| Pages in topic: [1 2] > | Providing an agency with your credit report and police clearance Thread poster: Althea Draper
|
|---|
I am based in the UK and have been offered medical translation work (tied to the US government) from an American translation agency which is a well established company with a long presence on Proz and a 5* rating. My communications with them so far have seemed legitimate, however I have been asked to provide proof of my qualifications (which I'm OK with), a credit report and police clearance. I have never been asked for a police clearance or credit report by an agency before, but then again, I... See more I am based in the UK and have been offered medical translation work (tied to the US government) from an American translation agency which is a well established company with a long presence on Proz and a 5* rating. My communications with them so far have seemed legitimate, however I have been asked to provide proof of my qualifications (which I'm OK with), a credit report and police clearance. I have never been asked for a police clearance or credit report by an agency before, but then again, I haven't done any work for an American translation agency (either medical or government) and so I'm unsure whether or not this is standard practice in the USA. I would really appreciate it if any medical and/or American translators could tell me if this is normal procedure?
Thanks. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Kevin Fulton 
United States
Local time: 05:09
German to English
| Unusual requirement | Dec 22, 2021 |
I've never been asked for a credit report or police clearance by an agency. On the other hand, I've never knowingly worked directly or indirectly for an American federal agency. Other individuals here have more experience with government contractors and could provide better advice. Unless you expect to take on work for this agency in the long term, which if the rate is reasonable could be quite profitable, I'd advise not going through the effort and expense of obtaining the requested documentat... See more I've never been asked for a credit report or police clearance by an agency. On the other hand, I've never knowingly worked directly or indirectly for an American federal agency. Other individuals here have more experience with government contractors and could provide better advice. Unless you expect to take on work for this agency in the long term, which if the rate is reasonable could be quite profitable, I'd advise not going through the effort and expense of obtaining the requested documentation. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Adieu
Ukrainian to English
+ ...
Make sure to not provide them a full package of documents that can be used to perpetrate fraud in your name
| | | | IrinaN
United States
Local time: 04:09
English to Russian
+ ...
| It is unusual indeed but for different reasons | Dec 22, 2021 |
Hi Althea,
I suggest to double check that they remember that you are not a US citizen or legal resident. Today, this simple fact by itself should stop them from contracting you to do any translation work funded by any US federal agency. In fact, with full and sincere respect to your qualifications and experience, I can not understand why they are trying to contract you for a federal project, especially in the medical field and in such common pairs. I can't imagine any explanations t... See more Hi Althea,
I suggest to double check that they remember that you are not a US citizen or legal resident. Today, this simple fact by itself should stop them from contracting you to do any translation work funded by any US federal agency. In fact, with full and sincere respect to your qualifications and experience, I can not understand why they are trying to contract you for a federal project, especially in the medical field and in such common pairs. I can't imagine any explanations they would present to their end client as to why it is impossible to find an English medical translator in the US.
Maybe I do not fully understand what do you mean by this "tied to the US government" phrase.
If you look at any government jobs through any agency on Indeed, LinkedIn and the like, citizenship or greencard, ability to pass background check etc are a must. Both private and government employers/projects must obtain your written permission for checking your credit report but have a right to deny you a chance to be considered/hired, should you refuse.
In fact, all questionnaires that are a part of your application for a government contract include your consent to those checks by default.
In a nutshell, it's perfectly normal for us within the US but very strange in your case.
Good luck!
Irina
PS - We do not "provide it" in a form of some kind of certificates or any other printed documents. It's all done electronically by those who have the right to request it.
[Edited at 2021-12-22 15:14 GMT]
[Edited at 2021-12-22 17:18 GMT] ▲ Collapse
| | |
|
|
|
Kay Denney
France
Local time: 11:09
French to English
The hoops we have to jump through never cease to amaze me.
I would probably want to know why this info is needed before trying to find the relevant documents: "agency requires it" is not enough to overcome my hatred of rummaging through important papers.
I suppose a federal agency doesn't want to employ a wanted felon but surely they could simply run a check using your name?
| | | | IrinaN
United States
Local time: 04:09
English to Russian
+ ...
| No, Kay, they could not | Dec 22, 2021 |
Kay Denney wrote:
I suppose a federal agency doesn't want to employ a wanted felon but surely they could simply run a check using your name?
Because she is a citizen of a different country. Of course, government hackers could do that:-), but that would be too much in all senses, really:-)
| | | | Tina Vonhof (X)
Canada
Local time: 03:09
Dutch to English
+ ...
The question of where and how you will be paying taxes may be at the root of this request. You should make it very clear that you are a freelancer, based in the UK, and paying taxes in the UK (I assume) and not in the US. The US Government has a form (W8) to that effect that they may ask you to fill out, but first I would suggest you ask a lot of questions to clarify what exactly is required and why, and make sure there are no misunderstandings about your employment/taxpayer status.
... See more The question of where and how you will be paying taxes may be at the root of this request. You should make it very clear that you are a freelancer, based in the UK, and paying taxes in the UK (I assume) and not in the US. The US Government has a form (W8) to that effect that they may ask you to fill out, but first I would suggest you ask a lot of questions to clarify what exactly is required and why, and make sure there are no misunderstandings about your employment/taxpayer status.
[Edited at 2021-12-22 19:28 GMT] ▲ Collapse
| | | | Jean Lachaud
United States
Local time: 05:09
English to French
+ ...
| Unusual requirements | Dec 22, 2021 |
I agree 100% with Kevin Fulton. I have been living > 30 years in the USA, and have never been asked for a police record, even though I have been asked for quite a few documents unusually asked from an independent contractor.
There is no reason for a free-lancer to work for a customer with such a requirement, period. I can assure you the money is not there to make it worthwile.
J L
| | |
|
|
|
IrinaN
United States
Local time: 04:09
English to Russian
+ ...
Jean Lachaud wrote:
I can assure you the money is not there to make it worthwile.
but I can assure you that you are soooo wrong in that particular statement ... Unless, of course, you would accept a 0.06/word job from an agency that charges the government 25-35 cents/word, which the agencies do to this day. Negotiate
| | | | | Credit report?! | Dec 23, 2021 |
They definitely have no business asking you for a credit report. If anything, they should send you their own business credit report because you are giving them trade credit (as they probably don't pay in advance, nor immediately on delivery).
| | | | Michael Newton
United States
Local time: 05:09
Japanese to English
+ ...
| Credit report | Dec 23, 2021 |
A number of agencies in the US dealing with the US government will mandate a background check (credit report, police/criminal record) and a security clearance for prospective translators. As for the background check, anyone can pay $35 to find out if a person has a criminal record or bad credit, no matter what the purpose.
| | | | Lingua 5B
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Local time: 11:09
Member (2009)
English to Croatian
+ ...
| Sounds like they are preparing bidding documentation. | Dec 23, 2021 |
Credit report is a part of bidding documentation for a business. Not sure why it’s needed from you, perhaps they are presenting you as their team member.
One thing I am almost sure of is that they haven’t secured the project yet, and are still in the bidding stage. Don’t worry, they won’t be honest about it with you. Will make it look like the project is on the table just waiting for you.
Clearance is normal with government projects, providing the contractor is... See more Credit report is a part of bidding documentation for a business. Not sure why it’s needed from you, perhaps they are presenting you as their team member.
One thing I am almost sure of is that they haven’t secured the project yet, and are still in the bidding stage. Don’t worry, they won’t be honest about it with you. Will make it look like the project is on the table just waiting for you.
Clearance is normal with government projects, providing the contractor is a US resident. In other cases, I am not so sure. I am not even sure how a non-resident can work on government projects. ▲ Collapse
| | |
|
|
|
Jean Lachaud
United States
Local time: 05:09
English to French
+ ...
Of course, you are perfectly right.
Once, a long time ago, I bid on a US Federal Government RFP. The work required to submit the bid was tremendous and that was before any requirement for credit checks or criminal convictions.
When the company I owned at the time didn't win the bid, I enquired. I learned that the winner had quoted around $0.01/word, or something like that. The work involved hundreds or thousands of pages, so the total was still substantial.
When ... See more Of course, you are perfectly right.
Once, a long time ago, I bid on a US Federal Government RFP. The work required to submit the bid was tremendous and that was before any requirement for credit checks or criminal convictions.
When the company I owned at the time didn't win the bid, I enquired. I learned that the winner had quoted around $0.01/word, or something like that. The work involved hundreds or thousands of pages, so the total was still substantial.
When I remarked that there was no way that proper translation could be delivered at that price, the answer I was given was: "Oh, this translation is not designed to be used. It is only to comply with regulations. It will simply be put on a shelf; no one will ever read it."
That was my first and last such bid.
J L
IrinaN wrote: Jean Lachaud wrote:
I can assure you the money is not there to make it worthwile.
but I can assure you that you are soooo wrong in that particular statement ... Unless, of course, you would accept a 0.06/word job from an agency that charges the government 25-35 cents/word, which the agencies do to this day. Negotiate ▲ Collapse
| | | | jyuan_us
United States
Local time: 05:09
Member (2005)
English to Chinese
+ ...
I think the VM or PM thought you were a US citizen.
The jobs for which a clearance is needed usually pay much higher than the community rates listed on this site, or the going rates among professional translators. However, to have a clearance, you need to be a US citizen.
[Edited at 2021-12-23 16:26 GMT]
| | | | LEXpert
United States
Local time: 04:09
Member (2008)
Croatian to English
+ ...
| Credit report requires a "permissible purpose" | Dec 23, 2021 |
Michael Newton wrote:
As for the background check, anyone can pay $35 to find out if a person has a criminal record or bad credit, no matter what the purpose.
Sort of - you can't just order a credit report on random people. To legally access your credit report in the US, the requestor would need a "permissible purpose", such as your explicit permission, or pursuant to a sub-poena or other court order. If someone had enough personal information about you, they could conceivably pretend to be you and request your own report, and I'm sure this has happened occasionally (amidst an acrimonious divorce, etc.), but it would still be illegal under US law to do so.
You could probably order a criminal background check with less information, though accuracy would depend on how much information you had, if you know every place the person had lived/worked, etc. Certainly if you have the subject's cooperation the report will be more accurate.
| | | | | Pages in topic: [1 2] > | To report site rules violations or get help, contact a site moderator: You can also contact site staff by submitting a support request » Providing an agency with your credit report and police clearance | Protemos translation business management system | Create your account in minutes, and start working! 3-month trial for agencies, and free for freelancers!
The system lets you keep client/vendor database, with contacts and rates, manage projects and assign jobs to vendors, issue invoices, track payments, store and manage project files, generate business reports on turnover profit per client/manager etc.
More info » |
| | Trados Studio 2022 Freelance | The leading translation software used by over 270,000 translators.
Designed with your feedback in mind, Trados Studio 2022 delivers an unrivalled, powerful desktop
and cloud solution, empowering you to work in the most efficient and cost-effective way.
More info » |
|
| | | | X Sign in to your ProZ.com account... | | | | | |
Login to reply/comment 
Translation news
