The Autumn Newsletter
Summer already seems like a distant memory, and we’ve been back into the normal swing of things for several weeks now. This has been obvious to us at Communications EuropĂ©ennes, as many of you have entrusted us with your translation, interpreting and legalisation projects in these months of September and October. In this Autumn issue, we’d like to tell you about the new government service we’re using for your legalisation and apostille requirements: CLAP (Centre de LĂ©galisation et d’Apostille de Paris).
What is CLAP?
Established on 1 May 2025, CLAP aims to simplify and centralise the apostille and pre-legalisation procedures previously handled by the Court of Appeal and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Someone from the Communications Européennes team goes to the CLAP office in Paris once a week to carry out these procedures, which are often required for foreign administrative formalities. We should, however, give you a heads-up as regards the timelines of CLAP: they vary in length (we could be waiting up to three weeks) and are also longer than those of the Foreign Office and the Court of Appeal were. Our advice is therefore to plan ahead and send us your originals as soon as possible. We will then submit your applications to CLAP as soon as possible and monitor their progress at regular intervals. To give you an idea, it’s currently taking around 10 to 15 working days from the date of submission for CLAP to process an application.
Did you know?
The “DĂa de los Muertos” (literally, “Day of the Dead”) is a Mexican festival with ancient roots, born from the fusion of Aztec rituals and Catholic traditions brought over from Spain. Celebrated on 1st and 2nd November, it honours the souls and the deceased who, according to belief, return among the living for one night. Families set up altars adorned with flowers, candles, photos and offerings, while the streets and cemeteries come alive with music, laughter and sweet scents. It’s a wonderful way to remember the dead while celebrating life.
Translation Fun Fact
Every Halloween, translators have some fun with the well-known phrase “Trick or Treat”. Literally untranslatable, it evokes a sense of both threat and playfulness. In French, “Des bonbons ou un sort” is a cute adaptation, while in Spanish they say “Truco o trato” and in German “SĂĽĂźes oder Saures” (literally, “sweet or spicy”). Three cultures, three approaches, one challenge: finding the words that will make people smile without detracting from the essence of the festival.
