Translation for a Canada Visa From Cameroon: Steps and Price

Who this is for, and when a translation helps

This guide covers applications sent to IRCC (Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada) by an applicant living in Cameroon: visitor visa, study permit, permanent residence, sponsorship of a relative.

The starting rule is simple. According to IRCC’s help centre, all supporting documents must be in English or French unless told otherwise. A birth certificate in French or a diploma in English therefore needs no translation. A translation only becomes useful for a document in another language.

If all your documents are already in French or English, you may not need us for this step. We would rather tell you so.

The documents involved

Depending on the programme, IRCC mainly asks for these papers. Each has its own page, with what to send for translation.

• Birth certificateAsked for dependent children, and in sponsorship applications for minors.
• Marriage and divorceThe marriage certificate is asked for in visitor visa and residence applications if you are married.
• Criminal recordA police certificate is required for permanent residence. Read the note on the bulletin no. 3 below.
• Diploma and transcriptsA credential assessment (ECA) is required in some Express Entry cases, from a designated organisation.

The steps in order

The sequence below follows IRCC’s pages. Translation is step 4 only if a document is in neither English nor French.

1. 1

   Open the list for your application

   Each programme (visitor, study, residence, sponsorship) has its own guide and document list. It is the list that counts, not this guide.

2. 2

   Spot the documents to translate

   Sort your papers: those in French or English need no translation. Only the others do.

3. 3

   Read what your list requires for a translation

   Depending on the page: a translation with the translator’s affidavit, or a translation by a certified translator, with a copy of the original. Note it before you order.

4. 4

   Have it translated

   Send CamerTrad a photo of the official document. The sworn translator translates it in full and puts their seal on it. You receive a PDF.

5. 5

   Attach the translation and the original

   Attach the translation and, depending on your list, a scan of the original or of its certified copy. Submission follows your application route: online or, for Cameroon, through the visa application centre in Yaoundé that IRCC lists.

What IRCC says about a translation

The IRCC pages we read do not all say the same thing. That is why you must follow the list for your application:

• Help centre: the translation must come with the translator’s affidavit and a certified photocopy of the original.
• Visitor and sponsorship guides: the translation is done by a bilingual person or by a translator certified in Canada. A translator certified in Canada does not need to supply an affidavit; otherwise the translator provides an affidavit attesting to their language competence.
• Express Entry and the temporary-to-permanent pathway: attach the translation and a scan of the original. Either a translation by a certified translator who is a member of a professional association in Canada or abroad, with a seal showing their member number; or, only if a certified translator cannot do it, an affidavit.
• The applicant, their family, representatives and consultants may not translate the documents themselves.

These pages speak of translators certified in Canada, or members of an association abroad. They say nothing about Cameroon or about Cameroonian sworn translators. You must check with IRCC whether our translation is enough for your file.

The police certificate from Cameroon

For Cameroon, IRCC’s page on police certificates is clear: only the “Police Clearance Certificate” issued by the Judicial Police in Yaoundé is accepted, and “A Bulletin No. 3 is not a Police Clearance Certificate”. You first obtain the bulletin no. 3, then the certificate from the Judicial Police directorate.

If the certificate is in neither English nor French, IRCC asks for a translation by a certified translator; a translation by family is refused. Translating a bulletin no. 3 for a residence application would therefore be time wasted: check the required document first.

Mistakes that cost time

• Having a document translated that is already in French or English.
• Ordering before reading what your list requires: affidavit, certified copy, certified translator.
• Sending a bulletin no. 3 in place of the police certificate for residence.
• An incomplete translation: back, marginal notes, untranslated stamps. IRCC also asks for stamps and seals to be translated.
• Names spelt differently between certificates and passport. Tell us in your first message.
• Confusing the roles: a translation does not replace a certified copy or an affidavit. Those are separate papers.

What CamerTrad does, and what it does not

Our translations are done by a sworn translator of the Centre Court of Appeal. We translate your documents in full, with the translator’s seal, and hand them over as a PDF.

We do not submit your application and we do not advise on your eligibility for a visa. If your list requires an affidavit or a certified copy, those are separate papers: write to us before you order if you are unsure. IRCC sets its own requirements; we cannot promise it will accept a translation.

Price: a priced example file

10,000 FCFA per page, fixed. A back counts if it carries text, a stamp or a note.

IRCC’s fees, the application centre’s fees, a notary for an affidavit and any parcel are separate. The translation total is quoted on WhatsApp before you pay.

Frequently asked questions