Cantonese translation: a guide for pros
What customers ask, how to win the job, and what to put on your profile.
Offering cantonese translation
Cantonese translation clients need text that matches how their readers write and speak. Show that you ask who the readers are and how the text will be read, and that you explain the written form you choose.
What customers ask
- Do you write in standard written Chinese or in written Cantonese?
- Can you translate for both Hong Kong and Guangdong readers?
- Will you check the spoken version as well?
- How do you handle names and places?
- Can you keep the layout of my document?
- Will a second speaker check it?
How to win the job
- On the first call, ask who the readers are and whether the text is read or spoken, then recommend a written form and explain why in one sentence.
- Ask for the source and the names and terms list, and confirm the Chinese form of each one in writing.
- Show a short sample passage with a note on one choice of written form.
- Put the word count, the written form, the spoken check and the second review into the quote, so the client sees the full scope.
- Explain in your first reply how you handle written choices readers may not expect, so there are no surprises at delivery.
- Confirm in writing what the receiving organization requires before you deliver.
What to put on your profile
- Sample passages with the written form and reader noted, shared with permission.
- Subjects you translate in, such as legal, medical, business, education or community notices.
- Your process: source review, glossary, translation, review and layout.
- Whether you also work on scripts and spoken versions.
Follow-up that helps the customer
- Offer a regional check when the client adds readers in a new location.
- Suggest a shared glossary for future documents, so names and terms stay the same.
- Offer to produce a version in the other written form when the client needs it, with the changes marked.
Licenses and permits
Cantonese translation is not commonly licensed, so you usually do not need a license to offer it. Check with your state or local licensing agency for business registration, and keep a written agreement that names the written form, the reader group and the review step.
Questions
How do I show I can write in Cantonese?
Show a sample with the written form and reader noted. Clients judge the skill by the text itself, so choose a passage that shows the choices you made.
Should I accept a script for a recording?
Only if you can check the spoken version as well. Agree the spoken review in the agreement, since written and spoken forms can differ.
What if the client needs both written forms?
Quote each form separately, since each needs its own choices and review. Say in the agreement which parts are shared.
Pro reviewers
Pros who offer cantonese translation remotely can improve this guide, like Wikipedia. We check every edit before it goes live. Every approved edit is credited in the edit history and on the pro's profile.
Edit history
- Oct 29, 2026: Drafted by infinibell to our content guidelines.
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