Belgian French translator

Belgian French is the standard French language as written and read in Wallonia and Brussels; the spelling and grammar are identical to French in France. The differences sit in the number words, the lexicon and administrative-legal terminology. Belgian French uses septante (70) and nonante (90) instead of soixante-dix and quatre-vingt-dix, and has its own institutional terms such as bourgmestre, échevin and parquet. As a Belgian French translation agency we never simply reuse a text written for France, because those are precisely the points that differ.

No. Belgian French is the standard French language as used in Wallonia and Brussels, with Belgian features. Walloon (Wallon) is a separate Romance language with its own vocabulary and spelling that is not mutually intelligible with standard French. We therefore treat Walloon as a distinct language, separate from Belgian French, and only handle it on specific request.

The UK has no sworn-translator institute, so there is no "sworn translator" as a legal office here. For official acceptance we provide certified translation: a signed and dated statement of accuracy from the translator or the agency. Where a body asks for more, this can be escalated to notarisation by a solicitor or notary public, or to an apostille or legalisation through the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO). For documents intended for official use in Belgium, registration runs through the Belgian National Register of sworn translators and interpreters (RNTIJ) at the FPS Justice — a system that differs from the French one. We confirm in the quote which level your receiving authority requires.

We match terminology and register to your target audience. For Wallonia and the Belgian administration we use standard Belgian French with the Belgian number words and institutional names. For Brussels a more urban register can fit, and for bilingual communication we take the NL/FR context into account. We confirm the chosen variant up front in the quote.

On working days you receive a quote within 1 hour. The lead time for the translation itself depends on document type, volume, language pair and any required certification, and is confirmed in the quote. For tight deadlines we confirm a workable rush schedule up front rather than promising a fixed turnaround.

We work with native specialist translators and reference the recognised UK professional bodies — the ITI (Institute of Translation and Interpreting), the CIOL (Chartered Institute of Linguists) and, for interpreting, the NRPSI (National Register of Public Service Interpreters). These are bodies of reference for the profession; we name them so you can see the standard the work is held to, not as a membership or certification claim.

A Belgian French translation agency takes the coordination off your hands and keeps the Belgian conventions consistent for you. We select the translator who uses the right number words, institutional names and terminology for Wallonia or Brussels, arrange certification, notarisation or legalisation where an authority requires it, and have the work checked by a second reviewer. You keep one point of contact for variant, terminology, scheduling and delivery, all under a single quote. A skilled freelance translator does excellent work too; the difference an agency adds is bringing those moving parts together so you are not managing them separately.