An apostille identifies a document; a translation makes it readable. They are two different questions, and the second one has to be asked in its own right. This checker shows, for the chosen document and country, what the sources say about a translation and, if one is needed, where it enters the chain. It serves the person taking a document abroad, the office receiving one from Türkiye, and anyone who wants to know what to commission before asking for a quote.
Three inputs, four possible answers
Document type, country and direction are chosen. On a document coming to Türkiye there are two answers: a Formül A, B or C extract from a country party to the 1976 convention is multilingual, and the checker says a translation may not be needed while leaving the decision to the receiving office; every other document needs a Turkish translation by a sworn translator, certified by a notary in Türkiye, after the apostille in the country of origin. On a document going abroad there are three: for Formül A, B and C the German missions ask for neither apostille nor translation, while in another country party to the 1976 convention the receiving authority decides on translation; a multilingual certificate of capacity to marry rests on the 1980 convention, which eleven states have joined according to the CIEC table and which lifts legalisation only, with no clause on translation, so the checker suggests asking the registrar whether a translation is needed; for every other document the receiving authority decides whether a translation into its language is required, and on the apostille road the order is this: the apostilled document is translated, with the apostille page included if the authority wants it, the translation is certified by a notary, and a second apostille is placed on that certification if the authority asks.
Two things the checker cannot know
First, where and by whom the translation must be made. France requires a translator from the court lists and, for a translation made abroad, certification of the translator’s signature by the consulate, although the French Embassy in Türkiye keeps no list of its own and points to a translators’ association instead; the German missions ask for a sworn translator without saying whether the translation may be made in Türkiye. The checker leaves that choice to the authority. Second, the language pair and the content: it never sees the document and gives no price. On documents that take no apostille, such as consular documents, trade-related documents and e-Devlet printouts, and in a country where the Convention is not in force, the checker shows the relevant certification step or an out-of-scope note instead of the apostille order; the full list of steps is in the route finder.
Pages the rule rests on
On Formül A, B and C the document page of the German missions in Türkiye treats both the apostille and the translation as unnecessary, while on the civil registry extract it requires both. The legalisation table of the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs exempts Turkish civil status documents from legalisation and treats the translation separately; service-public F1400 requires a sworn translator and presentation with the original. The Onikişubat district governorship asks that the need for a translation be checked in advance; the Ministry of Foreign Affairs leaflet gives the order translation, notary, governorship. On documents coming to Türkiye, the Turkish translation and notary certification appear in the recognition requirements of the Council of Higher Education.
When the answer is “needed”
On the apostille road the translation is made after the apostille; whether it covers the certificate page is for the receiving authority to say. In the legalisation chain the order is reversed: the translation is the first link, and the governorship certification follows the notary’s. A quote needs only the document type, the page count, the target language and the country; the document itself is not uploaded to this checker, and your choices do not reach the site.