What is the difference between a sworn translation and a certified translation?
Sworn translation is a civil-law concept where a translator is sworn before a court. Australia instead uses certified translation based on a NAATI credential; there is no sworn-translator status.
In-depth Answer
This trips up people who have dealt with European paperwork.
France, Spain, and Germany maintain registers of translators sworn before a court, whose translations carry legal effect in themselves.
Australia created no such status; it relies on certification of competence by a national body, and the certified practitioner stamps and signs a declaration of accuracy.
When an office in Thailand or a third country asks for a sworn translation, what they usually want in substance is a translation with an identifiable, traceable person behind it — which a stamped translation bearing a credential number provides.
That said, where the destination country's rules name its own register specifically, an Australian translation may still need whatever additional authentication that country prescribes.
Related questions
Documents most Australia visa applicants translate into English
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