The packet is one ZIP: the original PDF exactly as you dropped it, the translation as Word with the page layout kept, a translator’s statement as Word (and as PDF when its text can be drawn with the standard fonts), the side-by-side review if you want it, and a README with the original’s SHA-256 fingerprint and every engine and host that produced text. The statement is in English and is the translator’s own declaration: their name, that they are competent in both languages, that the translation is complete and accurate to the best of their knowledge and, when a machine draft was used, that they reviewed all of it. Bindery does not certify, notarize or swear translations, and it has not checked yours. Some recipients ask for a certified or sworn translator, or for notarization; the statement does not replace those, so check what yours accepts.
How it works
- Drop the document — Translate PDF opens with English as the target and the packet on
- Translate, then check every page side by side and correct any flagged passage
- Fill in the translator’s details, download the packet, and sign the statement on paper or in Sign
Questions people ask
Who signs the statement?
The person who checked the translation against the original — you, if you are competent in both languages, or a translator you ask. That person types their own name; it is never taken from a Bindery account, and a name containing “Bindery” is refused, because the statement is theirs. On the done screen, Sign the statement opens the statement PDF in Sign; or print it and sign by hand.
Will an immigration office or a court accept it?
That depends on the recipient, and Bindery cannot promise it. Many accept a translation with a signed statement of the translator’s competence and accuracy; some ask for a certified or sworn translator, notarization, or a particular order of documents. Bindery does not certify, notarize or swear translations, and the README in the packet says so. Check the recipient’s instructions before you send.
Does the packet change my original PDF?
No. The original goes into the ZIP byte for byte, as 1-original-<name>.pdf, and its SHA-256 fingerprint is in the README and the statement, so anyone can check it is the file that was translated. On the free plan the statement PDF carries a small “Made with Bindery” line, kept clear of the signature; the original and the Word files never do.