Home / Interpreters / Austin, TX
Interpreters in Austin, TX
Yes: we book interpreters in Austin by video at $80 an hour (one-hour minimum) or in person at $110 an hour (two-hour minimum), plus $0.70 per mile of travel, confirmed before you pay. EOIR's list of immigration courts has none in Austin, and Travis County's civil courts schedule interpreters through a court coordinator who reimburses an attorney's own interpreter only with prior approval. The State Office of Administrative Hearings in Austin provides and pays for a certified language interpreter when a party asks in writing at least seven days ahead.
In person in Austin
$110 an hour per interpreter, two-hour minimum, plus $0.70 a mile from the interpreter's location.
By video or phone
$80 an hour, one-hour minimum, no travel. Zoom, Google Meet, Teams or a phone call.
Quote within minutes
We reply within minutes, four business hours at most, with the interpreter, the exact price and any travel, before you book. Asking costs nothing.
Travis County civil courts assign their own interpreters and reimburse an attorney's only with approval
The Travis County Civil and Family Courts keep an Interpreter Coordinator in the Court Administrator's Office. In the procedure we read, effective February 1, 2025, a party or attorney who needs an interpreter for a party or witness emails civil.interpreter@traviscountytx.gov when the hearing is set, or immediately on learning of the setting, and failing to ask may delay the hearing (Travis County procedure). An attorney may bring a Texas licensed interpreter to any scheduled hearing, but the cost is not reimbursed without prior approval from the coordinator or the presiding judge. The criminal courts work from the same side: court coordinators schedule all interpreters, and the courts are not responsible for the invoice if an attorney contacts one directly (Travis County criminal courts).
The same procedure says Texas state court licensed interpreters should be used for live in-person interpreting whenever possible under reasonable circumstances, and non-licensed interpreters only when none is available within 75 miles. Texas Government Code chapter 57 defines "court proceeding" to include a deposition or mediation (sec. 57.001(7)), and a party who files a statement of inability to afford court costs does not have to provide an interpreter at their own expense, unless the statement is contested and the court orders the party to pay costs (sec. 57.002(g)). For a hearing, ask the coordinator first. The deposition conference room, the mediation and the client meeting before the hearing are where Austin clients book us. If your matter calls for a Texas licensed court interpreter, say so when you request; we confirm before you book whether we can staff it.
Austin has no immigration court on EOIR's list, and the USCIS locator points Austin ZIP codes to San Antonio
EOIR's list of immigration courts names Conroe, Dallas, El Paso, El Paso SPC, Harlingen, three in Houston, Laredo, Pearsall, Port Isabel and San Antonio in Texas, and nothing in Austin (EOIR). The nearest is San Antonio, at 800 Dolorosa Street, Suite 300, and your hearing notice names the court. Whichever court it is provides the interpreter for the hearing at government expense; EOIR asks the respondent or attorney to request one no later than 30 days before the next hearing (ICPM 3.10). Preparation with an Austin attorney is what we are booked for, in person in Austin or by video from anywhere.
For each Austin ZIP code we tried (78701, 78702, 78741, 78744, 78758 and 78759), the USCIS field-office locator returned the San Antonio Field Office at 20760 North US Highway 281 (USCIS locator). The Policy Manual says an applicant who is not fluent in English may need an interpreter at the green card interview; that interpreter shows a government-issued ID, completes an oath and privacy release statement and translates word for word, and USCIS reserves the right to disqualify an interpreter provided by the applicant (USCIS Policy Manual).
After Spanish, Austin's largest home languages are Chinese, Telugu, Hindi and Vietnamese
In the Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos metro area, 2,402,757 residents are five or older and 1,680,768 speak only English at home. Another 482,613 speak Spanish. Chinese (26,199) is next, then Telugu (22,063), Hindi (18,282) and Vietnamese (16,911), the Census group for Nepali, Marathi and other Indic languages (11,301), French, Korean, Tamil (9,509) and Arabic (ACS B16001). Estimates below Spanish carry wide margins: Vietnamese is 16,911 plus or minus 4,684.
Spanish, Hindi, Vietnamese, Mandarin, Cantonese and Tamil are standard-rate: a three-hour deposition in person with a 30-mile round trip is $330 plus $21 travel, $351. Telugu carries the limited-availability surcharge of 25–30%, $137.50 to $143 an hour in person, which makes the same deposition $433.50 to $450. For the Census's Indic group, tell us the language: Nepali is standard-rate and Marathi is not.
Languages spoken at home in Austin
The most common languages other than English, from the U.S. Census Bureau — ACS 2024 1-year, table B16001 (language spoken at home, population 5 years and over), Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX Metro Area. A language that links has its own page on what to get right when booking an interpreter for it.
| Language | People who speak it at home |
|---|---|
| Spanish | 482,613 |
| Chinese (incl. Mandarin, Cantonese) | 26,199 |
| Telugu | 22,063 |
| Hindi | 18,282 |
| Vietnamese | 16,911 |
| Nepali, Marathi, or other Indic languages | 11,301 |
| French (incl. Cajun) | 11,209 |
| Korean | 10,632 |
| Tamil | 9,509 |
| Arabic | 9,399 |
Where interpreters are needed in Austin, and who provides them
Some of these places must provide the interpreter themselves, and then you should not be paying for one. Where that is so, the official page is linked.
| Place | Who provides the interpreter |
|---|---|
| Travis County Civil and Family Courts | The Court Administrator's Interpreter Coordinator arranges interpreters for parties and witnesses (civil.interpreter@traviscountytx.gov). An attorney may bring a Texas licensed interpreter, but the county reimburses that interpreter only with prior approval. Depositions are arranged by the attorneys. |
| Travis County criminal courts | Court coordinators schedule all interpreters; if an attorney contacts the interpreter directly, the courts are not responsible for the invoice. |
| State Office of Administrative Hearings (SOAH), Austin | SOAH provides and pays for a certified language interpreter; a party or witness files a written request at least seven days before the setting. Preparation meetings and depositions in those cases are arranged by the attorneys. |
| San Antonio Immigration Court (EOIR), 800 Dolorosa Street, Suite 300, San Antonio — the nearest court on EOIR's list to Austin | EOIR lists no immigration court in Austin. A court provides the interpreter for the hearing, at government expense (ICPM 3.10); the hearing notice names the court. Attorneys book their own for client preparation. |
| USCIS San Antonio Field Office, 20760 North US Highway 281, San Antonio, for Austin applicants | The locator returned this office for every Austin ZIP code we tried. For a green card interview the interpreter is provided by the applicant, who shows a government-issued ID, signs an oath and privacy release, and interprets word for word. |
| Austin ISD Office of Translation and Interpretation | Over-the-phone, video remote and in-person or Zoom interpretation for school meetings, requested by an Austin ISD employee; a family asks its school to make the request. |
Interpreters in cities near Austin
What an interpreter costs, worked out
These are the published rates multiplied out: $80 an hour by video or phone, $110 an hour in person, $0.70 a mile of travel.
| Booking | How it is worked out | Total |
|---|---|---|
| One-hour video or phone call | 1 hour × $80 | $80 |
| Two-hour video interview | 2 hours × $80 | $160 |
| Two-hour meeting in person, 20-mile round trip | 2 hours × $110 + 20 miles × $0.70 | $234 |
| Three-hour deposition or closing in person, 40-mile round trip | 3 hours × $110 + 40 miles × $0.70 | $358 |
| Full day in person (six hours), two interpreters in relay | 2 interpreters × 6 hours × $110 | $1,320 plus travel |
The quote confirms the interpreter, the exact travel figure and the total before you book; nothing is charged until you confirm.
How the travel charge works out
Travel is charged at $0.70 per mile from the interpreter's location, which means you can work it out rather than wait for a quote: a 20-mile round trip is $14, a 60-mile round trip is $42, a 150-mile round trip is $105. There is no separate call-out fee on top.
We will not pretend to know in advance where the interpreter will be coming from — that depends on the language, the date and the venue. What we do is confirm the interpreter and the exact travel figure before you book, so it is never a surprise on the invoice. Virtual assignments carry no travel charge at all, which is one reason most of what we do is virtual.
By video, by phone or in person
Virtual interpreting runs on Zoom, Google Meet or Microsoft Teams, or over the telephone. It is quicker to arrange, costs less and carries no travel charge, and it suits appointments, calls and most meetings.
In person is what venues with their own rules tend to expect, and the right choice when documents are being signed or several people are speaking at once. Tell us the platform, or the city and the venue, when you send the request.
How booking an interpreter works
- You send the request with the form below: the language, the setting, the format, the date and how long it should last.
- We confirm before you commit: the interpreter, the exact price and the travel figure if there is one. We reply within minutes, four business hours at most, and no payment is taken at this stage.
- You confirm and pay, and the interpreter is booked for your date. The interpreter's name and credentials are sent to you once the booking is paid.
What to have ready
The more of this comes in the first message, the fewer exchanges before you have a price:
- The language, the date, the start time and how long it should run.
- Virtual or in person: the platform, or the city and the venue.
- The setting and the subject matter.
- How many people need interpreting for.
- Any credential the venue requires of the interpreter. We confirm before you book whether we can staff it; the interpreter's name and credentials follow once the booking is paid.
Interpreters by language in Austin
- Spanish interpreters in Austin
- Mandarin interpreters in Austin
- Cantonese interpreters in Austin
- Telugu interpreters in Austin
- Hindi interpreters in Austin
- Vietnamese interpreters in Austin
- Nepali interpreters in Austin
- Marathi interpreters in Austin
- French interpreters in Austin
- Korean interpreters in Austin
- Tamil interpreters in Austin
- Arabic interpreters in Austin
Request an interpreter
Tell us the date, the language and the setting and we will come back with the interpreter, the exact price and the travel figure if there is one — before you commit to anything.
Thank you — we have your request
We will reply within minutes, four business hours at most, with the interpreter, the exact price and the travel figure if there is one, before you commit to anything.
Sources
What this page says about Austin was checked against these sources on November 3, 2026. Rules change; the source is always the authority.
- U.S. Census Bureau — ACS 2024 1-year, B16001, Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX Metro Area (read from the table-based summary file, acsdt1y2024-b16001.dat)
- EOIR — Immigration Court List, Administrative Control
- EOIR — Immigration Court Practice Manual, chapter 3.10, Interpreters
- USCIS — Field Office Locator (San Antonio Field Office, returned for Austin ZIP codes)
- USCIS Policy Manual — Volume 7, Part A, Chapter 5, Interview Guidelines
- Texas Legislature — Government Code chapter 57, Court Interpreters (secs. 57.001, 57.002)
- Travis County Civil Courts — Procedure for Foreign Language Interpreters (effective February 1, 2025)
- Travis County Criminal Courts — Policies and Procedures, How do I Request a Court Interpreter?
- State Office of Administrative Hearings — 1 TAC §155.407, Interpreters
- Austin ISD — Translation & Interpretation
Frequently asked questions
Does Austin have an immigration court?
Not on EOIR's list, which names twelve courts in Texas but none in Austin; the nearest is San Antonio, at 800 Dolorosa Street, Suite 300 (EOIR). Your hearing notice names the court, which provides the interpreter for the hearing (ICPM 3.10).
Will a Travis County court pay for my interpreter at a civil hearing?
The county's Interpreter Coordinator arranges interpreters for parties and witnesses when asked at the time the hearing is set, and an attorney's own Texas licensed interpreter is reimbursed only with prior approval (Travis County procedure). A party who files a statement of inability to afford court costs does not have to provide an interpreter at their own expense, unless the statement is contested and the court orders the party to pay costs (Gov't Code 57.002(g)).
Does the State Office of Administrative Hearings provide an interpreter?
Yes. Its rule says SOAH provides and pays for a certified language interpreter, and a party or witness who needs one files a written request at least seven days before the setting; a timely, unopposed request is deemed granted unless an order denies it (1 TAC 155.407).
How much is a Telugu interpreter in Austin?
Telugu is a limited-availability language: $137.50 to $143 an hour in person with a two-hour minimum, or $100 to $104 an hour by video with a one-hour minimum, plus $0.70 per mile of travel for in-person work.
Is the price per person or per interpreter?
Per interpreter, per hour, billed from the scheduled start time. One interpreter covers a meeting; a full-day hearing may need two working in relay.
What if the venue provides its own interpreter?
Then you should not be paying us. Immigration court provides one, and hospitals and school districts frequently must. Ask them first.
Can I see the interpreter's credentials before I pay?
Tell us the credential the venue or the other side requires when you request, and we confirm before you book whether we can staff it. The interpreter's name and credentials are sent once the booking is paid.
How is travel charged?
$0.70 per mile from the interpreter's location — a 20-mile round trip is $14. We confirm the exact figure before you book, and virtual assignments carry none.
Need an interpreter in Austin?
Tell us the date, the language, the venue and how long it runs, and we will confirm the interpreter and the exact price, travel included.