Bangla & Sylheti Interpreter
Someone who speaks Bangla and Sylheti sitting beside you, so you are never the only person in the room who cannot follow what is being said.
Overview
There are rooms where getting it wrong matters: the USCIS citizenship interview, a doctor explaining a diagnosis, a hearing about your benefits, a meeting about your child at school. Nodding along and hoping you understood is not good enough in any of them.
We come with you and interpret between Bangla or Sylheti and English, so you follow every question and answer in your own words. We do this every day for our own clients, and we do it for people who are not our clients too.
Where we interpret for you
- Your USCIS citizenship interview
- Doctor, hospital and clinic appointments
- Social Security, MDHHS and benefit office interviews
- Unemployment hearings and other administrative hearings
- School meetings about your child
- Bank, insurance and landlord appointments
- Phone calls to an office that will not answer in Bangla
How we work
- We ask beforehand what the appointment is about, so the words are not new to us
- We interpret what is said, both ways, without adding to it or leaving it out
- We tell you when you should ask a question, not what your answer should be
- We keep everything you say private, the same as any other service here
- Sylheti as well as standard Bangla, whichever you are comfortable in
What an interpreter is not
An interpreter carries your words across, and nothing more. This matters most at the citizenship interview, where the officer is testing you, not us.
- We do not answer for you, and at a USCIS interview we are not allowed to
- We are not attorneys and we do not give legal advice in the room or out of it
- We are not doctors, and we interpret medical words rather than explain them
- Many government offices provide a free interpreter, and we will tell you when that is true rather than let you pay us for something you can get for nothing
What we charge
- Interpreter at your citizenship interview$200
- Interpreter for any other appointment$100
This is our service fee only. Any government fee is separate and is paid to the government, not to us. Prices may change at any time without notice, so we confirm the amount with you before any work begins. If what you need is not listed, please ask.
See all our pricesFrequently asked questions
Can I bring an interpreter to my citizenship interview?
It depends on why you need one. If you qualify for an exemption from the English test, for example under the 50/20, 55/15 or 65/20 rules, you may bring an interpreter and take the civics test in Bangla. If you do not qualify for an exemption, the interview has to be in English, and what helps you then is practice rather than an interpreter. We check your dates and tell you honestly which one applies to you.
Do you speak Sylheti as well as Bangla?
Yes. Sylheti is the language most of the people we work with actually speak at home, and it is what we use in this office every day.
Can you interpret over the phone?
Yes. If you are stuck on a call with an office that will not answer in Bangla, come in or call us and we will get on the line with you.
Is the interpreter free at government offices?
Often yes. MDHHS, Social Security and the courts provide interpreters at no charge, and we will say so when that applies. People hire us anyway when they want somebody who knows their case, speaks their own dialect, and is on their side of the table.
Will you keep what you hear private?
Yes. What is said in the room stays between you and us. That is true whether you are a client of ours for anything else or not.
We assist with paperwork and preparation. We are not attorneys or CPAs and do not provide legal or accounting advice.