EHLION

EHLION is a language consultancy based in Naxxar, in the centre of Malta, that works as a full service agency for business customers. It handles written translation, localisation of software and products, interpreting, subtitling, voice over and the layout of translated documents, all under one roof. The agency has more than 20 years of experience, works in over 100 languages and offers more than 800 language combinations.

For a UK reader, that breadth matters in two situations. If you run a business in Malta or sell into it, EHLION can handle the paperwork, marketing and product content you need in several languages at once. If you are moving to Malta or dealing with Maltese and European authorities, you can use a certified translator rather than relying on a machine, because its work is carried out by human linguists unless machine translation is specifically ordered. If your business is setting up on the island, our guide to the Malta corporate tax structure and overview of Malta give useful context for the documents you may need translated.

Who EHLION is and where it works

The company is international, with headquarters in Naxxar and further offices in London and Berlin. Project managers cover different time zones, and linguists are stationed around the world, so a client in Manchester, Valletta or Frankfurt is treated in the same way. Its team of project managers comes from a language background, and most are qualified translators themselves. A team of over 1,000 linguists sits behind them, all of them native speakers with their own subject specialisms.

The company has six values that begin with the letter E: expertise, excellence, engagement, ethics, enthusiasm and empowerment. Its mission is borderless communication, helping clients grow by communicating well across languages. The agency also supports the EHLION Foundation, a non-profit set up in 2013, which donates to charitable projects with a focus on capacity building, such as children's education in countries where many children cannot attend school.

Naxxar sits close to Mosta and Mdina, so visitors who combine a business trip with sightseeing can pair a meeting with our Mdina guide. Malta is a natural home for this kind of business. English and Maltese are both official languages, the island trades heavily with Europe, and sectors such as financial services and iGaming companies in Malta produce a constant flow of material that needs translation and localisation. Our translation services directory lists other language providers if you want to compare.

Translation services

Professional translation is the core service. The agency matches each text to a translator who is qualified in the relevant field, so a legal contract and a marketing brochure do not go to the same person. Specialist areas include legal, technical, medical, financial, commercial, administrative, judicial and literary texts, plus patents, manuals and instructions, and website and SEO translation. Certified translation is available for documents that need to carry formal weight.

Express translation is offered for urgent jobs. The service can deliver overnight or over a weekend, and on very large projects several translators can work in parallel to shorten delivery time. Smaller jobs of a few documents can be returned the same day, while books or manuals can take several days depending on complexity and language.

A further option is machine translation post-editing. Here a machine produces a first draft and a human linguist then edits it to a professional standard. This suits high volume content where speed and cost matter, and it is offered alongside the fully human services rather than as a replacement.

If you are a UK resident handling Maltese documents, the guide to relocating to Malta and our Malta tax guide for UK nationals explain the background, and a certified translator can help with the paperwork those processes involve.

Localisation for software, apps, websites and products

Localisation goes beyond translating words. It adapts content so that it feels written for the target market, which can mean changing images, colours, measurements, address formats, pricing structures and layouts as well as the language. A right to left language such as Hebrew, for example, needs a different page layout from English. EHLION offers software, app, gaming, website, marketing and product localisation.

For software and apps, the agency can work with developers from the planning stage so that the product is prepared for localisation early, then manage the briefing, project plan, selection of translators, preparation of material, implementation and a final quality check of the localised software. Gaming localisation is also on the list, which is relevant to the many games and betting companies based in Malta.

Product localisation covers catalogues, packaging and labels, technical and user manuals and product landing pages. The agency's point is that a literal translation of a product name or label can lead to an unintended meaning in another country, so cultural checks are part of the work. Repeat customers benefit from translation memory, a database of previously translated sentences, which means repeated wording is not charged for again.

Interpreting, multimedia and desktop publishing

Interpreting is offered in remote, telephone, conference, simultaneous and consecutive formats. Simultaneous interpreting happens as the speaker talks, which is typical at conferences, while consecutive interpreting follows each pause in speech and suits meetings and negotiations.

The multimedia range includes subtitling translation, audio and video transcription, dubbing and voice over, and advertising review and translation. Proofreading and multilingual desktop publishing complete the set, so translated brochures, manuals and reports can be returned laid out and ready to print rather than as plain text.

EHLION Magazine, on the agency's own site, carries articles on subjects such as business etiquette in Japan, communication culture in Korea and China, and technical English, a flavour of the cultural knowledge applied to client work.

Quality standards and technology

EHLION is certified to four ISO standards: ISO 17100, the standard specific to translation services, ISO 9001 for quality management, ISO 27001 for information security and ISO 14001 for environmental management. In practical terms, ISO 17100 means translators must be qualified, typically through a recognised degree in translation, comparable training in another field or at least five years of documented professional experience. It also means that a second equally qualified person revises the translation, and the agency can add a third checker for print ready files.

Translators work only into their native language. Terminology is managed with each client, with glossaries produced on request for approval, and specialised term bases and translation memories are kept for each customer so that wording stays consistent from one project to the next. After each project, project managers feed comments and last minute changes back into those resources.

On the technology side, the agency is a Plunet certified user for managing complex projects, uses SDL Trados Studio and, since 2013, SDL Studio GroupShare for shared work in a browser, and is a certified provider on Across Language Server version 7.0. Communication and file transfers are encrypted, and documents are handled confidentially.

Prices, timing and how to start

Translation is normally priced by the number of words in the source text, and the language combination also affects the rate, because rarer or harder combinations cost more. EHLION does not use a fixed price list. A project manager prepares a bespoke quote after you send the text, together with the languages involved, whether proofreading is needed and whether desktop publishing is required. The agency aims to confirm receipt immediately and send the final quotation within one hour, or at most three hours for complex requests.

Each project is invoiced, and invoices can be paid by bank transfer, credit card or PayPal. Because the agency works across time zones, it makes no difference whether you are in Malta, London, Berlin or elsewhere. Clients who prefer to talk through a project can ask to speak with a project manager, and translators wishing to work with the agency can submit their details to its network.

The simplest way to begin from the UK is to use the VisitMalta.co.uk enquiry form on this page, saying which documents or content you have, which languages you need and when you need them, and we will pass your message to EHLION.