Exam Information

ALERT:  

Bilingual Interpreting Examination—Registration Now Open

Registration for the Bilingual Interpreting Examination (BIE) remains open until June 16, 2023, for the following languages: Spanish, Eastern Armenian, Farsi (Persian), and Punjabi (India). Registration for all other certified languages is closed.  The BIE will be administered from July 13, 2023, to September 22, 2023, on numerous days at various test locations in northern and southern California. The administration of the BIE will adhere to federal, state, and local health and safety requirements.

Registration Details
Aspiring court interpreter candidates interested in taking the BIE in one of the languages listed below must schedule the exam during the open registration period, which runs from May 16, 2023, through June 16, 2023. 

• Spanish 
• Eastern Armenian
• Farsi (Persian)
• Punjabi (India)

Interested candidates are strongly encouraged to register as soon as possible while test seats are still available. 
 

The 2023 administration of the BIE will not include testing for the following languages: Armenian (Western), Japanese, and Khmer.

To register for the BIE, please contact Prometric, the Judicial Council’s interpreting testing vendor, at (866) 241-3118, option 2, Monday–Friday, 5 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. (PST). Registration is only available by phone.

Please be prepared to provide the following:

1. Prometric ID number
2. Testing language
3. Debit or credit card information to pay the $358.75 application fee for the BIE
4. Your contact information (including address, e-mail, and phone number) and other information, as needed, to verify your identification.

If you are told by Prometric that your preferred test location and/or date is full, please ask for availability in other cities and on other dates.

During the scheduling of the examination and upon receipt of the written confirmation, candidates are strongly encouraged to confirm the examination appointment details are accurate.

Candidates experiencing difficulty with registering for the BIE or who would like to share feedback concerning the registration process are welcome to contact the Court Interpreters Program at courtinterpreters@jud.ca.gov.

For additional information about the BIE, please click here.

Test Locations

Northern California

San Francisco
100 California St. 
Suite 105 
San Francisco, California 94111

San Jose 
2665 North First Street 
Suite 207 
San Jose, California 95134

Southern California

Camarillo
400 West Ventura Boulevard 
Suite 130 
Camarillo, California 93010

Culver City
5601 West Slauson Ave. 
Suite 110
Culver City, California 90230

San Diego
Shoreham Place 
Suite 180 
San Diego, California 92122

Written Examination and the Oral Proficiency Examination (OPE)—Registration Is Now Open Year-Round

Registration for these two examinations will continue year-round. Candidates who are interested in taking the Written Exam and the OPE are encouraged to register as soon as possible.

To register for the Written Examination, visit Prometric’s Written Examination page.

To register for the OPE, visit Prometric’s OPE page.

Validation Period for Written Examination Scores Extended

Due to the suspension of the administration of the Written Examination as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Court Interpreters Program extended the validation period for the Written Examination test scores from four (4) years to six (6) years. Candidates who have passing Written Examination scores within six years are now eligible to take the BIE in their target language when it is available.

Candidates who took the BIE four (4) times and did not pass are still required to retake the Written Examination.

Candidate Information Bulletin

For additional information concerning the Written Examination, OPE, and BIE, including administration, examination fees, and scheduling, candidates are highly encouraged to review the Candidate Information Bulletin.

Identify what exams you must take based on language

For more information, see the following:

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