What services does TIS National offer non-English speakers?
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TIS National provides interpreting services to non-English speakers to assist them in communicating with English speaking agencies and businesses.
Telephone interpreting services
Non-English speakers who need to speak with English speakers can phone TIS National.
Telephone: 131 450
When you phone TIS National, you should tell the operator the language you speak. Ensure you have with you the name and phone number of who you wish to contact.
Telephone interpreting is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. However, the person or organisation you need to speak with may not always be available on weekends or after business hours.
Centrelink
Non-English speakers wishing to speak to Centrelink should call Centrelink directly during its business hours.
Telephone: 13 12 02
On-site interpreting
On-site or face-to-face interpreting is available to help non-English speakers and English speakers communicate.
On-site appointments are usually booked by the agency or organisation that is communicating with the non-English-speaker. Please discuss the need for an on-site interpreter with the agency you are dealing with.
Are TIS National interpreting services free?
If you are contacting, or are contacted by a government-funded service or agency, you will not be charged for interpreting costs.
TIS National provides free interpreting to non-English speaking Australian citizens or permanent residents communicating with the following approved groups and individuals:
- private medical practitioners providing Medicare-rebateable services and their reception staff to arrange appointments and provide results of medical tests
- non-profit, non-government, community-based organisations for case work and emergency services where the organisation does not receive funding to provide these services
- Members of Parliament for constituency purposes
- local government authorities to communicate with non-English speaking residents on issues such as rates, garbage collection and urban services
- trade unions to respond to members' enquiries or requests
- Emergency Management Australia.
As a non-English speaker contacting any other organisation, you may request that they pay for the interpreting service.
If they do not accept the charge, you will be asked to pay for the interpreting services you require. You can then choose either to pay for the service and the call will proceed, or tell TIS National you do not wish to go ahead and the phone call will be terminated.
Document translation service
The department provides eligible clients with free extract or summary translations into English of eligible documents to help them settle in Australia.
See: Individual and document eligibility requirements
Note: TIS National does not provide a commercial translation service. For a full list of registered translators in Australia, visit the NAATI website.
See: National Accreditation Authority for Translators and Interpreters
Return to: Translating and Interpreting Service