Tamil interpreters and translators anywhere in the UK, working with the NHS, solicitors, immigration advisers, councils and employers. We offer face-to-face, telephone and video interpreting and certified translation between Tamil and English, and take bookings 24/7, including evenings and weekends when a hospital or police station calls at short notice.
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Tamil interpreting services
Tamil is strongly diglossic: the formal written language, used in newspapers, speeches and official notices, differs so much from everyday speech that hardly anyone chats in it. An interpreter works in the spoken language, and switches to the formal style only when reading a document aloud. Spoken Tamil itself varies widely. Jaffna Tamil keeps older forms that Indian speakers notice straight away, while Chennai speech is full of English words and speakers from Madurai or Coimbatore sound different again.
For most appointments consecutive interpreting is used. Where a family is from Malaysia or Singapore the Tamil will have picked up Malay and local English words, so say where the person grew up.
Face-to-face interpreting
The interpreter comes to you: a hospital ward, a courtroom, a council office, a home visit or a business meeting. It is the best choice when people need to read expressions as well as words, or when the conversation is long or sensitive.
Telephone interpreting
The quickest option to set up. It works well for short calls, triage, appointment reminders and quick checks with a client.
Video interpreting
A Tamil interpreter joins by video for remote hearings, consultations and meetings, which helps when there is no interpreter near you.
We also provide medical interpreting and conference interpreting.
Certified Tamil translation
Documents come in from two directions. From Sri Lanka: birth, marriage and death certificates, national identity cards, police reports and school leaving records, with registrations from the Tamil-speaking north and east often written in Tamil. From Tamil Nadu: bilingual certificates, affidavits, land records such as a patta, and the legal heir certificate that a family needs when settling an estate. Each translator translates into their native language, so English versions are written by native English speakers.
Names are the other issue. Traditional Tamil names have no fixed surname: an Indian Tamil may write an initial for their father's name before their own, while a Sri Lankan Tamil usually puts the father's name first in full. The Tamil script has one letter where English has both k and g, which is why Kanagaratnam and Kanakaratnam can be the same person. We follow the passport spelling.
- Certified translation of birth, marriage and death certificates, passports, driving licences, degree certificates and bank statements, for the Home Office, courts, universities and employers.
- Legal translation: witness statements, court bundles, contracts and immigration papers.
- Document translation of medical reports, letters, leaflets and patient information.
- Urgent translation when a deadline is close.
- Transcription of Tamil audio and video recordings, with an English translation if you need one.
English to Tamil translation
Tell us whether the readers are mostly from Sri Lanka or from India. Everyday words differ between the two, and a leaflet written in Chennai usage can read as foreign in a Jaffna household, and vice versa. For a mixed readership we use plain modern written Tamil, avoiding both the heavily literary style and colloquial slang, so that readers of every background and age can follow it.
Tamil court and police interpreters
In UK courts and tribunals, Tamil work has long included asylum and immigration appeals from Sri Lanka, alongside criminal, family, housing and employment cases. Evidence often covers detention, family members and places in the north and east, where accurate names and dates carry real weight. When we book legal assignments we seek Tamil interpreters who have legal experience and, wherever such interpreters are available for Tamil, hold the Diploma in Public Service Interpreting (Law) or are registered with the National Register of Public Service Interpreters (NRPSI).
How to book a Tamil interpreter
- Tell us about the assignment: the date, time and address, or that you need telephone or video; how long it should last; and what it is for, such as a hospital appointment, a hearing or a business meeting.
- Tell us about the speaker: their country or region and, if you know it, their dialect. Mention any preference for a male or female interpreter.
- Get your quote. We email you a quote, with no obligation to book.
Call 0800 2425 125, email info@uklinguisticservices.co.uk or request a quote online.
About the Tamil language
Tamil is a Dravidian language with a literature more than 2,000 years old. It is spoken mainly in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry in India, Sri Lanka and Singapore. Tamil is an official language of Sri Lanka and Singapore, and of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu.
Tamil is written in the Tamil script.
At the 2021 Census, 125,363 usual residents of England and Wales aged three or over gave Tamil as their main language. The local authorities with the most were the London borough of Harrow (8,696 people), the London borough of Redbridge (7,134) and the London borough of Ealing (5,552). Source: Office for National Statistics.
Before you book: Sri Lankan and Indian Tamil differ in accent and vocabulary, and many Tamils in the UK have roots in Sri Lanka, so tell us the person's background.
| Name in Tamil | தமிழ் |
|---|---|
| Language family | Dravidian language with a literature more than 2,000 years old |
| Where it is spoken | Tamil Nadu and Puducherry in India, Sri Lanka and Singapore |
| Writing system | Tamil script |
| Language code | ta |
| Main language in England and Wales (Census 2021) | 125,363 people |
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Tamil interpreters near you
We send Tamil interpreters to appointments across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, and telephone and video interpreting work wherever you are. Choose a town for its local page.
Tamil interpreter and translator FAQs
How quickly can I book a Tamil interpreter?
We take bookings 24 hours a day, every day of the year. Telephone and video interpreting are usually the quickest to arrange. For a face-to-face appointment, give us as much notice as you can: same-day cover is often possible, but it depends on where you are and how many Tamil interpreters work nearby.
How much does a Tamil interpreter cost?
The price depends on the type of interpreting (face-to-face, telephone or video), how long the appointment lasts, where it is and how much notice you give. We quote before anything is booked, and quotes are free: call 0800 2425 125 or use our online quote form.
Can you certify Tamil translations for a UK visa or immigration application?
Yes. We translate and certify documents such as birth and marriage certificates, passports and police certificates for visa, settlement and citizenship applications. UK Visas and Immigration asks for each translation to confirm that it is accurate and to show the date and the translator's full name, signature and contact details, so tell us when you order that the document is for an immigration application. Because Tamil is not written in the Latin alphabet, send us the passport spelling of every name so the translation matches it.
Do you provide Tamil interpreters for courts, tribunals and police interviews?
Yes. Tell us the setting when you book, for example a Crown Court trial, an immigration tribunal hearing or a police interview under caution, so we can match a Tamil interpreter with the right legal experience and qualifications.
How many people speak Tamil in the UK?
At the 2021 Census, 125,363 usual residents of England and Wales aged three or over gave Tamil as their main language. The local authorities with the most were the London borough of Harrow (8,696 people), the London borough of Redbridge (7,134) and the London borough of Ealing (5,552). The census asked for each person's main language, so people who speak Tamil at home but gave English as their main language are not in that figure. Scotland and Northern Ireland count languages in their own censuses.
