Form I-765: Which Supporting Documents Need a Certified Translation

What the I-765 asks for, and what it does not

Form I-765 is the application for an Employment Authorization Document, the plastic card that lets you work. The form itself is short. The weight is in the evidence, and the evidence depends on the eligibility category you write in Part 2. Some categories need almost nothing beyond an ID and a receipt notice; others need civil documents, foreign records, or proof of a relationship. Whatever the category, the rule at 8 CFR 103.2(b)(3) applies: any foreign-language document must come with a full English translation and the translator's signed certification.

The instructions ask for a copy of a government-issued identity document with a photo. For applicants from Russia and Ukraine that is usually a passport, and which passport matters.

Passport and ID pages: which ones need translation

Russia and Ukraine each issue two kinds of passports. The foreign passport (zagranpasport) is for travel; its biographic page is printed in Russian or Ukrainian and in English, so the officer can read the name, date of birth, and number without help. The internal passport or ID card is for use inside the country; the Russian internal passport is Russian only, and the Ukrainian ID card shows a Latin transliteration of the name but keeps most other fields in Ukrainian.

• Foreign passport biographic page: usually filed as is. Include a translation if the page has handwritten entries or if any part of it is not in English.
• Foreign passport stamps and visas, if you include those pages as evidence of entry or status: translate the stamps that are in Russian or Ukrainian.
• Russian internal passport, if that is the only photo ID you have: translate the photo page and any pages you file, including the registration stamp.
• Ukrainian ID card, if filed as the identity document: translate the card, both sides, so that the fields, not just the name, are readable.
• Birth certificate with a separate photo ID, for applicants without a passport: translate the birth certificate in full.
• Expired passports used as identity evidence: translate them the same way as current ones.

A photo ID in Cyrillic with no translation ranks among the usual reasons an I-765 is delayed. The officer needs to confirm that the photo ID and the name on the form belong to the same person, and a translation is how that happens.

Category evidence that is often in Russian or Ukrainian

Below are the categories that Russian and Ukrainian speakers file most often, with the documents that tend to be in the home-country language.

• (c)(11) parole, including Uniting for Ukraine and other humanitarian parole: the I-94 record and parole approval are in English. The passport used for parole and any supporting identity documents may need translation as above.
• (c)(8) pending asylum: the receipt for the I-589 is in English. Identity documents, and any evidence filed with the I-589 that is referenced in the I-765, follow the translation rule.
• (a)(5) asylee and (a)(3) refugee: the approval or admission record is in English. Identity documents in Russian or Ukrainian still need translation if filed.
• (a)(12) and (c)(19) Temporary Protected Status: evidence of nationality, such as a passport or birth certificate, and proof of residence that was issued abroad must be translated.
• (c)(9) pending I-485: usually the I-485 receipt and a photo ID. If your ID is a Russian internal passport or a Ukrainian ID card, translate it.
• (c)(26) H-4 spouse of an H-1B: the marriage certificate from Russia or Ukraine, translated, plus the spouse's status evidence.
• (a)(17), (a)(18), and similar dependent spouse categories: the marriage certificate, translated, and evidence of the principal's status.
• (c)(3) F-1 students: the school recommendation is in English; foreign documents rarely appear unless a name change is involved.
• (c)(35) and (c)(36) compelling circumstances for an approved I-140: evidence of the circumstances, such as medical records or letters from abroad, translated.

If you are not sure which category applies, work from the I-765 instructions for the category code and list every document the instructions name. Mark each as English or foreign, and translate the foreign ones.

Name consistency on the work permit

The Employment Authorization Document prints the name exactly as you enter it on the form. That name is then compared by employers, by the Social Security Administration, and by the DMV to your other documents. If the I-765 says one thing and the translated passport says another, the mismatch follows you.

1. 1Use the Latin spelling in your foreign passport as the anchor and enter it on the I-765.
2. 2Give that spelling to your translator so the translated ID, birth certificate, or marriage certificate uses the same letters.
3. 3List every other spelling you have ever used in the Other Names Used section of the form, including a maiden name and any earlier transliteration.
4. 4If your name changed, file the name change record, translated, so the officer can connect the old name on the birth certificate to the new name on the passport.
5. 5Keep the same spelling on the I-765 as on any concurrently filed I-485, I-589, or I-130.

Timing: when to order the translation

Translations do not expire, so the safest approach is to order early. Several I-765 categories have timing rules that leave little room for a delay.

• (c)(8) pending asylum: there is a waiting period after the I-589 is filed before the I-765 can be submitted. Have your translations ready before that date so you file on the first eligible day.
• TPS: initial registration windows and re-registration periods are fixed. Order translations as soon as the registration period is announced.
• Renewals: file within the window allowed before expiration. Reuse earlier translations if the documents have not changed.
• (c)(9) concurrent filing with the I-485: the same translations serve both forms, so order once and file together.
• Parole: the I-765 can be filed once the parole period begins. Translations ordered while waiting for the parole decision are not wasted.

From $23.70 per document with certification included, the translation of an ID and a certificate or two is a small fixed cost. Ordering it during the waiting period, rather than after the filing window opens, helps keep the work permit on schedule.

Mistakes we see on I-765 packets

• Filing a Russian internal passport page without translation and assuming the photo is enough.
• Translating only the name field on a Ukrainian ID card and leaving the rest in Ukrainian.
• Entering a name on the form that differs from the foreign passport spelling.
• Skipping the marriage certificate translation on a dependent spouse category.
• Omitting the back side of a birth certificate used as identity evidence.
• Filing a translation without the certification page or with one signed by the applicant.
• Ordering translations after the filing window opens and missing the earliest filing date.

Each of these is fixed the same way: complete scans of both sides, a single spelling list for the case, and a certified translation of every foreign page you file.