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Due to unforeseen circumstances, the ATIO Café is cancelled tonight and rescheduled to next Wednesday, June 29.
CONGRATULATIONS!
The ATIO Board of Directors and Staff would like to congratulate Melissa Ehgoetz, Hector Lozano, and Pilar Bolanos. They are the winners drawn from those ATIO professionals who attended the 2022 Annual General Meeting.

Melissa and Hector won their 2023 ATIO Annual Dues and Pilar won a 3-year license for WordFast Translation Memory Tool.
NEWS FROM ATIO
During the Association’s 2022 Annual General Meeting, attendees posed excellent questions that there was no time permitting the depth of response which members deserve. In this section of the newsletter, we provide answers to some of those questions.
2022 Bylaws
Q: Regarding the 2022 budget, can you explain how revenues are received for ‘Promotion’? Also, does ‘Sales’ refer to sales of ATIO stamps?
A: ‘Promotion’ is the Job Posting Service for which ATIO receives revenues. ‘Sales’ is the sales of stamps and embossing seals.
Q: Regarding the 2022 budget, what is ‘Application’?
A: Application includes applicants wishing to join ATIO or applications for ATIO professionals to expand their professional qualifications as well as applications for certification by on dossier.
Q: Did you say we no longer have an executive director?
A: That is the case. The ED was a part-time contract position and his request for an extension was prohibitively expensive for the amount of time dedicated to the job.
Amendments to the Bylaws: Certification Stamps and Seals
Q: Who are permitted to use and carry membership cards?
A: As of the 2020 AGM, only certified members are permitted to receive and carry membership cards; they will receive a sticker each year when their dues are paid for the coming membership year. Candidates making use of an ATIO Membership Card may consider returning it to ATIO as they will not receive a sticker upon renewal, and their card must be returned should their status with the association change.
Q: Do court interpreters certify documents?
A: Court interpreters are not allowed to certify translations unless they also bear the title of Certified Translator.
Q: Maybe there is something I am not understanding then. Why can’t interpreters have a stamp for those rare occasions? Is it you fear that they may misuse it?
A: The stamp/seal is currently applied to printed documents in lieu of notarization. Since interpreters do not produce documents, they just need to provide their member number. They need to be certified translators to receive a stamp/seal. However, we are investigating the use of digital stamps and signatures.
Q/comment: I believe that one of the reasons that also contributes to the decline of certified translators is the fact that the ATIO Act is not being properly applied, and many institutions do not require the ATIO stamp. I believe we should work on ensuring all official bodies, including IRCC, require the ATIO stamp.
A: ATIO’s work is cut out for itself - The Act doesn’t have any impact on the institutions that require certification - but ATIO/CTTIC need to work to ensure that the institutions recognize and require certification before allowing other forms of documents (i.e. Notary). - the Best Practices Committee is already working on addressing this.
Q: Many questions were received during the discussion about whether or not interpreters should have the right to have and use a seal.
A: The ATIO Board of Directors is exploring the option of digital stamps which may also affect interpreters in the future.
Amendments to the Bylaws:
New Exams: Ethics and Language Proficiency
Q: Code of Ethics Test: “I don’t really understand the point of reassessing existing members’ knowledge of the code of conduct.”
A: This exam will be required when anyone wishes to add a new language combination or profession to their ATIO qualifications if they did not complete this test when they joined ATIO. Members who join ATIO from one of our sister associations will also be required to pass this test. Once someone passes the ethics exam, it does not need to be retaken unless it expires before the admission process is complete. Policies will be put in place addressing who must write this exam.
Q: For what language is the language proficiency exam?
A: The language proficiency exam will only be offered in English when it is launched. The board will assess whether a French proficiency exam needs to be created. The language proficiency exam will either be a comprehension test when working from English into another language or Grammar (editing) when working from another language into English.

Individuals required to take these exams will pay an exam fee upon registration, even if they must repeat one or both. The new exam fees are not yet established.
Q: Has the board considered a similar approach as OTTIAQ, such as giving a compulsory ethics workshop?
A: An ethics workshop will also be included as part of the process. Mandatory orientation or information sessions are also being considered by the board.
Only ATIO Certified Members are entitled to use the seal or stamp of the category and language combination in which they are certified. It is important to remember that stamps and seals are a privilege attributed to certified members only.

Stamps and seals must be purchased through the secretariat and must include only the details mandated by the ATIO By-laws.

  • Be aware that if your stamp or seal does not meet the criteria in article 8.03 of the Association’s By-laws, it might not be accepted by some institutions.
  • Article 8.03 from the ATIO By-laws reads:
  • “Only certified members are entitled to use the seal or stamp of the category in which they are certified. The seal or stamp, which can be issued only by the Secretariat of the Association, bears the holder’s name, title and language combination, followed by their certification number. Certified members can choose to have the wording in English or French.”
  • It is important to remember that your ATIO certificate, seal and stamp are the property of the Association and must be returned if you leave the Association.

The association (ATIO) is a member of CTTIC. ATIO Members are not members of CTTIC. For this reason, it would be a misrepresentation for an ATIO certified member to indicate that they are a member of CTTIC.
YOUR RESPONSIBILITY AS AN ATIO PROFESSIONAL
Important reminder from CTTIC regarding allowed wording about your relationship with CTTIC.
 
Individual [certified] members of ATIO, STIBC, ATIA, ATIS, ATIM, CTINB and ATINS may state in their e-mail signatures and websites that they are a member by affiliation of CTTIC.
 
For instance, if you are a certified translator of ATIO, STIBC, ATIA, ATIS, ATIM, CTINB and/or ATINS you may put the following in your signature and website:

"Member of the Canadian Translators, Terminologists and Interpreters Council (CTTIC) (by Affiliation)
Certified Translator (Canada)"
 
Be sure to include your language combinations as well as your provincial association(s) according to the ATIO Statement of Reserved Titles.
 
Certified Community and Medical Interpreters follow the same structure as certified court interpreters.
HELPFUL HINTS
Business best practices
 
Emails between you and your clients CAN be considered a legal agreement; therefore, it is very important that you follow through on what you promise. Make sure that expectations are clear on both sides as to what is expected of you and what is expected of your client.

Certified members may only certify their work in the professional category and language combination for which they are certified. They can certify their work in French to English, but not in English to French if they are not certified in that direction. Clients may assume that a certified translator can certify every source document they provide to the translator, even if there are pages in an entirely different language. Both the certified member and the client should confirm if there is text that is not in their language combination and advise the client that they must find another translator certified in the other combination. Additionally, if the completed translation package includes documents that were not translated, it is an excellent practice to include a disclaimer on the translator’s statement to that effect.

If you will be traveling, remember to let your clients know if you will not be available or that projects will take longer than normal.
IMPORTANT DATES TO ADD TO YOUR CALENDAR
August 5: Registration deadline for the August 27 Entrance Exam and in-person Practice Exam
August 26: Registration Deadline for the October CTTIC Certification Exam (Online)
August 27: Entrance Exam (In Person)
September 17: CTTIC Certification Exam Information Session
October 12: Renewal begins: ATIO Annual Dues for 2023 are due before December 31, 2022. Watch your email for details.
October 14: Deadline to register for the November 5 Entrance Exam (Online)
October 19 and October 22: CTTIC Certification Exam (Online)
October 28: Deadline to register for the November 26 CTTIC Certification Exam (In Person)
November 5: Entrance Exam (Online)
November 26: CTTIC Certification Exam (In Person)
December 31: Deadline to pay 2023 Annual Dues
ATIO Secretariat / Secrétariat de l’ATIO
t. 613.241.2846
1 Nicholas Street, Suite 1202, Ottawa, Ontario K1N 7B7
1 rue Nicholas, bureau 1202, Ottawa, Ontario K1N 7B7
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