Prism Linguistics provides certified Kirundi translation and Kirundi interpreters across Canada, for refugee claims at the Immigration and Refugee Board, IRCC files, and hospital and legal matters. Kirundi is the national language of Burundi and very close to Kinyarwanda in Rwanda, so we confirm the country a speaker or a record comes from before assigning. Many Kirundi speakers reach Canada as protected persons or through family sponsorship, and the community is dispersed across several cities.
Last reviewed September 6, 2026 by the Prism Linguistics editorial team
Interpreter matching begins by separating Kirundi from the closely related Kinyarwanda, since a speaker from Burundi and one from Rwanda may prefer different interpreters even though the languages are similar. Many speakers also use French or Swahili, so telling us the speaker's full background helps us assign someone who can follow the whole conversation rather than only part of it.
Across Canada our Kirundi interpreters work in IRB refugee hearings and IRCC interviews, court and tribunal settings, hospital and clinic appointments under PHIPA and PIPEDA, and settlement and school meetings, with care in trauma-sensitive sessions. The interpreter renders in the first person and does not smooth or summarise a difficult answer. We attend in person where an interpreter is within reach and cover appointments anywhere in the country by telephone or video. Prism Linguistics is a private agency, not a court-appointed vendor.
Common settings include legal and court interpreting, medical and hospital interpreting, IRCC and Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB) interviews, and police and enforcement work. See all on-site interpreting options or start a free quote.
Kirundi is written in the Latin alphabet, and Burundi uses Kirundi and French in public life, so an applicant's documents may combine the two on a single file. Because it is so close to Kinyarwanda, a translator confirms which country a record comes from before starting, so names and place spellings are handled correctly.
We translate civil registry birth, marriage and death certificates, national identity documents, school and church records, and the sworn declarations that support a claim, and we keep the English translation formatted beside the original so an officer can compare them for a protection claim, permanent residence or family reunification. Each translation is issued by a certified translator or accompanied by a sworn affidavit of accuracy before a commissioner of oaths. Where a record is incomplete we translate only what appears on the page, and acceptance ultimately depends on the receiving institution.
For documents rather than spoken interpreting, see certified Kirundi translation, our full Kirundi translation services, or general document translation. Every translation moves through our TEP workflow — translation, editing and proofreading by separate linguists — with free revisions.
An interpreter attends in person for hearings, medical appointments and meetings. On-site interpreting
Same-day, often within minutes, for calls, intake and urgent situations. Phone interpreting
Telehealth, remote hearings and sign language, anywhere in Canada. Video interpreting
Simultaneous interpreting for events and multilingual meetings. Conference interpreting
Legal consultations, settlement services and private appointments. Private interpreting
ASL and LSQ interpreting for accessible appointments and events. Sign language
We arrange Kirundi interpreters in cities across every province and territory — on site in the major centres and by telephone or video everywhere else:
Need documents translated locally? We provide certified Kirundi translation in the same cities:
Or browse every city we cover.
Kirundi is the national language of Burundi, with around 9 million speakers. It's closely related to Kinyarwanda - the two are largely mutually intelligible - but is the standardized national language of a different state with its own conventions for civil documents. The Kirundi-speaking community in Canada is small, often co-located with Kinyarwanda speakers in Montreal, Ottawa-Gatineau, and Toronto given the close relationship and shared refugee histories. Our Kirundi translation work is mostly refugee-protection and family-sponsorship paperwork tied to Burundi's recurring political instability.
They are closely related but come from Burundi and Rwanda respectively. We confirm the country of the record and the speaker so the right translator and interpreter are assigned, which matters most in a refugee hearing.
Yes. Burundian records often combine the two, and we translate the parts that are not already in English or French on a single file, keeping names consistent throughout.
Yes. We provide interpreters for IRB hearings and IRCC interviews, in person where one is available or by telephone and video across Canada. We are a private agency, not a court-appointed vendor.
We issue translation by a certified translator or with a sworn affidavit of accuracy. The receiving institution makes the final decision on acceptance.
Tell us the language, the setting and the date through our quote form or by phone. We return a written quote with the exact price and turnaround, usually within 60 minutes during business hours, before you commit.
Tell us the setting, the city and the date, and we will confirm a qualified Kirundi interpreter and a firm price.