Translation Requirements for Legal Documents

Effective Date: January 17, 2026

Overview

Home Meal App requires translations of key legal documents into six languages to support global operations. All translations must be accurate, legally equivalent, and culturally appropriate.

Languages Required

Primary Languages (Recommended by Platform):

Spanish - Largest Spanish-speaking market (Mexico, Spain, Argentina, Colombia)
Portuguese - Brazil market (largest in Latin America)
French - France, Canada (Quebec), Belgium, Switzerland
German - Germany, Austria, Switzerland
Chinese (Simplified) - China market

Additional Language (User Requested):

Arabic - Middle East and North Africa markets

Documents to Translate

Priority 1 (Critical - Must Translate):

HOME_CHEF_LIABILITY_FRAMEWORK.md - Complete liability framework
TERMS_AND_CONDITIONS_GENERAL.md - Master terms
PRIVACY_POLICY.md - Data protection requirements

Priority 2 (Important):

TERMS_BUYER.md - Buyer-specific terms
TERMS_SELLER.md - Seller-specific terms
TERMS_DRIVER.md - Driver-specific terms
REFUND_POLICY.md - Refund procedures

Priority 3 (Optional):

COMMUNITY_GUIDELINES.md
COOKIE_POLICY.md
ACCEPTABLE_USE_POLICY.md
DMCA_POLICY.md

Translation Standards

Legal Accuracy:

Must be legally equivalent to English version
Cannot weaken Platform liability protections
Must maintain all disclaimers and warnings
Local legal counsel must review for compliance

Cultural Adaptation:

Use appropriate formality levels
Adapt examples to local context where needed
Maintain Platform branding and tone
Consider local legal terminology

Technical Requirements:

UTF-8 encoding for all languages
Right-to-left text support for Arabic
Consistent formatting with English versions
Version control matching English documents

Implementation Plan

Phase 1: Professional Translation (Q1 2026)

Hire certified legal translators for each language
Review by local legal counsel in target countries
Create translated Markdown files
Test display in app/web platforms

Phase 2: User Language Detection (Q2 2026)

Implement automatic language detection
Show translated documents based on user location/language preference
Fallback to English if translation unavailable

Phase 3: Maintenance (Ongoing)

Update translations when English documents change
Annual legal review of translations
Monitor for new legal requirements in target markets

File Naming Convention

[DocumentName]_[LanguageCode].md

Examples:
- HOME_CHEF_LIABILITY_FRAMEWORK_ES.md (Spanish)
- TERMS_AND_CONDITIONS_GENERAL_PT.md (Portuguese)
- PRIVACY_POLICY_FR.md (French)
- REFUND_POLICY_DE.md (German)
- COOKIE_POLICY_ZH.md (Chinese)
- DMCA_POLICY_AR.md (Arabic)

Language Codes

ES: Spanish (Español)
PT: Portuguese (Português)
FR: French (Français)
DE: German (Deutsch)
ZH: Chinese Simplified (中文)
AR: Arabic (العربية)

Quality Assurance

Translation Checklist:

Testing Requirements:

Display correctly in app
Mobile-responsive formatting
Special characters render properly
Right-to-left text for Arabic

Contact for Translations

Translation Coordinator: info@home-meal.website Response Time: Company team within 72 hours

Legal Review: Legal team will coordinate with local counsel in each target market.

Note: This is a planning document. Actual translations will be created as separate files once professional translation services are engaged.