| Official document (court, UKVI, Home Office) | Certificate, deed, diploma, birth certificate | A UK authority or overseas body requires an officially certified translation | Translation bearing the signed declaration, stamp and signature of a court-authorised translator; source document attachment | Yes — authorised translator required | Certified translation → |
| Contract or legal deed | Agreement, share purchase agreement (SPA), will, power of attorney | Counterparty or notary requires accurate legal translation into the target language | Professional legal translation by a specialist with sector knowledge; certification available on request | Sometimes — depends on jurisdiction and counterparty | Legal translation → |
| Technical documentation | Manual, patent, CE documentation, technical specification | Product launching in multiple markets; safety instructions legally required in local language | Specialist translation by technical expert; terminology management for consistency across document versions | No — unless for certification or tender procedure | Technical translation → |
| Financial report | Annual report, prospectus, audit report, management letter | Shareholders, regulator or overseas market requires financial documentation in target language | Translation by financial specialist; consistent terminology for financial concepts per language | No — unless for listing or regulatory submission | Financial translation → |
| Marketing content | Campaign copy, advertising, social media, brand messaging | Message must resonate culturally in the target market — literal translation loses impact | Standard translation for informational content; transcreation for brand copy and campaigns where creative impact is critical | No | Transcreation → |
| Website or app | CMS content, UI strings, landing pages, help documentation | Product launching in a new language market; hreflang and SEO localisation required for organic reach | Full localisation including hreflang implementation, market-specific SEO terminology and CMS integration | No | Website localisation → |
| High volume, repeatable content | Manuals, helpdesk articles, product catalogues, knowledge bases | High word count or frequent updates; cost efficiency required alongside quality | Machine translation with human post-editing (MTPE); TM build for future reuse | No | MTPE → |
| Review an existing translation | In-house translation, freelance work or machine output needing quality control | Publishing or submission requires second opinion; terminology audit or style review needed | Standalone QA review at segment level: terminology, style, consistency and accuracy | No | Quality control → |