The two-stage process and where translation fits

The Global Talent Visa works in two stages, and translation requirements apply differently at each one.

Stage 1 is the endorsement application

This is where you submit evidence of your talent to the relevant endorsing body:

• Tech Nation for digital technology
• Arts Council England for arts and culture
• The Royal Society, Royal Academy of Engineering, or British Academy for science and academia
• UKRI

Any evidence submitted in a language other than English must include a certified translation. The translation does not count towards the document page limits set by the endorsing bodies.

Stage 2 is the Home Office visa application

Any personal documents not in English or Welsh must also be accompanied by a certified translation. This includes identity documents, qualifications, and any other supporting paperwork requested by the Home Office.

Which documents UAE applicants typically need to translate

Here are the documents you may need to translate for the UK Global Talent Visa.

Stage 1, evidence for the endorsing body:

• Arabic-language CVs or portfolio documents, including those written in Arabic for UAE or regional employers
• Arabic press coverage, such as articles in Gulf News, Khaleej Times, Al Arabiya, or other Arabic-language publications
• Letters of support from UAE organisations written in Arabic
• Arabic-language research publications, conference papers, or patents
• Arabic employment contracts or role descriptions used as evidence of seniority or impact

Stage 2, the Home Office application:

• Degree certificates and transcripts from UAE universities or other Arab world universities, if issued in Arabic
• Marriage or family documents, if not in English and relevant to dependant applications
• TB test results, if issued in Arabic

If your evidence is already in English, for example a contract with a UAE multinational or a press article from an English-language Gulf publication, no translation is needed. Translate only what is not already in English or Welsh.

What the certified translation must include

A certified translation accepted by UK endorsing bodies and UKVI must include:

• A signed statement confirming it is a true and accurate translation of the original document
• The full name of the translator or translation company
• Contact details for the translator or company
• The date of translation
• The company stamp or the translator’s professional credentials, such as CIOL, ITI, or ATC membership

Arts Council England specifies that the translation must show the company stamp or full company details. UKRI requires the translator’s full name and contact details, along with the accuracy statement. The Home Office expects one certification page per translated document, submitted either at the front or back of the attachment alongside the original. The endorsing body or Home Office won’t accept translation done with Google Translate, browser tools, or uncertified bilingual relatives.  ​

Getting it done from the UAE

The Global Talent Visa certified translation requirement doesn’t state that you must use a UK-based translator or be physically in the UK. However, your certified translation must be from an accredited agency, wherever it is based, and must meet the set requirements.

For UAE applicants, the practical options are:

• Use a UK-accredited agency that accepts digital submissions from the UAE. LegalTranslator accepts Arabic document scans by upload, has them translated by accredited translators, and delivers a certified PDF within 12 hours. The certification meets the requirements of Arts Council England, UKRI, Tech Nation, and the Home Office, so there is no need to reformat or recertify anything once it lands in your inbox.

• Use a UAE-based translation agency with membership in CIOL, ITI, or ATC, or an equivalent recognised accreditation. If you go this route, confirm before ordering that the agency provides a signed statement of accuracy, a company stamp, and translator credentials as described above. Not every local agency formats its output to UK certification standards, so it’s worth checking before you pay.

Common mistakes

• Submitting a bilingual document without a certified translation: A document printed in both Arabic and English is not the same as a certified English translation. If the endorsing body requires a translation, provide one even if an English version already appears on the same page.
• Using Google Translate or a browser extension to translate Arabic evidence is explicitly rejected by Arts Council England, and other endorsing bodies apply the same standard in practice.
• Leaving Arabic press coverage untranslated: Gulf-region publications in Arabic are valid evidence, but you must translate them before submitting them to UK endorsing bodies for assessment.
• Missing the endorsement validity window: You have three months to submit Stage 2 after Stage 1 is endorsed. Get your translations ready before you submit Stage 1 to avoid delays.
• Counting the translation towards the document page limit: For Arts Council England and UKRI, the certified translation page does not count towards the two-page evidence limit per document, so there’s no need to trim your original evidence to make room for it.

Legal Translator provides certified Arabic-to-English translations accepted by all UK Global Talent Visa endorsing bodies and the Home Office. Upload your documents from anywhere in the UAE and receive a certified translation within 12 hours. Get started with certified translations.