Rates for Interpreting

Clear and transparent rates for professional Irish Sign Language and English interpreting, translation and related services.

Rate Bands Applicable From

28 September 2026

Rates apply to bookings made directly with CL SignSearch Ltd. Different rates and conditions may apply to agency bookings or assignments funded through particular State schemes.

Interpreting Fees

Current Rates

These rates apply equally to both in-person and remote interpreting assignments.

Type of Assignment	Duration	Fee
Generic – Short Assignment	Under 3 hours	€200 + VAT
Generic – Long Assignment	3–7 hours	€400 + VAT
Specialised – Short Assignment	Under 3 hours	€215 + VAT
Specialised – Long Assignment	3–7 hours	€430 + VAT
Advanced – Short Assignment	Under 3 hours	€230 + VAT
Advanced – Long Assignment	3–7 hours	€460 + VAT
Translation, subtitling, transcription, editing and related services	Hourly rate	€70 + VAT

For full details on our rates, terms and conditions, please click here

Assignment Categories

Understanding the Rate Bands

Generic

Applies to non-specialised, general interpreting assignments, as determined by the company.

Specialised

Applies to assignments requiring additional skills, training or expertise, including performance, broadcast, advanced third-level education, conference and certain medical assignments.

Advanced

Applies to assignments requiring additional expertise and presenting significant potential risks to health and/or life outcomes, including legal, mental health and certain medical assignments.

Additional Costs

Additional Charges, Fees & Expenses

Value Added Tax

VAT will generally be applied to all fees and charges for clients in the Republic of Ireland, including travel costs.

Travel Expenses

Mileage will be charged at 41.8 cents per km where assignments take place more than 40km from the offices of the company.

Travel Time

For assignments requiring more than 90 minutes travel each way, an additional rate may be charged.

Evenings, Weekends & Bank Holidays

Evenings after 6.00pm – 15%
Saturdays – 20%
Sundays – 25%
Bank Holidays – 25%

Accommodation Expenses

Extra accommodation charges may be incurred where an overnight stay is required.

Preparation Charges

Additional preparation charges may apply for technical conferences, scripted performances, site visits, rehearsals or pre-assignment meetings.

Assignments of 8+ Hours

Additional hours or part-hours are charged based on one-third of the appropriate Short Assignment rate.

Start Times of Assignments

Requested early arrival or additional time after an assignment may be included in the total duration and quote.

Lunch Breaks

Long Assignments must include a full one-hour lunch break without interpreting work.

Overrunning Assignments

Assignments finishing beyond the booked end time may incur additional charges.

4-Hour Assignments

Assignments up to four hours with a one-hour break may be charged at the Short Assignment rate.

Pro Bono / Reduced Rates

Reduced or pro bono services may be provided at the company's discretion in specific cases.

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Booking Information

Terms & Conditions

Click each item to view the full text from our Rates, Terms and Conditions document.

1. Application of Rates and Conditions

These rates and conditions apply to all bookings made by one party (hereafter “the paying client”) directly with CL SignSearch Ltd (hereafter “the company”) to provide interpreting services through a registered and qualified Irish Sign Language / English interpreter (hereafter “the interpreter”). Rates, terms and conditions may differ for assignments where booking has been made through an interpreting agency and/or relates to a particular State funded scheme funding interpretation.

2. Nature of Interpretation

An interpretation (remote or face-to-face) is a best human effort product. It in no way promises to be verbatim or perfect, and does not equate to an edited translation.

3. Recording of Interpreting Services

The video or audio recording of the interpreting service will require the prior permission of the interpreter at all times.

4. Booking Notice

Booking is recommended at least two weeks in advance. No guarantees of availability are made for particular assignments until officially booked.

5. Interpreter's Professional Judgement

On the day of assignment, the interpreter reserves the right to judge the interpreting situation to be above his/her level of ability, or outside the domain of his/her skills and experience. In this case he/she will inform those present immediately and advise on possible solutions and further action.

6. Co-Interpreters

Due to reasons of health and safety, as well as the need to maintain quality of service, the majority of Long Assignments (and most Short Assignments over 45 mins) will require a co-interpreter. The co-interpreter should be appropriately qualified and skilled. In certain circumstances, Deaf interpreters may be recommended by the company to work alongside the interpreter. The first interpreter can assist in sourcing a co-interpreter for the assignment. The co-interpreter’s own rates, terms and conditions etc. may differ from those above, and will be invoiced for separately, unless the co-interpreter is also booked via the company.

7. Break Requirements

Due to health and safety reasons, an interpreter when working alone is required to have at least a 10 minute break within each hour of the assignment. Service may be discontinued if such breaks are not supplied.

8. Assignment Information

The nature of the interpreted event must be disclosed to the interpreter at time of booking. This will include a brief description of the event, purpose of event, rough idea of number of participants, exact location, etc. Any changes to the nature of the event must be signalled to the interpreter well in advance.

9. Preparation Material

It is highly important that preparation material be forwarded to the interpreter at the earliest opportunity. Such material can include Power Point presentations, written notes, links to relevant websites, YouTube links to be used, etc. The interpreter will also endeavour to contact the event organiser, contact person, speakers / presenters / lecturers, etc. to ask additional questions to assist them in preparation. Lack of such preparation materials may result in difficulties for the interpreter and a non-optimum interpretation. For certain assignments, failure to provide adequate preparation material, and / or engage in preparation discussions prior to the assignment may result in withdrawal of service.

10. Remote Interpreting

The interpreter will follow best practice in remote interpreting and strive to meet the requirements of the platform providers. However, remote interpreting involves many technical variables which are beyond the control of the parties involved, including the interpreter, and which can affect the ability to interpret. These include issues with internet connection speeds or connectivity, power interruptions, lack of proper microphones, and hardware and software issues. In situations where such technical variables are beyond their reasonable control, the interpreter cannot guarantee they will be able to hear / see / interpret proceedings, or that listeners will be able to fully and consistently hear / see the interpretation. In these situations, the interpreter will make a best human effort to interpret as accurately as possible that which they can hear / see. When the interpreter cannot hear / see adequately, they will draw attention to this and will advise event organisers that they can no longer interpret.

11. Meaningful Access for Deaf People

The company will accept only assignments where meaningful access for Deaf people is provided. Assignments will not be accepted for assignments where:

Deaf people are not present, and no provision (e.g. video recording of the event) is made to allow for their future access.
Deaf people are unable to access the interpretation fully due to e.g. partial interpretation of an event, or the interpreter being placed in an unsuitable and inaccessible location during the assignment.
Minimal or no effort has been made to ensure Deaf participation in an event.

Booking Changes

Cancellation Policy

Click each item to view the full cancellation policy text.

1. Application of the Cancellation Policy

The following cancellation policy applies to all bookings made by a party (hereafter “the paying client”) directly with CL SignSearch Ltd (hereafter “the company”) to provide interpreting services through a registered and qualified Irish Sign Language / English interpreter (hereafter “the interpreter”).

2. When a Booking Is Considered Made

A booking of an interpreter through the company is considered to be made when a communication is received by the company from the paying client acknowledging receipt of, and approving, the company’s quote and terms and conditions for the supply of interpreting services.

3. Failure to Attend

The failure of any party within an assignment to arrive, resulting in a consequent lack of necessity for interpretation services, will be in all cases considered a cancellation, and will be charged in full, including any expenses incurred.

4. Cancellation Fees

If the services of the interpreter are cancelled by the client in advance of the assignment after a booking is made, a cancellation fee may apply, as follows:

Assignments cancelled less than five working days before the previously agreed date and time of assignment: 100% of total interpretation fees (as well as 100% of travel expenses, if already incurred).
Assignments cancelled between five and ten working days before the previously agreed date and time of assignment: 50% of total interpretation fees (as well as 100% of travel expenses, if already incurred).

5. Postponed or Changed Assignments

The above cancellation fees in (4) above shall also apply where:

the interpreter has been booked for an assignment through the company, and the said assignment is subsequently postponed, but the interpreter is unavailable for the new assignment time or date;
the interpreter has originally been booked for an assignment through the company, and subsequently, the date or time of the said assignment is changed (within a number of working days given in 4(a) and 4(b) above) by the paying client without prior agreement with the company, but the interpreter is unavailable for the new assignment time or date.

6. Reduced Duration of a Long Assignment

If the interpreter has been booked for a Long Assignment, and the assignment is subsequently changed by the paying client (with less than five working days notice prior to the previously agreed assignment date and time) to a duration of less than 3 hours, without prior agreement with the company, and the interpreter is still available for the assignment, the previously quoted Long Assignment fee shall still apply.

7. Different Cancellation Terms

Terms and conditions around a cancellation policy may differ for assignments where:

the booking has been made through a private interpreting agency, and/or
the interpretation is to be funding through a specific State-funded scheme.

8. Company Discretion

The company may waive or reduce cancellation fees at their discretion.

Need a quote for an assignment?

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