Certified Translation & Document Localisation Service
Certified translation of official documents (birth certificates, contracts, qualifications) plus localisation for small exporters and law firms.
Immigration, legal and academic processes need certified translations of official documents. Typical offers: per-page certified translations with fast turnaround, plus website localisation for exporters. A linguist owner plus a vetted freelancer bench covers multiple language pairs. Law firms, universities and relocation agents give repeat B2B work. Gross margin figures are planning estimates of revenue minus direct costs (materials, consumables, fuel and per-job expenses); they exclude the owner's own labour, so treat them as a guide to job economics rather than take-home pay.
- Starting capital: 1500–4000 GBP
- Total starting capital: 2500 GBP
- Setup: 3-5 weeks
- Gross margin: 70-80%
- Business model: Per-word or per-page pricing for certified translations, with retainers for business localisation clients
- Category: Professional Services
Risks
- Accuracy liability: Errors on legal documents carry real consequences; PI insurance is essential.
- Machine translation pressure: MT plus post-editing is pushing per-word rates down.
- Certification learning curve: Each destination body has its own certification wording rules.
Costs
- Software — CAT tool and terminology software licences — 600 GBP
- Compliance — Professional indemnity insurance and ITI/CIOL membership — 700 GBP
- Marketing — Website, sample certifications and branding — 500 GBP
- Sales push — Law firm, university and relocation-agent outreach — 700 GBP