NAATI credential compliance and subcontracting practices in Ministry of Education interpreting and translation services
P. Peach made this Official Information request to Ministry of Education
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From: P. Peach
Tēnā koutou,
I am requesting the following information under the Official Information Act 1982 relating to subcontracting practices and NAATI credential compliance within interpreting and translation services procured by the Ministry of Education (Te Tāhuhu o te Mātauranga).
SECTION A: SUBCONTRACTING ARRANGEMENTS
1. Whether the Ministry of Education's interpreting and translation providers are permitted to subcontract assignments to third parties, including overseas-based agencies or individual contractors located outside New Zealand.
2. Any conditions or restrictions in the Ministry of Education's contracts with interpreting and translation providers regarding the use of subcontractors, including any requirements that subcontractors be based in New Zealand or hold an appropriate New Zealand work visa.
3. Whether the Ministry of Education requires providers to disclose the identity, location, or credentials of individual interpreters or translators — including subcontractors — who carry out assignments on the Ministry's behalf.
4. Whether the Ministry of Education has any knowledge of, or has sought information about, assignments being routed to interpreters or translators located outside New Zealand.
5. Any instances where the Ministry of Education became aware that an assignment was conducted by a person located outside New Zealand or by an uncredentialled subcontractor, and any action taken as a result.
SECTION B: NAATI CREDENTIAL COMPLIANCE
6. What mechanism, if any, the Ministry of Education uses to verify that individual interpreters and translators carrying out assignments on its behalf — including those engaged through subcontracting arrangements — hold a valid NAATI credential or Working Towards NAATI (WTN) status.
7. Whether the Ministry of Education requires its interpreting and translation providers to maintain and supply a current register of credentialled practitioners working under Ministry contracts, and if so whether the Ministry has received and reviewed such registers.
8. Any audits, spot checks, or compliance reviews conducted by the Ministry of Education on its interpreting and translation providers since 1 July 2024 to verify NAATI credential compliance, including the methodology and findings of any such reviews.
9. Any instances since 1 July 2024 where a provider was found to have used an interpreter or translator who did not hold the required NAATI credential or Working Towards NAATI (WTN) status, and any consequences or remedial action taken.
10. Any complaints received by the Ministry of Education since 1 July 2024 from staff, students, families, or members of the public regarding the qualifications or conduct of an interpreter or translator engaged through the Ministry's services.
SECTION C: INTERPRETER AND TRANSLATOR PAY VISIBILITY
11. Whether the Ministry of Education has any information about the rates or fees paid by its providers to individual interpreters or translators for assignments conducted on the Ministry's behalf.
12. Whether the Ministry of Education has ever sought, as part of contract negotiations, tendering processes, or performance reviews, any information about the pay or working conditions of interpreters or translators engaged through its provider contracts.
13. Any internal policies, briefings, risk assessments, or correspondence within the Ministry of Education regarding the fair remuneration or employment conditions of interpreters and translators working under its contracts, including any concerns raised about the margin between rates paid to providers and rates passed on to practitioners.
14. Whether the Ministry of Education's tendering or procurement criteria for interpreting and translation services include any consideration of whether providers pay practitioners at or above a minimum rate, living wage, or industry standard.
If any part of this request is refused, please:
- Identify the specific OIA provision relied upon for each withholding;
- Consider whether the public interest in transparency around publicly funded services and the fair treatment of workers outweighs any commercial sensitivity; and
- Release any information that can be made available in redacted or aggregated form.
I am happy to receive this information in electronic format.
Ngā mihi
From: Enquiries National
Ministry of Education
Thank you for your email to the Ministry of Education.
This is an auto generated response confirming your email has been received.
Please do not respond to this message.
We will respond to your email as soon as possible.
Tēnā koe mō tō īmēra mai ki te Tāhuhu o te Mātauranga.
He urupare aunoa tēnei hei whakaatu kua tae mai tō īmēra
ki a mātou. Kaua noa e whakautu i tēnei karere.
Mea ake nei ka urupare tonu atu mātou ki tō īmēra.
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From: Enquiries National
Ministry of Education
[UNCLASSIFIED]
Kia ora
Thank you for your request for information below. The Ministry will consider and respond to your request in accordance with the Official Information Act 1982 (the Act).
Under section 15(1) of the Act, we are required to make and inform you of our decision on your request as soon as reasonably practicable and in any case not later than 20 working days after the day on which your request is received. You can therefore expect to receive our decision on your request on or before the 29 of April 2026. If more than 20 working days are needed due to the potential workload and/or consultations involved in answering your request, we will notify you accordingly.
The Ministry may publicly release on our website the response to your request five days after you have received it. Any personal information will be removed.
In the interim, if you have any questions about your request, please email [email address].
Ngā mihi
Enquiries National Team | Te Tāhuhu o te Mātauranga | Ministry of Education | IB
National Office, 1 The Terrace, Wellington
education.govt.nz
He mea tārai e mātou te mātauranga kia rangatira ai, kia mana taurite ai ōna huanga
We shape an education system that delivers equitable and excellent outcomes
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From: Enquiries National
Ministry of Education
[IN-CONFIDENCE - RELEASE EXTERNAL]
Kia ora,
Please find attached an extension letter in relation to your request under
the Official Information Act 1982.
Nāku noa, nā,
Official and Parliamentary Information | Ministry of Education | LJ
[1]education.govt.nz
He mea tārai e mātou te mātauranga kia rangatira ai, kia mana taurite ai
ōna huanga
We shape an education system that delivers equitable and excellent
outcomes
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From: Enquiries National
Ministry of Education
[IN-CONFIDENCE - RELEASE EXTERNAL]
Tçnâ koe
Thank you for your email of 27 March 2026 via the FYI website to the
Ministry of Education (the Ministry) requesting information about
interpreting and translation services. Due to the length of the request,
this is attached as Annex One.
Your request has been considered under the Official Information Act 1982
(the Act).
In April 2025, the Ministry for Ethnic Communities (MEC) took over from
the Ministry for Business Innovation and Employment (MBIE) as the lead
agency for supporting interpreters to achieve National Accreditation
Authority for Translators and Interpreters (NAATI) certification. MEC is
the lead agency for Language Assistance Services (LAS), and is responsible
for the two Open Syndicated Panel agreements (OSA): Telephone and Video
Interpreting Services (TVIS), and face-to-face interpreting services.
I therefore refer you to the response provided by MEC, which has since
been published on the FYI website here:
[1]https://fyi.org.nz/request/34281/respons....
The Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) is the lead agency for
translation services. DIA’s Translation Service (TTS) works with
translators based in New Zealand and abroad. I therefore refer you to the
response provided by DIA, which has since been published on the FYI
website here:
[2]https://fyi.org.nz/request/34263/respons....
The Ministry currently does not have a single, formalised,
organisation-wide policy governing translation and interpreting services.
This has resulted in a decentralised approach, where business units
procure and manage services based on their specific needs, often through
all-of-government panels, existing supplier panels or ad hoc procurement
processes. Providers are, however, expected to meet contractual service
standards and contractual obligations, including quality and professional
standards even where practitioner-level monitoring is not centrally
administered.
Work is underway to develop more consistent guidance and expectations for
staff including around commissioning, quality assurance and appropriate
use of translation and interpreting services.
Translation services are generally procured through established
procurement arrangements or panels, such as the Te Reo Mâori panel.
In response to section A of your request, the Ministry primarily engages
translation and interpreting services through third-party providers rather
than directly contracting individual practitioners. Contractual and
operational requirements including subcontracting, credential requirements
and workforce practices are typically managed at the provider level and
vary depending on the procurement arrangement.
Because of this model, the Ministry does not consistently hold detailed
visibility of individual translators/interpreters, particularly where
subcontracting arrangements are in place. Any assurance around quality,
credentials or workforce practices generally sits within supplier
contractual obligations rather than a centrally-monitored compliance
regime.
In response to section B of your request, the Ministry does not currently
operate a centralised system or mechanism to systematically verify or
monitor credentials such as NAATI across all engagements.
In response to section C of your request, the Ministry generally contracts
at the provider level, and does not hold detailed information about pay
rates or conditions for individual translators/interpreters, nor is this
consistently a required component of procurement or contract management.
I am therefore refusing sections A, B and C of your request under section
18(g) of the Act, as the information requested is not held by the
Ministry, and I have no grounds for believing that it is either held by,
or connected more closely with the functions of, another department or
subject to the Act.
Thank you again for your email. You have the right to ask an Ombudsman to
review my decision on your request, in accordance with section 28 of the
Act. You can do this by writing to [3][email address] or to
Office of the Ombudsman, PO Box 10152, Wellington 6143.
Nâku noa, nâ,
Official and Parliamentary Information | Ministry of Education | ED
[4]education.govt.nz
He mea târai e mâtou te mâtauranga kia rangatira ai, kia mana taurite ai
ôna huanga
We shape an education system that delivers equitable and excellent
outcomes
[5][IMG]
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