the people named.
4. 4The Notary Public notarises it. You receive a PDF to upload, followed by the hard copy.

If ICA has given you a short deadline, tell us the date in your first message. Our urgent notary appointments page explains what can be done in a day and what can't.

Birth Certificates, Household Registers and More: Documents We Translate for ICA

Most ICA translations fall into a few groups. We handle them all, in Chinese, Malay, Tamil and many other languages:

• Birth certificates, including your children's foreign birth certificates
• Marriage certificates, divorce certificates and court orders
• Household registers (such as the Chinese hukou), family registers and family cards
• Education certificates and transcripts
• Name-change documents, deed polls and identity documents
• Death certificates, for applicants who are widowed

Many families need the same document for more than one purpose. If a birth certificate is also going overseas for a visa or school place, the route is different. See notarising and apostilling birth certificates. The same goes for marriage certificates needed abroad and degree and transcript notarisation for jobs or study overseas.

Is the translation for a university, bank or authority outside Singapore rather than ICA? Our notarised translation service for overseas use covers the SAL and embassy steps too.

Not sure which of your documents need translating? Send us the whole set. We'll tell you which ones ICA will expect in English and which ones don't need anything.

Every Name Spelt Exactly as in Your Passport

Name mismatches are one of the easiest ways to slow an application down. A Chinese name may be written in Hanyu Pinyin in your passport but in characters on your certificate. A Tamil or Arabic name may follow a different order. A Vietnamese name may lose its accents.

We remove that risk:

• We ask for the passport bio-data page of every person named on the document: you, your spouse, your parents.
• Names in the translation follow the passport spelling exactly. Where a name is spelt differently on the original, we translate it faithfully and match it to the passport.
• Dates and place names are written in a clear, consistent format.
• You get a draft to check before the Notary notarises it.

Your passport copies are used only for name matching. We handle them under the Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA) and delete copies once your job is complete.

Do You Also Need SAL for an ICA Submission?

Not as far as ICA's pages show, but we check for your case. ICA's pages that list accepted translations don't mention Singapore Academy of Law (SAL) authentication or an Apostille for translations. They only describe who must produce or notarise the translation.

SAL authentication exists to make a notarised document valid overseas. SAL's fee is S$87.20 per notarial certificate, so it's worth confirming before you pay for it. We confirm what your ICA submission needs before you order.

Here's the simple way to think about it:

Always confirm with the authority receiving your document. We check this with you before booking.

Ready for MyICA Upload: PDF First, Hard Copy Delivered

ICA applications are uploaded online, so speed matters. This is how your order runs:

1. 1Send photos or scans of every page, plus the passport bio-data pages. A clear phone photo is fine for a quote.
2. 2Get one all-in quote covering translation, notarisation and delivery, with a turnaround time.
3. 3Check the draft. You confirm names and dates. The Singapore Notary Public then notarises the translation.
4. 4Receive your PDF to upload, then the hard copy by local delivery (from S$15).

If the Notary needs to see your original document, we tell you upfront and arrange collection and safe return.

What you pay:

The prices shown above are starting prices. Your final price depends on the document type, number of pages and destination country, and will be confirmed in a written quotation before any work begins.

Standard turnaround is 1–2 working days for a single page. See how notary fees are set in Singapore for the full breakdown.

Your translation is notarised by our partner Singapore Notary Public, a senior lawyer appointed to practise as a Notary Public in Singapore.

Questions From PR, Citizenship and LTVP Applicants