German Police Check Translation
Prepare and Order a German Police Check (Führungszeugnis) Translation
Preparing a German police certificate for use in Australia? We provide NAATI-certified English translation of the Führungszeugnis, issued by the Bundesamt für Justiz from the Bundeszentralregister. Check the receiving organisation’s instructions to confirm which certificate it needs, then send the complete document for translation. To identify the version you hold, see Führungszeugnis translation.
What to check before you order
The BfJ explains that personal-data labels are shown in German, English and French. Where there is no entry, that statement is also shown in those languages. Check the actual version you hold and the receiving organisation’s instructions before deciding whether an English translation is needed. Source: Bundesamt für Justiz — Führungszeugnis FAQ, checked 9 September 2026.
- Check the receiving organisation's current instructions for which certificate and which translation it asks for
- Check whether your certificate was issued for private use or for submission to an authority (zur Vorlage bei einer Behörde)
- Check separately whether it is an erweitertes Führungszeugnis (§ 30a BZRG) or a Europäisches Führungszeugnis (§ 30b BZRG)
- A Europäisches Führungszeugnis may include a contribution from another member state's register in the language in which it was transmitted
- Send a complete, legible copy of every page, including any headers, footers, seals or reference numbers present
- If names or details differ between your documents, flag the difference before translation and check with the receiving organisation whether supporting evidence is needed
NAATI Certification
NAATI-certified translation of your Führungszeugnis
Your translation is prepared by a NAATI-certified translator and reproduces the document as issued, including the issuing authority, reference details and the recorded entry status. Translation, obtaining the certificate and authenticating it are separate steps. Check the receiving organisation’s instructions to establish which steps apply. Authentication guidance for the Führungszeugnis is published by the Bundesamt für Justiz.
- Führungszeugnis — issued for private use
- Führungszeugnis zur Vorlage bei einer Behörde — issued for submission to an authority
- Erweitertes Führungszeugnis — extended certificate under § 30a BZRG
- Europäisches Führungszeugnis — European certificate under § 30b BZRG
- Every page translated as issued; do not alter an official document before ordering
Flat rate
Instant price · Under 24-hour delivery
If your document contains multiple pages, you choose the pages to translate and each selected page is charged at $59. Your final page count is confirmed on upload before payment — no manual quote and no callback wait.
- $59 per page, shown upfront
- No manual quote — order immediately
- No waiting for a callback
- Your complete order delivered under 24 hours as standard — average under six hours
- Translation by a NAATI-certified translator
- Delivered as a secure PDF
Frequently asked questions
Who issues a police clearance certificate in Germany
The Führungszeugnis is issued by the Bundesamt für Justiz in Bonn from the federal central register, and is the certificate Home Affairs names for applicants with German residence.
German civil-status records are issued by the Standesamt of the district where the event was registered. Current extracts are issued on standardised federal forms; older records may be Abschriften from the Familienbuch, and documents from the former GDR carry institution names that no longer exist and are translated historically.
What your certified English translation reproduces
Every certified translation we issue is a complete rendering of the source document — not a summary. For a German police clearance certificate that means:
- Applicant's full name, date and place of birth and identity document number
- The issuing authority, reference number and the date the search was run
- The scope of the search — national register, period covered and any regional limitation
- The result statement, translated literally rather than paraphrased as 'clear'
- Any recorded conviction with its statutory reference and sentence
- Validity period, seal, signature and any verification code or QR reference
German names, dates and script
German uses the umlauts ä, ö and ü and the ligature ß, which Australian systems transliterate inconsistently as ae/oe/ue or strip entirely — Müller may appear as Muller or Mueller across documents. Dates are day.month.year, and academic titles are treated as part of the legal name in German records.
Seals, stamps and legalisation
Standesamt seals, the registrar's signature and, for documents used abroad, an apostille issued by the relevant Landgericht or administrative authority. Multilingual extracts under the 1976 Vienna Convention are common and, as with other EU forms, still require NAATI certification for Australian use.
How Australian agencies read this document
Australian organisations use the translation to read the issuing authority, the scope of the search and the result statement exactly as recorded. Requirements vary by organisation and by application — check the receiving organisation's current instructions for which certificate it needs and how recent it must be.
Commonly requested alongside visa, registration and employment applications. Check the current document and translation checklist published by the organisation you are submitting to.
What we check before certifying
Most delays are caused by the source document, not the translation. These are the issues we look for on German police clearance certificates and raise with you before the file is certified:
- Umlaut transliteration differing between the passport MRZ and the certificate, producing an apparent name mismatch
- An Abschrift aus dem Familienbuch used where the agency wanted a current Geburtsurkunde
- Academic titles recorded as part of the name in Germany but not in Australian records
- Only part of the document supplied, so headers, footers, seals or reference details are missing
- A local or municipal clearance obtained where the receiving organisation asked for a national-level certificate
- A result phrase that means 'no entry found in this register' being loosely rendered as 'no criminal record', which overstates the search scope
Pages, pricing and turnaround
Police certificates are charged at $59 per page, with under 24-hour delivery as standard.
Order your translation now
$59 per page shown upfront. NAATI-certified. Delivered under 24 hours.