The German-Georgian language pair works intensively in both directions, but the flows are asymmetrical: from Georgian into German mainly professional recognition, study and visa documents go, while from German into Georgian the civil status records of Georgians living in Germany, the corporate papers of German companies, court decisions and medical histories come back. Each direction has its own reader, who reads the text with different expectations, and that is exactly why we consider both directions separately, with specific scenarios.
From Georgian into German: what the German official expects
A German official not only reads a document but "checks" it: they look for the issuing body, the document number, the date, the seal, the signature and the apostille, and the place of each of these elements in the translation must correspond exactly to the source. That is why when translating from Georgian into German we preserve the visual structure of the document: headings in the same position, tables as tables, the description of the seal where the seal stands. German administrative language is rich in abbreviations (gem., i.V., z.Hd., Az.), and the translation uses these standard abbreviations so that the text is natural for a German. We carry over the names of Georgian bodies with a functional translation and the official English name in brackets, because a German official often looks up the body on the internet precisely by its English name.
From Georgian into German: doctors and nurses
The medical professions package is the core of the German direction. The diploma, supplement, residency certificate, state certificate and certificates of work experience must be carried over into German terminology so that the Approbationsbehörde can compare the Georgian system with the German one: the Georgian "single-cycle higher medical education" is "einstufiges Medizinstudium" in German, "residency" is the analogue of "Facharztweiterbildung", and the "state certificate" is "staatliches Zertifikat zur Berufsausübung". In the case of nurses the Georgian nursing qualification corresponds to the German "Pflegefachfrau/Pflegefachmann", but the number of training hours must be compared with the standard of the German three-year Ausbildung, for which the body requires a translation of the curriculum. In these texts we carry over the names of disciplines with the terminology of German medical curricula (Innere Medizin, Chirurgie, Pharmakologie), so that the body establishes any deficit exactly and not because of vagueness in the translation.
From Georgian into German: students and the Studienkolleg
For university admission uni-assist needs a translation of the school certificate, the transcript, a university certificate (if the student is already studying in Georgia) and the language certificate. The twelve years of the Georgian school system and the unified national exams do not coincide one-to-one with the German Abitur, and the applicant needs either the Studienkolleg or a document confirming study at a Georgian university. So in the translation of the transcript we carry over semesters, credits and subjects so that uni-assist can count the period of study exactly. The motivation letter and CV must be written in German the way a German applicant writes them: the "Lebenslauf" in tabular format, in reverse chronology, and the "Motivationsschreiben" with reference to the specific programme and university. A German-speaking editor works on these texts with us.
From Georgian into German: family reunification and marriage
For a spouse's move to Germany (Ehegattennachzug) the embassy requires submission of the marriage certificate, the birth certificate and the German A1 certificate, and in the case of a child (Kindernachzug) a notarized translation of the birth certificate and, where necessary, the other parent's consent. We carry over Georgian civil status records into German with the standard Standesamt terminology: "Geburtsurkunde", "Heiratsurkunde", "Scheidungsurkunde", and the issuing body, the Public Service Hall, as "Haus der Justiz" with a functional explanation. In the declaration of consent that one parent gives the other for the child's departure to Germany, the wording must meet the expectations of German bureaucracy: "Einverständniserklärung zur Ausreise und zum dauerhaften Aufenthalt", otherwise the embassy may consider the document insufficient.
From Georgian into German: business and tenders
The documents of a Georgian company are translated into German when a German partner or bank carries out a check on the company, a Georgian company takes part in a German trade fair (for example, the industry fairs in Berlin, Düsseldorf or Munich), or a German investor buys a share in a Georgian enterprise. The extract from the Register of Entrepreneurs is "Auszug aus dem Unternehmensregister" in German, the articles "Satzung" (for a joint-stock company) or "Gesellschaftsvertrag" (for an LLC), and the "director" "Geschäftsführer". Financial statements, which follow IFRS in Georgia, we carry over into German with the official German IFRS terminology, although a German accountant often reads with the logic of the HGB (German Commercial Code), so we attach notes to balance sheet items where these two systems differ.
From German into Georgian: what the Georgian official expects
A German document submitted in Georgia must be understandable to the staff of a Georgian notary, the Public Registry, the Civil Registry or a court, which means that German administrative terminology must "fit" into the established concepts of Georgian administration. Landratsamt is a "district administration", Standesamt a "civil status registration body", Amtsgericht a "district court", Regierungspräsidium a "state administrative body". At the same time the original name stays in brackets, because a Georgian official may verify the genuineness of the document on a German website. The German date format (TT.MM.JJJJ) matches the Georgian one, but the decimal comma and thousands point (1.250,50 €) require re-checking in a Georgian text (1250,50 euro or 1 250.50), especially in financial documents.
From German into Georgian: civil status records and family matters
To obtain Georgian citizenship or a Georgian birth certificate for a child born in Germany, the German Geburtsurkunde is submitted with an apostille and a Georgian notarized translation. A German divorce takes place by court decision (Scheidungsbeschluss), which must be translated in full for entry in the Georgian civil registry, including the entry on entry into legal force (Rechtskraftvermerk). The German "Sorgerecht" (parental authority), "Umgangsrecht" (right of contact with the child) and "Unterhalt" (maintenance) are carried over with the terminology of Georgian family law, while the reference to the "Düsseldorfer Tabelle", by which German courts calculate maintenance, needs an explanation for a Georgian judge. In inheritance cases the German "Erbschein" (certificate of inheritance) and "Testament" are submitted to a Georgian notary with an apostille and a translation.
From German into Georgian: corporate and notarial documents
When a German company is registered in Georgia the Public Registry requires the Handelsregisterauszug, the Gesellschaftsvertrag, the Gesellschafterliste and the resolution appointing the Geschäftsführer. These documents are issued electronically from the commercial register in Germany, and a Georgian notary accepts the printed version with an apostille or a German notary's certification. The German "Prokura" is explained in Georgian as "a special form of commercial power of attorney", "Geschäftsführer" is translated as "director", and "einzelvertretungsberechtigt" (the right of sole representation) is the decisive entry for the registry, which must be carried over exactly. A contract or power of attorney drawn up before a German notary differs structurally from the Georgian notarial form, but both are civil law traditions, so a Georgian notary "reads" a German document easily if the translation is exact.
From German into Georgian: medical and insurance documents
After treatment at a German clinic a Georgian patient has the discharge letter (Entlassungsbrief or Arztbrief), the findings (Befund) and the treatment plan translated to continue with a Georgian doctor or for a Georgian insurance company. A German doctor's letter is written in a standard structure (Diagnosen, Anamnese, Befunde, Therapie, Procedere), with ICD-10-GM codes, which in the Georgian system correspond to the international version of ICD-10, and with German trade names for medicines, to which we add the international nonproprietary name in the translation. The German "Pflegegrad" (care level 1-5) and "Grad der Behinderung" (degree of disability in percent) do not coincide directly with Georgian disability groups, so in the translation these concepts are conveyed descriptively, so that the Georgian social service understands them correctly.
From German into Georgian: technical and engineering text
The supply of German machinery, construction equipment and industrial equipment to Georgia is accompanied by a Georgian translation of operating manuals, safety data sheets, technical passports and declarations of conformity. German technical text is built on the terminology of DIN standards, and the translation conveys this terminology in the language of Georgian technical regulations. One typical difficulty is German compound words (Sicherheitsabschaltvorrichtung, Wartungsintervall, Betriebsanleitung), which break down into phrases in Georgian and must be used the same way throughout the document, for which we create a terminology base at the start of the project. Such projects are often hundreds of pages and are delivered in stages, with terminology approved by the client.
From Georgian into German: treatment at German clinics
Germany's university clinics are one of the main destinations for Georgian patients in oncology, cardiac surgery, orthopaedics and transplantation, and the clinic's International Office requests the full medical history in German or English before planning treatment. The Georgian discharge summary, test results and histology report are translated into German so that the German doctor sees a familiar structure (Anamnese, Befund, Diagnose, Therapie), while laboratory values stay unchanged with their units and, where necessary, receive a note on the German reference range. On the basis of the translation the clinic draws up a cost estimate (Kostenvoranschlag), which is then translated into Georgian for an insurance company or a charitable foundation, and this reverse step is our work too.
From German into Georgian: court decisions and criminal law
A German court decision is translated in Georgia in three cases: recognition and enforcement of a civil judgment (debt, maintenance, divorce), the materials of a criminal case when a Georgian citizen is involved in proceedings in Germany and Georgian bodies request information, and administrative decisions (Bescheid) on residence, deportation or social benefits. German court text is written in a strict structure (Tenor, Tatbestand, Entscheidungsgründe), and the translation keeps this structure, so that a Georgian judge or lawyer finds the operative part immediately. The hierarchy of German courts (Amtsgericht, Landgericht, Oberlandesgericht, Bundesgerichtshof) does not coincide one-to-one with the Georgian three-tier system, so the name of the instance is carried over with an explanation.
In both directions: tourism, wine and brand text
Unofficial translation, where no notary is involved, is intensive in both directions. Georgian tourist companies prepare websites, tour descriptions and hotel materials in German for the German market, Georgian wine companies prepare labels and technical sheets for a German importer, while German brands entering Georgia prepare advertising text, product descriptions and consumer contracts in Georgian. In both cases the aim is the same: the reader must not sense a translation. German marketing language is more restrained and factual than Georgian, and the Georgian emotional advertising style sounds "too loud" when carried over directly into German; so a native-speaker editor works on the German version and adapts the text to the expectations of the German consumer.
In both directions: how an order starts and ends
Regardless of direction, the order starts with uploading the document on the site, where you indicate the receiving country and body: Germany, Austria or Switzerland, the embassy, uni-assist, ZAB, Standesamt or the Georgian Public Registry. The same day you receive the deadline and information on whether the document needs an apostille and whether a Georgian notarized translation is sufficient for the specific body. When translating from Georgian into German we ask for the Latin version of the passport, when translating from German into Georgian we check for the presence of an apostille. The finished translation first comes to you electronically to check names, dates and numbers, then it is notarized and the paper version comes to you by courier, in Georgia or abroad.
In both directions: names, cities, umlauts
In the German orthographic tradition Georgian sounds are written with the letters "sch", "tsch", "w", while the Georgian passport uses the ICAO system ("sh", "ch", "v"), and in an official translation we always keep to the passport version. Georgian cities are written in German in their established form (Tiflis, Kutaissi, Batumi), and at the first mention we add the international variant in brackets, so that the match with the passport is preserved. In the opposite direction German names are carried over into Georgian in the established transcription (Müller, Jürgen, Schröder), but the Latin spelling also stays in the document, so that a Georgian notary sees the match with the passport. If a person already has a Georgian document with a certain spelling, we repeat exactly that variant, even if another seems phonetically more exact.
Common rules for both directions
- first name and surname follow the Latin version of the Georgian passport, German names in the established Georgian transcription with Latin in brackets
- names of bodies with a functional translation and the original in brackets, universities in the anabin form
- the apostille always on the source before translation, so that its text is reflected in the translation
- seals, stamps, handwritten notes and the reverse side are fully described
- figures, dates and units are compared with the source by a separate list
- the terminology of Germany, Austria and Switzerland is checked separately according to the receiving country
In both directions: adoption and guardianship
Adoption from Georgia by German families and the family cases of Georgian families in Germany are an especially sensitive part of the two-way document flow. The opinions, social reports and home study documents of the German Jugendamt (youth welfare office) are translated into Georgian for the Georgian guardianship and care body, while the Georgian court decision on adoption, the child's medical history and the biological parents' consent are translated into German. In these documents the terminology of Georgian and German family law ("guardian", "custodian", "Vormund", "Pfleger", "elterliche Sorge") requires exact correspondence, because a wrong rendering of legal status halts the procedure. One translator works on such cases throughout the whole process, so that the terminology and the spelling of names stay unchanged in every document.
Deadlines and organisation by direction
Translation from Georgian into German, where a German-speaking editor must be involved, takes one working day for a one-page document, and 5-10 days for a full medical recognition package including apostilles. Translation from German into Georgian, where the precision of Georgian terminology is the main thing, is ready the same or the next working day for a standard document, while a multi-page court decision or technical manual depends on volume. In both directions the translation is done by a translator registered with a notary, the process is managed online, and the finished document comes to you electronically and by courier. A confidentiality agreement applies to every order.
Frequently asked questions
Is a German electronic extract from the commercial register accepted in Georgia?
Yes, if it is accompanied by an apostille or a German notary's certification. A plain electronic extract without certification is not enough for a Georgian notary.
If a Swiss document is in German or French, which translator do I go to?
We work in both languages. Depending on the canton the document is passed to a German or a French translator, and bilingual Swiss forms are translated within one project.
Do you translate a Lebenslauf and a Motivationsschreiben?
Yes, without certification, in German academic and business style. These texts do not need a notary, but they do need native-level editing.
Is a German Pflegegrad translated as a Georgian disability group?
No, these are different systems. In the translation the German level is conveyed descriptively, so that the Georgian body understands it correctly, while determining the Georgian group is the body's competence.
Can you prepare a bilingual contract?
Yes. The contract is translated from one language, then both versions are laid out in parallel columns and compared terminologically, so that no clause differs in meaning.
Do you translate a handwritten German document?
Yes, old documents and doctors' notes are often handwritten, sometimes in old German script. An illegible fragment is marked "unleserlich"/"illegible", which a notary accepts at certification.