German Medical Records Translation
Translate medical records from German to English for a new doctor in the US, an insurer, a disability claim or ECFMG. We translate the Arztbrief, the Entlassungsbrief, each Befund and the full Krankenakte from Germany, Austria and Switzerland, with a signed certification on every order.
- Up to 250 words per page
- $25 per page
- Standard turnaround
- From 24 hours
- Certificate of accuracy
- Signed & stamped
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Written for German medical records records
What is in a German medical file
A German hospital writes for the next doctor, not for the patient, so the file is a stack of letters and findings rather than one record.
Arztbrief and Entlassungsbrief
The Arztbrief is the letter a hospital or specialist sends to the referring doctor. It opens with the diagnoses and their ICD-10-GM codes, then Anamnese, Verlauf, Therapie and Procedere, and ends with the medication at discharge. An Austrian hospital calls it a Patientenbrief, a Swiss one an Austrittsbericht. We keep the headings in the same order so a US physician can follow the structure.
Shorthand on every line
German doctors write in abbreviations: Z.n. for Zustand nach, V.a. for Verdacht auf, o.B. for ohne Befund, DD for a differential diagnosis, ED for the date of first diagnosis, RR for blood pressure, BB for a blood count. Each one is written out in English, status post, suspected, unremarkable, rather than carried over as letters a US reader cannot decode.
Befunde, lab values and units
A Laborbefund uses a decimal comma (5,4 instead of 5.4), dates as 03.07.2024 and units a US lab may not use, since many German labs report glucose and cholesterol in mmol/l and others in mg/dl. The translation keeps every value and its unit exactly as printed and writes dates out in words. A translator does not convert a result; the reading doctor sees the original number.
Who is asking for your German medical records translation?
The translation is the same. What changes is whether the recipient wants anything added to it.
Doctors and hospitals
A new physician needs your diagnoses, medications and reports in English before the first visit. Each report is translated in full and certified, so it can go into your chart as it is.
Insurers
Health, travel and disability insurers ask for the medical report and the itemized bill in English, translated completely and certified, before they pay a claim for care received abroad.
ECFMG
ECFMG accepts a word-for-word translation on a translation service's letterhead, signed by the translator with a certification statement. Summaries and extracts are refused. Our certified translations follow that format.
Before you upload
Three things that save a day of back and forth on a German medical records.
Send the pages a doctor would read
The discharge letter, the current medication list and the reports it relies on cover most visits. A full hospital file can run to hundreds of pages, so start with those and add the rest if the recipient asks.
Letterhead, stamps and signatures count
The hospital header, the doctor's stamp and the registration number on a prescription identify who wrote the record. Scan each page whole, including forms and the back of any page with a stamp.
Tell us who will read it
A physician needs the clinical pages, an insurer the diagnosis and the itemized bill, ECFMG a word-for-word translation of the entire document. Say which in the order notes, with the patient's name as the passport spells it.
Details and pricing
What is included in a German medical records translation
One price per page covers the translation and its certification. A page is up to 250 words, and the quote tells you the page count before you pay.
Everything on the medical records is translated, including stamps, seals and handwritten notes. Tell us the English spelling you use for each name when you order.
Certified Translation
Word-for-word translation with a certificate of accuracy for official use.
$25
USD / page
up to 250 words per page
Included
- Signed & stamped certification of translation accuracy
- Certified by a professional translator
- Digital delivery via PDF
- Review and approve final translation
- 100% Guaranteed Acceptance
- Standard turnaround starting at 24 hours
Optional services
- Expedited turnaround
- Priority handling when your deadline is shorter than the standard turnaround.
- By deadline
- Notarization
- A notary public signs and stamps the certification statement.
- $20 per order
- Physical copy
- A wet-ink original of your translation, mailed by express courier.
- $35 per order
- Apostille
- Authenticates the notary’s signature and seal for use in Hague Convention countries.
- $180 per document
What the certificate of accuracy states
Your translation arrives with a Certification of Translation Accuracy issued by ImmiTranslate. It is the page the receiving organization checks first.
- The translation is complete and accurate.
- The document title and the language pair.
- The translator is competent in both languages.
- A signature and the ImmiTranslate certification stamp.
- Our American Translators Association corporate membership.
Our translation process
Our goal is to make the translation process as simple as possible for you. Our service is streamlined specifically for documents of this nature.
German Medical Records FAQ
Most questions about pricing and turnaround can be answered faster by requesting a quote.
- Which pages should I translate for a new doctor in the US?
- Usually the most recent Entlassungsbrief, your Medikationsplan, and the Befunde the letter relies on: histology, MRT or CT reports, the latest lab panel. A full Krankenakte can run to hundreds of pages, and each page of up to 250 words is $25, so start with what the doctor will read. Add the Impfpass or the Mutterpass if the visit is about vaccinations or a pregnancy.
- Can you translate German records for an injury, disability or insurance claim?
- Yes. An Arbeitsunfähigkeitsbescheinigung proves the sick leave, a Gutachten gives the expert opinion a disability or injury case turns on, and a Reha-Entlassungsbericht records the rehabilitation. For a travel insurance claim we also translate the private invoice, which lists each service by its GOÄ fee number; the number stays and the description is translated.
- Do you translate US medical records into German?
- Yes. People send US hospital records to a Krankenkasse for reimbursement, to a Versorgungsamt for a degree of disability, to a Berufsgenossenschaft after a work accident, or to their doctor at home. The same applies to Austrian and Swiss insurers. Tell us who will read it so the translator uses that office's terms.
- How much does a certified translation cost?
- Certified translation is $25 per page, with a page counted as up to 250 words. Notarization, a mailed physical copy and an apostille are optional and priced separately.
- How long does a certified translation take?
- Standard turnaround starts at 24 hours and depends on the length and language of your documents. If you have a deadline, include it in your quote request.
Other German documents we translate
Medical records translation in other languages
Each of these pages is written for that language's medical records records.
Sending it with an application? Read the Insurance claim translations, ECFMG translations before you order.