Interpreting in Norway

In Norway, the Interpreting Act obliges public bodies to use a qualified interpreter when necessary to uphold legal safeguards or to provide appropriate assistance and services. The interpreter should be impartial and only translate what you say in a conversation. The interpreting service is free, and you can complain if you don’t get the interpreting assistance you are entitled to.

Conversing via an interpreter

When two parties are going to communicate with each other, but lack a common language, they need an interpreter to be able to understand each other. The goal of an interpreted conversation is to facilitate a natural conversation that is as similar to a normal conversation as possible. To achieve this, it is important that everyone prepares and takes into account the interpreter's role in the conversation. 

The Interpreting Act

In Norway, public sector interpreting is governed by law pursuant to The Interpreting Act.

The most important provisions of The Interpreting Act are:

• All public service providers must, when they lack a shared language with the service user, use an interpreter whenever this is needed in order to uphold legal safeguards or provide adequate services.
• Interpreters in the public sector must be qualified. Qualified interpreters are found in the Norwegian National Registry of Interpreters.
• According to The Interpreting Act, interpreters have a duty of confidentiality and are obliged to carry out their work with impartiality and according to ethical standards of the interpreting profession.

Book an interpreter

If you have a doctor’s appointment or appointment at the hospital and need an interpreter, you can inform a healthcare provider or contact the health service directly. They will assess your needs and ensure that you get a qualified interpreter in your preferred language. Remember to mention if you have any special needs, such as poor hearing. The interpreting service is free for patients, though not for dental treatment, which you must pay for yourself. 

Plan what you want to say

• You should emphasise what is important to you and avoid talking for too long at a time.Take a lot of breaks so that the interpreter has the chance to translate. This will ensure the interpretation is as accurate as possible and give you the chance to express yourself clearly.
• You should talk to the person interviewing you, and not to the interpreter. Don't say ‘ask him if he will...’, but ask directly ‘will you...’. The interpreter will then translate this and the interpreted conversation will be more like a normal conversation.
• If something is unclear, or when you are unsure of what the other person has understood – ask them and the interpreter will translate the question.
• Interpreting is hard work. The interpreter must concentrate fully on the interpretation and cannot perform additional tasks on top of their linguistic function. The interpreter will also get tired more quickly than those conducting the conversation, and will need breaks. 

The interpreter follows these guidelines

• Interpreters must translate everything that is said during a conversation and must not omit, change or add anything.
• Interpreters must be impartial when interpreting and their personal opinions must not influence the interpretation.
• Interpreters must not undertake other assignments in connection with the interpreting.
• The interpreter is bound by a duty of confidentiality. All information made known to the interpreter during the interpreting assignment is treated as strictly confidential.
• The interpreter must observe professional secrecy at all times, including when talking to his or her superiors, colleagues or family members.
• All information remains confidential even after the interpreter has stopped working in the interpreting service.

Important points to remember when conversing via an Interpreter

• You are responsible for everything you say during the conversation.
• The interpreter is not responsible for ensuring that the information that you and the person you are speaking to exchange is correct or truthful.
• The interpreter cannot keep track of what you have said to each other and is not your ‘sticky note’.
• The interpreter cannot act as a representative of any of the parties involved 
• The interpreter is obliged to make it clear if he/she is partial , i.e. if the interpreter is related, married or engaged to any of the parties; is a party to the case; – or has acted in the case for one of the parties
• The interpreter must make it clear if they are unable to perform the interpretation satisfactorily.

You should also be aware that

Facial expressions and body language that normally support the words in a normal conversation will have less effect in an interpreted conversation. Communicating via an interpreter is therefore a bit like talking on the phone, where only the voice and words are useful. Some gestures may mean different things in different language cultures (for example, nodding means ‘yes’ in Norwegian, but may mean ‘no’ in other cultures). This type of thing must be borne in mind when you are talking through an interpreter.

Use of interpreters in kindergarten and school

Good communication is important in meetings between parents and the school to safeguard the student’s rights and avoid misunderstandings. Schools and kindergartens can book an interpreter through the interpreting service. Using an interpreter is often important initially to ensure staff and parents have understood each other.

Information about using interpreters in kindergarten and school is available on the Directorate of Education's website.