coolbrowne Jan 27, 2011:

The strict meaning of "à vista ddeXXX" Yes, strictly speaking, the isolated fragment "à vista de XXX" is not exactly "upon receipt of XXX" but we are translating the actual meaning of the whole phrase from Brazilian "legalese" to American "legalese", so the first step is to understand what is behind the actual intended meaning of the source expression: that the agent performing the action ("escriturar") must see the actual document, that is, the invoice ("nota fiscal") as proof ("comprovante"), before taking action. In other words, said agent must take possession of the invoice (as opposed to being told that it exists or that "the invoice is in the mail"). Now, in American legal parlance, "upon receipt" describes exactly that condition, even though the words do not correspond to the ones used in Portuguese. Such are the travails of legal translation: to seek the established language in the destination language that best describes the legal content of the source expression (in the source language, of course).

In other words, it seems that Tobias was on the right track: until such time as the invoice is (received and) seen by the accountant, no entry is made.

telefpro Jan 26, 2011:

here 'à vista da' does not mean 'upon receipt'

coolbrowne Jan 26, 2011:

Actually here it is upon (physical) receipt Since the context is very specific, a generic "on demand, or at sight" doesn't help, as they apply to different concepts. One could say "on sight" (not "at sight"), but "upon receipt" is a crystal clear description of the concept at hand, besides being commonly used in the US.

telefpro Jan 26, 2011:

à vista da = on demand, or at sight

T o b i a s (asker) Jan 26, 2011:

"à vista da" So contingency is involved? The invoice is not physically accompanying, so to speak?