ISO 17100:2015

The ISO 17100:2015 standard specifies requirements for all aspects of the translation process directly affecting the quality and delivery of translation services.

It includes provisions for translation service providers (TSPs) concerning the management of core processes, minimum qualification requirements, the availability and management of resources, and other actions necessary for the delivery of a quality translation service. It does not apply to the use of raw output from Machine Translation plus Post-editing, or to interpreting services.

The ISO ISO 17100:2015 standard specifies translation steps such as:

• Translation (including a check of translation by the translator himself or herself)
• Revision by a second person
• Review (an optional step, designed in order to assess the suitability of the translation against the agreed purpose, domain, and the recommended corrective measures)
• Proofreading (an optional pre-publication check)
• Final verification

The ISO 17100:2015 standard defines resource types including human resources (such as translators, revisers, reviewers, proofreaders and project managers) as well as technical and technological resources. It also sets minimum standards such as:

• Translations are to be subject to revision by a second person.
• A translator should have a certificate of competence in translation awarded by an appropriate government body.
• Agreement and definition on the quality of the target text, nature and scope of quality assurance, use of style guides between client and contractor.
• The existence of a process for handling client feedback, which is used to find out the actual translation quality and client satisfaction.
• Responsibility of the translation service provider for archiving the translation projects.
• Meeting of data protection requirements as translations are sometimes confidential, involving sensitive information from the client.