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Pennsylvania State Board of Nursing: Translation Requirements for Documents in Another Language
Yes, through the evaluation: Pennsylvania BON asks for a credential evaluation, and Josef Silny & Associates (JS&A), one of the agencies it accepts, takes translations by a translator individually certified by ATA, whom eVerbary assigns on request.
Credential evaluation: Board-approved evaluator, report sent directly
- ATA-certified translator from $34.95 per page
- Ordered through a free quote
- Price and translator confirmed before you pay
ATA prices and how to order · policy checked on October 21, 2026
The Pennsylvania State Board of Nursing requires nurses educated outside the United States or Canada to have their education evaluated by a Board-approved foreign credentials evaluator, and it has approved two: TruMerit (formerly CGFNS) and Josef Silny & Associates.
The board sets no translation rule of its own; JS&A accepts outside translations made in the US by translators individually certified by ATA, whom eVerbary assigns on request, while TruMerit takes translations only from the nursing school or makes them itself.
We translate your records; the evaluation report must reach the board directly from the evaluator.
Pennsylvania BON at a glance
Does it accept eVerbary? Yes
Pennsylvania BON accepts a Foreign Credential Evaluation for Boards of Nursing from Josef Silny & Associates (approved evaluators), and JS&A asks for a certified English translation of credentials not in English, accepting outside translations done by ATA-certified translators (JS&A), so a translation by an ATA-certified translator that eVerbary assigns meets the evaluator's rule. Policy checked on October 21, 2026.
- Translation
- Through the evaluation (TruMerit or JS&A)
- Who may translate
- JS&A: ATA-certified translator; TruMerit: school
- Credential evaluation
- Board-approved evaluator, report sent directly
- 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 Pennsylvania BON's own page before you submit.
Worth knowing about Pennsylvania BON
Two evaluators
TruMerit since 2017; Josef Silny & Associates added in 2023.
Outside US or Canada
Canadian nursing education does not need the foreign evaluation.
Report comes direct
The board waits for the report from the evaluation service.
Pennsylvania BON requirements in detail
Translation
The board publishes no translation rule of its own; it relies on its approved evaluators (Board-approved foreign credentials evaluators, April 2025), whose rules apply to records not in English.
Who may translate
Evaluation
Required for education in a country or territory outside the US or Canada, from a Board-approved foreign credentials evaluator (49 Pa. Code § 21.23).
Approved evaluators
TruMerit (CES Professional Report) and Josef Silny & Associates (Foreign Credential Evaluation for Boards of Nursing); more may be added (Board-approved foreign credentials evaluators, April 2025).
How the report arrives
Directly from the evaluation service; the board cannot finish reviewing your application until it does (Board-approved foreign credentials evaluators, April 2025).
English proficiency
Proof that the nursing program was taught in English, or a passing score on a Board-approved English test before exam approval (49 Pa. Code § 21.23: qualifications of applicants); multistate RN applicants from programs not taught in English, or whose native language is not English, pass an English proficiency exam (Registered nurse multistate licensure snapshot).
Fee
$250 for an initial multistate RN exam application from a foreign nursing program (Registered nurse multistate licensure snapshot).
Two approved evaluators, two translation rules
The board's list names TruMerit, approved in 2017, and Josef Silny & Associates, added in January 2023, on the list last updated in April 2025 (Board-approved foreign credentials evaluators, April 2025).
TruMerit requires nursing transcripts to be in English and translated by the school you attended, or translates them itself for an additional fee (TruMerit), so an outside translation does not fit its CES Professional Report.
JS&A has the school send official credentials (transcript with hours and grades, diploma, course descriptions) directly; if they are not in English, a certified English translation is also required, or its Translation Department provides one.
Outside translations are accepted under conditions: by ATA-certified translators in the US, and by accredited or officially certified translators abroad; JS&A may reject translations below its standards (JS&A).
Report first, then the board's review
Pennsylvania reviews a foreign graduate's application only after the evaluation report arrives from the service itself (Board-approved foreign credentials evaluators, April 2025).
With JS&A, the translation is part of what the evaluator needs before it can write that report, so order it early; JS&A sends the finished evaluation electronically to the board and to you (Josef Silny & Associates: services and translations).
The regulation measures your education against the program of study required in Pennsylvania at the time you completed it (49 Pa. Code § 21.23: qualifications of applicants), which is why the evaluator wants complete transcripts with hours and grades.
Need a certified translation for Pennsylvania BON?
$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
- Nursing school transcript with hours of instruction and grades
- Nursing diploma or degree certificate
- Course descriptions for the nursing program
- Foreign nursing license and its verification
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 Pennsylvania BON
The translation goes to JS&A with your Application for Boards of Nursing, sent to processing@jsilny.org or by mail; the school sends the official credentials itself (Josef Silny & Associates: services and translations).
Ask JS&A to send the Foreign Credential Evaluation for Boards of Nursing directly to the Pennsylvania board (Board-approved foreign credentials evaluators, April 2025).
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 Pennsylvania BON, 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 Pennsylvania that means we translate your records; the evaluation, and its delivery to the board, come from TruMerit or JS&A.
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 Pennsylvania State Board of Nursing accept a translation from a translation company?
The board relies on its approved evaluators (Board-approved foreign credentials evaluators, April 2025). JS&A accepts outside translations by ATA-certified translators (Josef Silny & Associates: services and translations), which eVerbary assigns on request; TruMerit does not take outside translations of nursing transcripts.
Which evaluators does Pennsylvania accept?
TruMerit (formerly CGFNS International) and Josef Silny & Associates (Board-approved foreign credentials evaluators, April 2025).
Do Canadian nursing graduates need the evaluation?
No. The requirement covers education outside the United States or Canada (49 Pa. Code § 21.23: qualifications of applicants).
Can I send the evaluation to the board myself?
No. The board needs the report directly from the evaluation service (Board-approved foreign credentials evaluators, April 2025).
Do I need an English test?
Only if your nursing program was not conducted in English (49 Pa. Code § 21.23: qualifications of applicants); for a multistate license, also if English is not your native language (Registered nurse multistate licensure snapshot).
Sources
Pennsylvania State Board of Nursing's own pages, read on October 21, 2026.
Translating documents for Pennsylvania BON?
Upload a scan of your diploma, transcript or license and see the price and delivery time before you pay.