Certified translation › Certificate of no impediment
Certificate of no impediment translation — the Ehefähigkeitszeugnis, and the related Ledigkeitsbescheinigung (certificate of free status) — is produced as a certified translation by a sworn, court-certified Austrian translator for a foreign registrar when you marry abroad. The document is usually valid for a limited window and often needs an apostille, issued by the competent Austrian authority and not by us. From €59 incl. certification and shipping.
Standesamt-issued, PStG 2013 explained · § 14 SDG court-sworn translators · round court seal · apostille via the Amt der Landesregierung · DIN EN ISO 17100
Short & clear
For a marriage abroad: almost always yes. The registrar at your destination generally requires a certified translation of your Austrian proof of single status, often together with an apostille. It must be produced by a court-sworn translator (in German, gerichtlich beeideter und zertifizierter Übersetzer), authorised under § 14 SDG and entered in the official register at a Regional Court (Landesgericht). Their round court seal — the Rundsiegel — makes the translation legally valid across Austria, whichever federal state issued it.
The first question to settle, though, is which document Austria actually issues for your case. A certificate of free status (Ledigkeitsbescheinigung) confirms only the marital status single, usually as a partial extract from the Zentrales Personenstandsregister (ZPR). A certificate of no impediment to marriage (Ehefähigkeitszeugnis) goes further — it confirms that nothing under Austrian law prevents the marriage — and is issued by the Austrian Standesamt (in Vienna, MA 63) under the Personenstandsgesetz 2013 (PStG 2013). Which one your destination country requires decides everything that follows.
When is it needed?
It is nearly always a marriage with a foreign element — either abroad itself, or with a foreign partner marrying at an Austrian Standesamt.
Standesamt & apostille
The certificate of free status is usually issued as a partial extract from the Zentrales Personenstandsregister; the certificate of no impediment to marriage is issued by the Austrian Standesamt. Both are requested by the authority in your country of marriage, and for use there an apostille is frequently also required.
That apostille is issued neither by the FÜD nor — since this is not a court document — by the president of a Landesgericht, but by the Amt der Landesregierung of the relevant federal state. The sensible order is apostille on the original first, then the certified translation, which carries the apostille wording over as well. A multilingual certificate of no impediment to marriage under the Munich Convention of 1980 (CIEC) is exempt from further formality between contracting states, which often removes the need for a translation altogether. Your Standesamt or the foreign registrar confirms which route it accepts.
Specialist value
With a certificate of no impediment, precision of terminology and timing decides whether it is accepted abroad. These are the recurring causes of rejection — and how a certified translation avoids them.
| Pitfall | Why it goes wrong | How the FÜD solves it |
|---|---|---|
| Wrong document requested | Bringing a certificate of free status when the destination country requires the fuller certificate of no impediment to marriage means starting over with the Standesamt. | We clarify in advance which document your marriage country actually requires before you apply for it. |
| Certificate issued too long ago | A certificate of no impediment to marriage is usually only accepted if recently issued — many receiving authorities apply a validity window of around six months. | We flag the likely validity window and recommend a fresh certificate from the Standesamt before translation where needed. |
| "Single" translated imprecisely | Marital-status categories carry legal weight; a loosely chosen word changes the statement the foreign registrar relies on. | Marital status is rendered in legally exact terms, with an explanatory note where the target legal system has no direct equivalent. |
| Name ≠ passport spelling | If a transliteration diverges from the passport, the foreign authority questions the applicant's identity. | Names are cross-checked against the passport; for non-Latin scripts we apply the applicable ISO transliteration rule and document both forms. |
| Apostille "ordered" from the translator | Only the Amt der Landesregierung issues the apostille; without it, the foreign registrar refuses the document outright. | We do not issue apostilles, but we name the correct authority and order — then translate the apostille wording together with the certificate. |
| Multilingual certificate overlooked | A multilingual certificate of no impediment to marriage under the Munich Convention 1980 often makes a translation unnecessary — ordering one anyway wastes time and money. | We check first whether a multilingual certificate is available for your marriage country and translate only where genuinely needed. |
Certificate of free status or certificate of no impediment to marriage, single- or multilingual, apostilled or not — the registrar in your marriage country decides, and the certificate has to still be within its validity window when submitted. That is why we clarify this before the order, so the translation is right first time.
The wrong document — or an expired one — can cost you your wedding date.
So: certificate of free status or certificate of no impediment to marriage, confirmed fresh, before the translation begins.
Typical cases
Marrying abroad, marrying a foreign partner in Austria, or a multilingual certificate under the Munich Convention — the case determines the document, the apostille need and the translation.
Marriage abroad
Foreign partner
CIEC case
How it works
You upload a clearly legible scan and tell us your country of marriage. We clarify whether a certificate of free status or a certificate of no impediment to marriage is required, check the issue date against the likely validity window, and name a binding fixed price in EUR. Once approved, a court-sworn translator under § 14 SDG produces the certified translation, round court seal and certification note included.
You receive the result in advance as a PDF, followed by the certified original by post. On request we clarify the apostille route and the order of steps beforehand, so nothing has to be repeated once your wedding date is set.
Quote & price
A certificate of free status and a certificate of no impediment to marriage are short documents, usually billed as a flat fee per document. We name a binding fixed price in EUR after a brief review — certification, an advance PDF and postal delivery included.
| Certified translation by a court-sworn translator (§ 14 SDG) | ✓included |
| Certification note, round court seal and signature (recognised across Austria) | ✓included |
| Passport-matched spelling of names | ✓included |
| Advance PDF & postal delivery of the hard copy | ✓included |
| Quality management & final check | ✓included |
Standard civil-status certificates are usually a flat fee per document; longer documents are priced per standard line (55 characters incl. spaces), from € 0.89. We name the exact amount after a brief review. How the price is made up →
Sources & legal basis
Every legal and procedural claim on this page is tied to a primary, verifiable source — Austrian law as published by RIS, the responsible federal authorities and the relevant Hague instrument. Acceptance of any individual document is always decided by the receiving authority.
FAQ
The FÜD spotted straight away that the Portuguese registrar wanted my certificate of no impediment to marriage, not just the certificate of free status — and named the apostille route in the same breath. Our wedding went ahead without a single delay.
C. Fernandes · marriage abroad, Salzburg
Next
FÜD
