Q1226. How to translate Tagalog and Bahasa regional documents for ASEAN compliance?

Answered by the NYC Visa & Translation certified translation team

Tagalog (Filipino) and Bahasa (Indonesian and Malaysian) documents move constantly within ASEAN, and the workflows are shaped by each country's document systems. Philippines: most official documents (the PSA birth, marriage, and death certificates, the NBI clearance, the educational records) are issued in English — translation is usually unnecessary for the source language, and the need is the Thai translation for Thai use; the legalisation chain is the PSA/issuing authority, the DFA's authentication (the Philippines joined the Apostille Convention, so the DFA issues apostilles — but since Thailand is not a member, the Thai embassy in Manila's legalisation is what Thai bodies need), then the Thai translation certified by the Thai MFA. Indonesia: documents are in Bahasa Indonesia; the chain is the issuing authority, the relevant ministry (Kemenkumham for legal documents), the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, then the Thai embassy in Jakarta; Indonesia is now an Apostille member but the Thai route remains consular legalisation. Malaysia: documents are in Bahasa Malaysia or English (many are bilingual); the chain runs through the relevant department, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Wisma Putra), then the Thai embassy in Kuala Lumpur. Points that matter: Bahasa Indonesia and Bahasa Malaysia are close but distinct — the legal and administrative terminology differs and the translator must know which; the Philippine documents' English versions save cost — check before commissioning; and the names in all three countries have conventions (patronymics in Indonesia and Malaysia, the Spanish-derived multiple surnames in the Philippines) that must match the passport. Practice points: confirm the current chain with the Thai embassy concerned; allow 3–6 weeks.