How do you translate a Ukrainian birth certificate for USCIS?
USCIS asks for a full English translation of a Ukrainian birth certificate with the translator’s signed certification. We translate the svidotstvo pro narodzhennia in full: the original or a re-issued copy, an extract from the civil registry, every seal and handwritten line. Names follow your passport or Ukraine’s official transliteration. A Ukrainian birth certificate is usually one page: $25, ready within 24 hours after payment.
What the certificate shows
A Ukrainian birth certificate (svidotstvo pro narodzhennia) is issued by a state civil registry office (DRATsS), or by a Ukrainian consulate for people living abroad, and carries the signature and seal of the head of the office (U.S. Department of State (opens in a new tab)). It gives the child’s full name, the date of birth in figures and words, the place of birth, the number and date of the birth record, both parents’ names and citizenship, the registry office, the date of issue and the series and number of the form.
We translate all of it, as USCIS requires (8 CFR 103.2(b)(3) (opens in a new tab)): every field, the seal, the signature and any note on the back.
Re-issued certificates and extracts
If the original was lost or damaged, or the record changed, Ukraine issues a re-issued certificate (povtorne) from the civil registry record. The Department of State accepts original civil documents from Ukraine whenever they were issued or re-issued, whether under the USSR, Poland or Ukraine.
An extract from the State Register of Civil Status Acts (vytiah) is a separate document. It can show details that are not on the certificate, and Ukraine’s Ministry of Justice lists proving family ties and name changes among its uses (Government of Ukraine (opens in a new tab)). We translate a certificate, a re-issued copy and an extract the same way, each in full.
How we spell names
Ukraine has an official transliteration (Resolution No. 55 of 2010 (opens in a new tab)): Kh for х, Zh for ж, Shch for щ, and names like Andrii, Oleksii or Nataliia. If your name in your passport or green card is spelled another way, that spelling goes into the translation. Tell us the spelling when you order, and it will be the same in every document of your order.
Where the translation goes
- USCIS: the translation and certification filed with a copy of the certificate. What USCIS accepts
- NVC and US consulates: the Department of State doesn’t ask for a translation of a certificate in Ukrainian if you are applying for your visa in Ukraine. What NVC accepts
- Immigration court: a typed certification with the translator’s address and phone. What the court accepts
Our Ukrainian documents are translated and certified by a native Ukrainian speaker. What to file in your case is for you or your attorney to decide.
Sample translations
6 samplesEach sample has the original, the translation and the signed certificate. Personal details are blurred.
Questions
My certificate is from the Soviet era and in Russian. Is there a separate guide for that?
We translate it either way. Soviet and Russian-language certificates have their own page: [Russian or Soviet birth certificate](/en/guides/birth-certificate/).
How much does it cost?
A Ukrainian birth certificate is usually one page: $25. Each additional page in the same order is $20, so three certificates are $65.
Do I need a notary or an apostille?
Not for USCIS: it asks for the translator’s signed certification, and it’s included. If your certificate already has an apostille, we translate it too.
How long does it take?
1–4 documents: within 24 hours after payment; faster, within 12 hours (+$15 a page) or 3 hours (+$30 a page, paid between 8 am and 6 pm Pacific time). For 5 or more, we give you the date with the quote.
How we do it
- Full translation
every stamp, signature and handwritten line
- Signed certificate
with the translator’s name, address and phone
- A PDF, ready to file
original, translation and certificate, translation pages numbered
- Price
$25 for the first page up to 250 words, $20 for each additional page, in the same document or another one.
- Turnaround
1–4 documents: within 24 hours after payment; faster, within 12 hours (+$15 a page) or 3 hours (+$30 a page, paid between 8 am and 6 pm Pacific time). For 5 or more, we give you the date with the quote.
This is a summary of what the agency publishes, not legal advice.