Becoming a New Jersey Court Interpreter in a Spoken Language

Persons who wish to become an approved court interpreter and work in New Jersey's court system must follow three main steps:

Step 1: Prepare for the court interpreting profession

Court interpreting is a profession that demands high levels of knowledge, skills, and abilities.

• Knowledge, Skills and Abilities
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Self-assessment tool
• Keys to success
• Resources for Professional Development of Court Interpreters
• New Jersey Judiciary Policies and Procedures
• Important Resources

Step 2: Qualify to become a court interpreter through the approval program

The Court Interpreter Approval Program currently consists of the following requirements, which must be completed in the order in which they appear below and are subject to change at any time. Candidates credentialed elsewhere should review the Reciprocity Policy.

• 1. Pass the Written Exam

• Overview of the Written Exam (application enclosed)

• 2. Complete the Orientation Seminar

• Overview of the Orientation Seminar
• Request a waiver for the Orientation Seminar

                 i. Send a request to the Language Services Section, including proofs of having completed whatever training you believe may be equivalent to the seminar.
                 ii. The Language Services Section (LSS) will carefully review the request and notify the candidate of its conclusion via e-mail

• 3. Pass the Oral Exam

• NCSC Oral Exams Offered
• Overview of the Oral Exam (application enclosed)
• Becoming an Arabic Interpreter
• Oral Exam Outcomes
• Common Oral Exam Performance Deficiencies

No oral exam in your language?

• Overview of the English Speaking Proficiency Test
• Overview of Oral Proficiency Interview
• Resources for Professional Development for Non-Spanish Court Interpreters
• How These Interpreters Are Classified
• Documenting Interpreting Experience Form

Important Note: Oral exams in any of these languages may be developed at any time. When an exam is developed in a new language, everyone who has been registered or wishes to register for that language will be required to take the exam to remain or become registered.

Step 3: Register to work in the courts

After successfully completing the Court Interpreter Approval Program, candidates are eligible to be included in the New Jersey Judiciary's Registry of On-site Interpreting Resources Eligible candidates will receive an invitation to register and must:

• 1.Register as a business with the Division of Revenue

Division of Revenue business applications include the following:

• Business Registration and Certification for Individuals Contracting with Public Agencies - individual contractors with no employees
• Business Registration Application - businesses that have employees




• 2. Complete the Judiciary registration forms

• Register with NJSTART
• Fill out an Individual Registration Form

Judiciary registration forms must be sent to:
Language Services Section
Administrative Office of the Courts
Richard J. Hughes Justice Complex
PO Box 988
Trenton, NJ 08625-0988

• 3. Sign the Professional Service Statement of Work Proposal (PSSW)

Language Services will send you a PSSW after confirming your Division of Revenue registration and receiving your judiciary registration forms. The PSSW is executed annually and should be carefully read since it outlines the specifics of the contractual agreement, including the compensation rates and cancellation policy.