Tobi Interpreter Services

Prism Linguistics offers Tobi interpreter services UK-wide by video and telephone, and in person only where a suitable interpreter can travel. Tobi, also called Tobian, is the language of Tobi Island, at the outer edge of Palau. Requests are exceptionally rare, so we check which other languages the speaker uses before searching.

Get a Tobi interpreter quote or call +44 (0) 20 3880 6688

• UK-wide Tobi cover
• Face-to-face, telephone or video
• Fixed quote, usually within the hour (office hours)
• Published price ranges
• Since 2017

Settings we interpret in NHS and private healthcare · courts and tribunals · police · local authorities · solicitors · businesses · private appointments

How we work UK GDPR · client terms · published price ranges · purchase-order invoicing for NHS and public bodies

Before anything else, the name needs pinning down. Tobian has its own ISO 639-3 code, tox, in the SIL registry, and Glottolog's Tobian entry records Tobi, Hatohobei, Hatohobeian and Ramari Hatohobei as other names for it. Glottolog places it in Palau alone and rates it moribund, near the most endangered end of its scale.

No UK figure exists. The Census 2021 main-language table for England and Wales (TS024) gives Tobian no category, and we know of no Tobian-speaking community in the UK. Expect a request to concern one person.

Tobi interpreting services: face-to-face, telephone and video

Tobi interpreting services put a trained interpreter between a Tobian speaker and an English speaker, carrying what each says into the other language as the conversation goes, by video, by telephone or, very occasionally, in the same room. Our interpreting services page explains the general method.

Growing up in Palau usually means living with more than one language. Article XIII of the Constitution of the Republic of Palau declares the Palauan traditional languages to be the national languages and makes Palauan and English the official ones. A Tobian speaker schooled in Palau may therefore use Palauan, English or both, though how well varies from person to person. That question shapes every booking.

English to Tobi interpreter (and Tobi to English)

An English to Tobi interpreter covers both directions for the whole session. Out of English, the hard part is the vocabulary of British systems (a remand hearing, a discharge letter, a notice seeking possession) for which an island language may have no fixed term, so the interpreter explains rather than matching word for word. Into English, family relationships and the order of events must come through untouched.

If no direct interpreter exists, a relay may help: the speaker talks with a Palauan interpreter, who works into English. The extra step adds room for error, so we propose it only when the speaker says they are at ease in Palauan.

A Tobian-speaking relative in the waiting room is no substitute. The GOV.UK migrant health guide on language interpretation tells clinicians to offer a professional interpreter instead of relying on family or friends, and says using children is inappropriate.

Tobi court interpreters and HMCTS work

A Tobi court interpreter puts the evidence, questions and judge's directions into Tobian and the witness's replies into English, adding nothing and leaving nothing out. According to the GOV.UK page on getting an interpreter at a court or tribunal, criminal defendants are given one, family courts provide one in cases involving children, domestic violence or forced marriage, and civil courts in possession and committal hearings. Family members or friends can step in only if the judge allows it beforehand.

With Tobian, the realistic danger is not a weak interpreter but no interpreter at all. Raise it with the court office at the first listing, and find out in conference whether the person can follow proceedings in Palauan or English. Our usual part is legal interpreting for solicitors at conferences and statement-taking. Prism Linguistics is a private language-services provider and does not present itself as a court-appointed supplier.

Tobi interpreters for NHS, police, solicitors, councils and business

No published source shows which UK services see Tobian speakers; treat these as plausible settings only.

Tobi NHS and medical interpreter

A visitor or student who falls ill here, or a consent discussion where a second language gives way. Video is fastest; see healthcare interpreting.

Tobi police interpreter

Witness accounts and interviews under caution. For police interpreting we check the force's vetting rules first.

Solicitors with a client or witness in Palau

Instructions taken by video from the islands, within a narrow window of overlapping hours.

Councils, schools and employers

Safeguarding or school meetings for a family staying here. English being an official language of Palau, commercial meetings seldom need business interpreting in Tobian.

Face-to-face, telephone or video: which one fits?

For Tobian, availability picks the mode before the setting does. A Tobi video interpreter is the sensible first choice for anything long or delicate. Once someone has been found, a Tobi telephone interpreter handles short calls well, while face-to-face interpreting needs an interpreter who is in Britain or able to come here, and we will not offer it until that is confirmed.

Tobi interpreting modes at a glance

Mode	Best for	Typical notice
Tobi telephone interpreter	Confirming the speaker's languages or a short call about results.	Days to a week or more; same day only subject to availability
Tobi video interpreter	Solicitor conferences, remote hearings, a Palauan relay.	Allow at least two weeks
Tobi face-to-face interpreter	A trial or capacity assessment that cannot be done over a screen.	Several weeks, and possibly not achievable

Lead times for Tobi bookings

Think in weeks rather than days. Each Tobi enquiry starts with a search well beyond the UK, and we report back once we know whether a direct interpreter or a relay is possible. Palau has been sovereign since 1994 in free association with the United States, and the US Office of Insular Affairs notes that the Compact gives Palauan citizens unrestricted access to the US, so our search covers America as well as Palau. Palau is eight or nine hours ahead of the UK, so early UK mornings work best.

Qualified, professional Tobi interpreters: what to look for

Speaking Tobian does not make someone an interpreter. Fair questions for any provider:

Do they hold the DPSI, and in which language?

CIOL's page on the DPSI describes the Level 6 Diploma in Public Service Interpreting as an Ofqual-regulated qualification from CIOL Qualifications, with some languages needing minimum candidate numbers to run. Ask which specialism and language a certificate covers. With Tobian, ask what interpreting experience can be shown instead.

Are they on the National Register of Public Service Interpreters?

The register's criteria for joining cover qualifications, public service experience and entitlement to work in the UK, so a Tobian interpreter living in the Pacific is unlikely to be listed. Ask what evidence they offer in its place.

Is an Enhanced DBS check needed?

Wards, custody suites and work around children often call for one, and the DBS eligibility guidance on GOV.UK sets out which roles qualify. For someone who has lived mostly overseas, ask how they have been vetted.

On our side, any Tobi interpreter we propose is professionally qualified and background-checked, court bookings go to court-experienced linguists, and Enhanced DBS applies where the setting requires it.

Tobi dialects and varieties: why it matters at booking

Glottolog lists no dialects of Tobian, so the risk at booking is the wrong language rather than the wrong accent. Its closest relative is Sonsorolese: Glottolog's Sonsorol entry sets both in a small Sonsorol-Tobi group within Western Trukic, and gives Sonsorol-Tobi as one of Sonsorol's own alternative names. So a request worded as Sonsorol-Tobi could mean either language, and an interpreter from one island should not be assumed to suit a speaker from the other.

So ask the speaker which island their family belongs to and what they call their language. A Palauan relay can serve practical matters if the speaker asks for it, but never stands in for direct interpreting of evidence.

How to book or hire a Tobi interpreter

Tell us the brief

Send the appointment type, date and length, the address or video platform, the speaker's island and name for their language, their confidence in Palauan and English, and any gender preference.

We match and price

We search internationally, say frankly if a relay or remote session is the only workable route, and send a fixed price, normally within the hour during UK office hours.

Confirm and the interpreter attends

Once you accept, we brief the interpreter and fix a time that suits both time zones; organisations receive an invoice and private clients pay by card.

Book a Tobi interpreter

Find a Tobi interpreter near me: cities and towns across the UK

A Tobi interpreter near you is available in any part of the UK, though no official source shows where Tobian speakers live here, so we name no towns. Almost every session is remote, so distance hardly matters; more locations are listed below.

How much does a Tobi interpreter cost in the UK?

The price of a Tobi interpreter depends on mode, duration, notice, travel and setting. Our 2026 price guide puts in-person work at £40 to £75 an hour plus travel (a two-hour minimum, or three for court), telephone interpreting at £1.10 to £2.50 a minute, and video at £60 to £120 for each 30-minute session. Tobian sits at the upper end, and a relay needs two interpreters. Through the Tobi interpreter quote form you receive a fixed price, normally within the hour during UK office hours. NHS patients should not pay; the practice or hospital books it.

Confidentiality and GDPR for Tobi interpreting

Whatever is said in a Tobi session stays with the people in it, and personal data is handled under UK GDPR. With so few speakers, the interpreter could know the speaker's relatives; tell us if that worries the client.

Need a Tobi translator instead?

For written material, see Tobi translation services or Tobi document translation, and the Tobi language services page for everything we offer in the language.

Tobi interpreting FAQs

How much does a Tobi interpreter cost in the UK?

Our 2026 guide prices in-person work at 40 to 75 pounds an hour plus travel, telephone at 1.10 to 2.50 pounds a minute, and video at 60 to 120 pounds per 30-minute session. Tobian sits at the top of each range. A fixed quote normally arrives within the hour during UK office hours.

How quickly can you book a Tobi interpreter?

Allow two weeks or more for a video session, and longer again in person. Same-day help is subject to availability and very unlikely for Tobian. We tell you as soon as we know whether a direct interpreter or a relay is possible.

Are your Tobi interpreters qualified for court and tribunal work?

Court and tribunal work goes to court-experienced linguists who are professionally qualified and background-checked. Contact us as soon as the case is listed, because Tobian interpreters are extremely scarce. We are a private provider, not a court-appointed supplier.

Do you provide Tobi interpreters for NHS appointments?

Yes, mostly by video or telephone. The practice or hospital books and is invoiced, and GOV.UK migrant health guidance advises clinicians not to rely on relatives to interpret.

Can I book a Tobi interpreter by telephone or video?

Yes, and remote work is usually the only realistic option for Tobian, since any interpreter is likely to be abroad. Video suits long sessions; telephone suits brief calls.

Can I request a female Tobi interpreter?

You can ask, but the choice is tiny. Say at the start whether a woman is essential or simply preferred.

Do you interpret both Tobi to English and English to Tobi?

Yes. One interpreter covers both directions for the whole session, and we say in advance if it will be relayed through Palauan.

Is Tobi the same language as Sonsorolese or Palauan?

No. Tobian and Sonsorolese are close relatives with separate ISO 639-3 codes, tox and sov, and Palauan belongs to a different branch altogether. Tell us the speaker's island and their own name for the language.

About the Tobi language

Tobian is an Austronesian language of the Trukic group, spoken on Tobi Island, which Article I of the Palau constitution names as a point on the baseline marking the country's territory. Glottolog rates it moribund and cites a Catalogue of Endangered Languages assessment of severely endangered, made with only 20 per cent certainty. Its nearest relative is Sonsorolese, which Glottolog records in Palau and the Northern Mariana Islands.