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California Board of Accountancy: Translation Requirements for Documents in Another Language
Yes, through the evaluation: CBA asks for a credential evaluation, and WES, one of the agencies it accepts, takes certified translations from professional services such as eVerbary.
Credential evaluation: CBA-approved service, course-by-course
- $24.95 per page
- Usually 24 h for 1–3 pages
- Signed certificate of accuracy, PDF
- See the price before you pay
How we know · policy checked on October 21, 2026
The California Board of Accountancy publishes no translation rule; candidates educated abroad meet the CPA education requirement through an evaluation of their foreign transcripts by one of the CBA-approved credentials evaluation services, and the agency sets the translation rule.
WES and NIES, both on the CBA list, accept certified translations from professional services such as eVerbary.
We translate your transcripts and diplomas for the agency; you order the evaluation, which reaches the CBA electronically or in a sealed envelope.
CBA at a glance
Does it accept eVerbary? Yes
The CBA accepts an evaluation from its approved services, among them WES and NIES (CBA-approved foreign credentials evaluation services); WES accepts a translation by a professional translator or certified translation service (WES translation rules), and NIES one by any ATA member, which eVerbary is (NIES requirements).
ACEI and Josef Silny want ATA-certified translators for translations made in the US (ACEI, JS&A). Policy checked on October 21, 2026.
- Translation
- Through the evaluation (WES, NIES, IERF…)
- Who may translate
- Set by the agency; ACEI, JS&A: ATA-certified
- Credential evaluation
- CBA-approved service, course-by-course
- Price
- $24.95 per pageUp to 250 words, certification included
- Delivery
- 24 hoursStandard for one to three pages
- Grades
- As recordedNever converted to a US GPA
Checked on October 21, 2026. Sources are listed at the end of this page. Policies change: confirm on CBA's own page before you submit.
Worth knowing about CBA
Thirteen listed agencies
Each with a dated term of approval.
Copies of your transcripts
The report must include support documentation.
Three to six weeks
Typical evaluation time, per the CBA.
CBA requirements in detail
Translation
The CBA has no translation rule of its own; foreign transcripts go through an approved evaluation service, whose rule applies (CBA-approved foreign credentials evaluation services).
Who may translate
Evaluation
From a CBA-approved service: APIE, ACEI, ACREVS, CAREE, ERES, FCSA, Global Education Group, IERF, Josef Silny, NIES, One Earth or WES; AERC is still listed with a term that ended in August 2025 (CBA-approved foreign credentials evaluation services).
What the report must include
"For purposes of CPA Exam/licensure in California", a course-by-course listing of accounting, business and general education subjects, an overall US equivalency statement, and copies of the foreign transcripts used (Submitting your educational documents to the CBA).
How it arrives
Electronically from ACEI, IERF, NIES or WES; from any other service, an official sealed copy mailed to the CBA in Sacramento (Submitting your educational documents to the CBA).
Timing
Evaluation services typically take three to six weeks (CBA-approved foreign credentials evaluation services).
Special cases
ACCA education earned outside a degree-granting institution does not count; ACCA coursework on a transcript with a conferred bachelor's degree can be considered (CBA-approved foreign credentials evaluation services).
Choosing an agency from the CBA list
The CBA approves each service for a fixed term and prints the dates next to it (CBA-approved foreign credentials evaluation services). Translation rules differ across the list.
WES asks for an exact, word-for-word translation by a professional translator and does not take your own (WES). NIES accepts any ATA member and refuses private providers outside the US (NIES).
IERF accepts outside translations but may ask for professional ones (IERF). ACEI and Josef Silny take US translations only from ATA-certified translators (ACEI, JS&A); for those, see the ATA section below.
Speed also differs at the delivery stage: ACEI, IERF, NIES and WES can send the report to the CBA electronically, while the others must mail a sealed copy (Submitting your educational documents to the CBA).
Order the right report
Agencies name their reports differently, so the CBA lists what it must contain: the California CPA purpose, a course-by-course listing split into accounting, business and general education, an overall US equivalency statement, and copies of the foreign transcripts the agency used (Submitting your educational documents to the CBA). A report for another state or for employment may lack one of these.
Evaluation services do not evaluate US transcripts and do not forward them, so any US coursework goes to the CBA separately (CBA-approved foreign credentials evaluation services).
The CBA suggests having transcripts and evaluations sent before you submit the exam application (Submitting your educational documents to the CBA).
Need a certified translation for CBA?
$24.95 per page of up to 250 words, certification included, usually within 24 hours for one to three pages. See the price before you pay.
Documents applicants usually translate
- University transcripts or mark sheets, for the course-by-course report
- Degree certificates and diplomas
- Yearly examination results or grade sheets, if your school issues them
- ACCA or other professional body records shown on a degree transcript
What an eVerbary translation includes
- A complete English translation of every page, stamps, seals and handwritten notes included, laid out like the original so each line can be matched.
- Grades, hours and credits exactly as recorded, with the grading scale the document prints. We never convert marks to a US GPA or equivalency.
- A signed certificate of translation accuracy on letterhead, with our contact details, delivered as a PDF you can upload or print.
- $24.95 per page of up to 250 words, certification included; 24 hours for one to three pages as standard. Regular clients who need it can get delivery in as little as 30 minutes, on request.
- Notarization added at checkout ($34.90 per order) when the office asks for a notarized translation.
Submitting the translation to CBA
The translation goes to the evaluation agency with your records, following that agency's instructions.
The agency then sends its report to the CBA, electronically (ACEI, IERF, NIES, WES) or as an official sealed copy to 2450 Venture Oaks Way, Suite 300, Sacramento, CA 95833 (Submitting your educational documents to the CBA).
The CBA itself does not need the translation: it reads the agency's report, which includes copies of the transcripts used (Submitting your educational documents to the CBA).
If you need a translator certified by ATA
Some offices accept only a translator who is personally certified by the American Translators Association (ATA). eVerbary assigns one on request, for the languages ATA certifies into English:
$34.95 per page
Spanish, Portuguese, French, German, Italian, Chinese, Arabic, Russian and Ukrainian
$44.95 per page
Japanese, Korean, Polish, Dutch, Swedish, Croatian, Danish and Persian
To order it, ask for a free quote and write in the notes that the translation is for CBA, what it is for, and that you need a translator individually certified by ATA, plus anything else the office asks for (notarization, delivery by email to the office).
We confirm the price and the translator before you pay. ATA does not certify other languages into English, so no translator anywhere holds ATA certification for them.
For those languages we provide a notarized certified translation instead, at $44.95 per page plus notarization ($34.90 per order); ask the office to confirm it accepts that, and write its answer in the quote notes.
What we do not do
eVerbary is a translation service, not a credential evaluation service or a licensing agency: we do not issue evaluations, US equivalencies or GPA conversions, we cannot send documents on behalf of the school or authority that issued them, and we do not file the license application.
For the CBA that means we translate your transcripts and diplomas; you order the evaluation from an approved agency, and the agency sends it to the CBA.
How to order
- Scan or photograph every page of the document, front and back, including any stamps on the reverse.
- Upload it, choose the language and "certified", and see the price before paying.
- Receive the PDF, usually within 24 hours for one to three pages, and submit it with the copy of the original wherever the office asks for it.
Frequently asked questions
Does the California Board of Accountancy require a translation?
Not directly: it requires an evaluation from an approved service (CBA-approved foreign credentials evaluation services), and the service needs a translation of records not in English under its own rule, for example WES (WES: translation requirements).
Which evaluation agencies does the CBA accept?
The services on its approved list, including WES, NIES, IERF, FCSA, One Earth, ACEI and Josef Silny (CBA-approved foreign credentials evaluation services).
Can I send the evaluation myself?
Only in the original sealed envelope; otherwise the agency mails it or, for ACEI, IERF, NIES and WES, sends it electronically (CBA-approved foreign credentials evaluation services, Submitting your educational documents to the CBA).
How long does the evaluation take?
Usually three to six weeks (CBA-approved foreign credentials evaluation services), after the agency has your records and translation.
Can eVerbary provide an ATA-certified translator for ACEI or Josef Silny?
Yes, on request. Ask for a free quote and write in the notes which agency the translation is for and that it needs a translator individually certified by ATA.
Sources
California Board of Accountancy's own pages, read on October 21, 2026.
Translating documents for CBA?
Upload a scan of your diploma, transcript or license and see the price and delivery time before you pay.