Translation & Document Processing

Translation Transfers Meaning,
Not Just Words

Hong Kong is a biliterate, trilingual city — one document may need to be understood by local colleagues, mainland clients and overseas partners alike, and machine translation is a gamble. We provide native-level human translation, unified glossaries and layout, delivered ready to publish.

What We Translate

Translation & Copywriting Scope

From a one-page leaflet to a 100-page annual report, from website UI copy to video subtitles — all handled by native translators and proofread by a second linguist.

Chinese ↔ English Translation

Hong Kong usage, not mainland phrasing. Websites, marketing materials, emails and social posts all covered.

  • Traditional Chinese ↔ English, Traditional ↔ Simplified Chinese
  • Hong Kong conventions and measure words preserved
  • Original layout retained (Word / PPT)

English Copywriting

Not word-for-word translation, but rewriting for how English readers actually read — native-level copywriting.

  • Landing pages and website body copy
  • Company profiles, product sheets, EDMs
  • Adjusted to your brand tone of voice

Japanese / Korean Translation

Matched with native translators in Hong Kong or in-country — ideal for travel, retail, F&B and Japanese/Korean brand agencies.

  • Traditional Chinese ↔ Japanese, ↔ Korean
  • Keigo and business letter conventions handled per occasion
  • Menus, product descriptions, travel information

Business Document Translation

Contracts, annual reports, tenders, manuals and financial statements — precise terminology aligned to original clause numbers.

  • Contracts, letters of intent, tender documents
  • Annual reports, interim reports, announcements
  • Product manuals, installation and safety guides

Website & App Localisation

Localisation is more than swapping words — UI lengths, date formats, currencies and SEO keywords all need adapting.

  • UI copy, buttons, error messages
  • In-market SEO keyword research
  • Export to .po / .xliff / JSON and other formats

Subtitles & Video Translation

Corporate videos, product demos, training footage and interview clips — with timecodes and subtitle files.

  • SRT / VTT / ASS subtitle files
  • Timecode alignment, sentence breaks and character limits
  • Voiceover scripts and narration writing available
Common Pitfalls

Common Traps in the Hong Kong Market

These are the problems we fix most often in real projects. Left uncorrected, customers spot an outsider instantly.

Machine Translation Imports Mainland Usage

Terms like "軟件", "打印機", "顯示器", "數碼" and "網絡" are frequently rendered in mainland simplified usage by MT engines. Hong Kong readers read it as a mainland company — professionalism discounted instantly. Only Hong Kong conventions are publishable.

Traditional-Simplified Conversion Errors

One-to-many character mappings are the classic trap: the 髮 in 頭髮 converted to a homophone, 麵粉 becoming a completely different grain, 裏 and 里 mixed up. No automated checker catches these — every sentence must be read by a human.

Measure Words and Units

It's 一間公司, never 一家公司; square feet or square metres, pounds or kilograms, Celsius or Fahrenheit — all standardised to Hong Kong reader expectations.

Legal Terminology Gaps

合約 vs 合同, 按揭 vs 抵押, plus terms like 業主立案法團 and 大廈公契 belong specifically to Hong Kong's legal system — literal translation shifts legal meaning. Documents with legal consequences should also be reviewed by a lawyer, which we recommend plainly.

Don't Translate Brand Names

Brand names, company names, people's names, street and building names stay in the original — at most with the original in brackets. Force-translating a brand name breaks company registry searches, search engines and customs paperwork later.

Address Format Differences

Hong Kong Chinese addresses run small to large: flat → floor → building → street → district; English addresses lead with the street number. Each language version follows its own local convention — they are not interchangeable.

Document & Data

Word Processing & Data Services

Many clients come to us for translation and end up sorting scans, spreadsheets and slide decks at the same time. These services can be ordered standalone or bundled with translation.

Excel / Google Sheets Clean-Up

De-duplication, format standardisation, formulas and pivot tables — returned as files you can use immediately.

PDF / Scans to Word / Excel

OCR text recognition restores text and tables, keeping original paragraphs, heading levels and layout.

Bulk Document Formatting

Automatic contents, page numbers, headers and footers, unified heading styles — ideal for tenders, reports and manuals.

Batch OCR Extraction

Photos, screenshots, business cards and receipts converted to searchable text in bulk, exported to Excel or CSV.

Mail Merge & Label Printing

Excel lists merged into Word letters, envelopes or labels — for mass notifications and invitations.

PowerPoint Design & Polish

Pages restructured around content logic, type scale and colour unified, charts built — no more walls of text pasted onto slides.

Price List

Translation & Document Pricing

Charged by actual word or page count. Word-count methodology is stated in the quotation before you commit — no hidden charges.

English ↔ Traditional Chinese

English converted from source word count

HK$0.6/ Chinese char

Japanese / Korean Translation

Chinese ↔ Japanese/Korean, native translators

HK$1.0/ Chinese char

Native English
Copywriting

Rewritten for English readers

HK$1.2/ English word

Business Documents
+ Layout

Layout fee added to translation

HK$0.8/ Chinese char

Document Layout
(with translation)

Word / PPT layout restored

HK$680/ page

Certificates / Contracts (Certified)

With translator's statement, general use

HK$800 from

Spreadsheet Processing

Clean-up, formulas, pivot tables

HK$480/ hour

PDF / Scan Conversion (OCR)

Output to Word / Excel

HK$8/ page

Presentation Design

Content restructuring and charts included

HK$380/ page

Subtitle Translation & Timing

SRT / VTT subtitle files

HK$280/ min from
Rush service: 24-hour delivery at +50%; 48 hours at +30%. Rush jobs depend on translator availability — check with us on WhatsApp before ordering. Chinese word counts are based on the source text; English is converted from word count. For revisions that change more than 15% of the original text, a fresh quotation applies.
Language Pairs

Language Pairs & Typical Use Cases

Reference unit rates for common pairs below. For other combinations (German, French, Thai and more), just ask us directly.

Language Pair Typical Use Cases Unit Rate (HK$) Standard Turnaround
Traditional Chinese ↔ English Websites, company profiles, contracts, annual reports, business email, landing pages 0.6 / Chinese char 2,000 chars / 2 working days
Traditional ↔ Simplified Chinese Mainland-facing materials, WeChat official accounts, marketplace product pages 0.5 / Chinese char 3,000 chars / 2 working days
Traditional Chinese ↔ Japanese Menus, travel information, product descriptions, Japan brand agency documents 1.0 / Chinese char 2,000 chars / 3 working days
Traditional Chinese ↔ Korean Cosmetics and retail descriptions, Korean brand agencies, event promotions 1.0 / Chinese char 2,000 chars / 3 working days
English ↔ Japanese Technical documents, meeting minutes, internal notices of multinational companies 1.2 / Chinese-char equivalent 2,000 chars / 3 working days
Quality Assurance

Quality Assurance:
Translator + Proofreader + Glossary

Every document passes five steps before it reaches you: translation → self-check → second-linguist proofreading → glossary alignment → layout.

  • Native translators: the target language is always the translator's mother tongue, with industry backgrounds (legal, finance, medical, engineering and more).
  • Double proofreading: a second linguist checks every sentence against the source for omissions, mistranslations and tone.
  • Glossary consistency: a dedicated glossary is built on first engagement, then reused for all future documents.
  • NDA available: we can sign your NDA or provide our standard confidentiality terms.
  • PDPO compliant: files are stored only in designated working folders and permanently deleted on request after completion.
NDA available Native translators One free minor revision 24-hour rush

How Counting Works

Chinese characters counted with Word's word count (no spaces); English converted from word count. We run the count before quoting, attach the screenshot to the quotation, and start only after your confirmation.

After Delivery

Within 7 days of delivery, omissions and mistranslations are corrected free of charge. Rewrites that change your original meaning are quoted by the extent of changes.

What We Don't Take On

Medical prescriptions, court hearing records and notarised immigration documents requiring statutory certified translation — we'll tell you honestly and refer you to qualified providers rather than pretend.

How It Works

From Quote to Delivery: Six Steps

The process is fixed and progress is transparent. We notify you proactively at every stage — no chasing required.

1

Send the Source

Files via WhatsApp or email, noting the language pair, purpose and deadline.

2

Quote & Confirm

Word count, unit rate, total and delivery time replied within 2 hours, in writing.

3

Translator Matching

Native translators matched by industry background; a glossary built first where needed.

4

Translation & Proofreading

After the translator finishes, a second linguist proofreads sentence by sentence for omissions and usage.

5

Layout & Format

Original layout restored, or output to Word, PDF, PPT, SRT and other formats as required.

6

Delivery & Follow-Up

Omissions and mistranslations corrected free for 7 days; the glossary returned for your future use.

FAQ

Translation FAQs

Counted from the source text: Chinese uses Word's character count (excluding spaces), English converts from word count. Before you order, we send the count screenshot together with the quotation for your verification, and start only after you confirm. Punctuation and number-only tables are not counted.
For internal reference, fine. For anything public-facing, be careful. The most common MT failures are mainland usage, conversion errors and stiff tone — and in contracts or legal documents, a single wrong word can shift liability. Our approach: native translation, second-linguist proofreading, and glossary alignment — the parts machine translation still can't do.
We provide a translator-signed Certificate of Accuracy, which is generally accepted for commercial purposes, banking and company registration. But for court proceedings, immigration applications or documents requiring statutory solemnisation, a qualified court translator or notary public is needed — we'll say so plainly and refer you.
Yes. We first run OCR to convert it into an editable file (HK$8/page), then translate by character count. Scan clarity affects accuracy — we recommend 300dpi or above; if you only have phone photos, shoot square-on and avoid glare and shadows.
All translators and proofreaders sign confidentiality agreements; files live only in designated working folders and are never shared externally. On completion you can require permanent deletion of all files and records, confirmed to you in writing. Our handling meets the PDPO requirements.
Next Step

Send Us a File,
Quoted Within 2 Hours

Note the language pair, purpose and deadline — we'll count the words on the spot and reply with a price. Rush jobs welcome; we'll tell you honestly if the timing can't be met.

Get a Free Quote WhatsApp Us a File

Mon–Sat 10:00–19:00 | Email hi@3yu.net