Bitrix24 Interface Localization Setup for Global Teams
Imagine your company has switched the portal to English, but half of the CRM stages still display in Russian. Date formats remain Russian, thousands separators are spaces instead of commas, and automated emails to clients arrive with garbled encoding. The standard language switch only changes the system interface. Everything else — stages, fields, notifications, formats — needs manual localization. Order a turnkey localization setup — we’ll evaluate your project and propose the optimal solution.
Why Standard Language Switch Is Not Enough — Interface Localization
Bitrix24 system language packs cover only the general interface: buttons, menus, system messages. Data you enter into CRM — stage names, contact types, custom fields — stay in the language they were created. Full localization requires working with each directory and setting individually.
How to Set Up Localization for an International Team
System Language Settings
Bitrix24 Cloud uses language packs that switch at the user level. The administrator manages the default portal language, available languages, and notification language. For Bitrix24 On-Premise, you can edit language files — full customization of translations at the source code level. On-Premise offers flexibility that is 10 times more convenient for deep customization compared to the cloud version.
Localizing Directories and Custom Fields
System directories — lead stages, deal stages, contact types, sources — are created in one language. They do not translate when the interface language is changed. Localization:
| Element |
Localization Method |
| Deal funnel stages |
Manual renaming via REST API crm.status.update or UI. For multilingualism — a middleware wrapper with substitution |
| Contact types |
Same as stages |
| Lead sources |
Directory crm.lead.source.list |
| Custom fields |
Bitrix24 supports multilingual names for custom fields: EDIT_FORM_LABEL, LIST_COLUMN_LABEL with language suffix |
For custom fields, when creating via API you can specify names in multiple languages:
EDIT_FORM_LABEL[ru] = "Region"
EDIT_FORM_LABEL[en] = "Region"
EDIT_FORM_LABEL[de] = "Region"
LIST_COLUMN_LABEL[ru] = "Region"
LIST_COLUMN_LABEL[en] = "Region"
The user sees the field name in their interface language.
More details on REST API methods can be found in the official documentation.
Date, Number and Currency Formats
Bitrix24 pulls formats from user language settings, but not always correctly — especially for custom fields and generated documents. We configure:
| Parameter |
RU Format |
EN Format |
DE Format |
| Date |
DD.MM.YYYY |
MM/DD/YYYY |
DD.MM.YYYY |
| Time |
24-hour |
12-hour (AM/PM) |
24-hour |
| Number |
1 000 000,50 |
1,000,000.50 |
1.000.000,50 |
| Currency |
100 000 ₽ |
$100,000 |
100.000 € |
For the document generator — format is set in the template. Middleware or business process substitutes values in the correct format based on client language (field UF_LANGUAGE).
Custom Translations for On-Premise
On the On-Premise version, language files are located in /bitrix/modules/*/lang/. Structure:
/bitrix/modules/crm/lang/ru/
/bitrix/modules/crm/lang/en/
/bitrix/modules/crm/lang/de/
Each file contains an array $MESS with keys and translations. For customization:
- Find the key of the desired phrase via developer tools (displayed in HTML as
data-bx-msg or in JS variables).
- Create an override file in
/bitrix/php_interface/user_lang/ or via module customization mechanism.
- Specify your own translation for the required key.
This approach allows renaming any interface element: buttons, headers, hints, error messages.
How to Set Up Multilingual Business Processes?
Names of stages, buttons, and notifications in business processes are set during creation. For a multilingual portal, use neutral labels or duplicate in two languages: «Approval / Согласование». Send notification texts in the recipient’s language by checking a language field condition. Customize universal business process forms via form parameters.
Time Zones
Related setting: in an international team employees work in different time zones. Bitrix24 supports portal time zone, user time zone, displaying time in tasks, calendars, and CRM in the viewer's time zone. Administrator sets portal time zone, each user sets their own. Task deadlines are automatically converted.
What’s Included in the Work
- Audit of current language settings and translations.
- Configuration of interface languages and default formats.
- Localization of CRM stages, directories, and custom fields.
- Correct date, number, and currency formats for each locale.
- Custom interface translations (for On-Premise).
- Multilingual business process logic and notifications.
- Time zone setup for international teams.
- Documentation of settings and team training.
- Warranty on completed work and post-delivery support.
We have over 10 years of experience with Bitrix24 and have implemented localization for 30+ projects. Entrust the setup to professionals — get a consultation on your Bitrix24 localization.
How a corporate portal on Bitrix24 solves the problem of information chaos?
Employees spend up to 2 hours a day searching for files, emails, and solutions. Tasks get lost in dozens of chats, approvals get stuck for weeks. The manager learns about missed deadlines only at a meeting. A corporate portal on Bitrix24 ties every message, document, and task to a single context. You get a transparent picture of work: who is working on what, which stages, where bottlenecks are. Wikipedia: Information silo describes how unorganized data reduces productivity – a portal cuts that loss by 60–70%.
We will evaluate your project for free – contact us to get the architecture in 2 days. A medium‑sized company typically saves 2.5 million rubles annually after deployment (based on our projects).
What does the portal offer in daily work and why is it better than messengers?
In messengers, information is unstructured – discussions get buried within a week. On the portal, every message is tied to a task, project, or document. Employees spend up to 30% of their work time searching for data (McKinsey). The portal reduces this time by 2–3 times thanks to structured repositories and full‑text search.
Communications. Activity stream, messenger, and video calls are tied to specific tasks. Any discussion can be found six months later – in a messenger it would be buried within a week.
Tasks and projects. Kanban, Gantt, checklists, dependencies, time tracking. Each employee's efficiency is visible in reports – no need to wait for a meeting.
Document flow. Approval routes through the business process designer: leave request → manager → HR → accounting. Electronic signature, versioning, deadline control. Integration with electronic document management (SBIS, Diadoc) via REST API.
HR. Onboarding of new employees, leave/travel requests, organizational structure, absence schedule. An employee knows where to go from day one.
Knowledge base. Bitrix24 wiki engine: regulations, instructions. Knowledge does not leave with departing employees.
Implementation example. For a manufacturing company with 320 employees, we deployed a portal with integration of 1C:SALARY AND HR MANAGEMENT and Active Directory in 4 months. Travel request approval time decreased from 3 days to 4 hours. Savings on employee idle time amounted to 1.5 million rubles per year. Managers receive automatic reports on department efficiency. Customer response time decreased by 20%. Portal payback period is 7 months.
How does integration with 1C and Active Directory accelerate HR management?
Integration with 1C:Enterprise via the b24connector module or custom REST handler: a leave request is approved on the portal through a business process and automatically enters 1C:SALARY AND HR MANAGEMENT for vacation pay calculation. Active Directory (SSO via the ldap module) – the employee account is created once in AD and synchronized to the portal, email, VPN. Upon dismissal, it is blocked everywhere. Manual account creation is eliminated, errors are minimized.
Types of corporate portals and key integrations
| Type |
Purpose |
Key Feature |
| Intranet |
Internal communications and services |
News, phone directory (sync with AD), meeting room booking, IT requests via BP |
| HR portal |
HR management and development |
Profiles, KPI/OKR on custom HL blocks, training, electronic document flow |
| Knowledge portal |
Documentation and regulations |
Categorization, tags, ratings, subscriptions to updates |
| Extranet |
Work with partners and contractors |
Granular permissions via CGroup and extranet module, access without VPN |
| Holding portal |
Management of multi‑company structure |
Separate workspaces, consolidated reporting, cross‑cutting BPs |
Additional integrations that deliver real value:
- Email: Exchange via EWS API or IMAP, calendar synchronization, creating a task from an email.
- IP telephony: Asterisk, Mango Office, Zadarma via REST API – calls from the portal, contact card, call recording.
- Video conferencing: built‑in video calls or integration with Zoom/Teams via marketplace.
- EDI: SBIS, Diadoc via REST API – fully electronic document flow with counterparties.
Security and compliance with Federal Law 152‑FZ
The portal contains personal data, financial reports, strategic plans. We guarantee protection:
- role model via CGroup and section‑level permissions;
- two‑factor authentication (OTP, Yandex.Key, SMS);
- audit of all actions (b_event_log);
- TLS encryption for transmission and disk encryption;
- full compliance with Federal Law No. 152‑FZ "On Personal Data".
How is implementation carried out? Step‑by‑step plan
| Stage |
Duration |
What we do |
| 1. Audit |
2–3 weeks |
Interviews, process analysis, architecture, integration plan |
| 2. Setup and customization |
3–6 weeks |
Structure, roles, BPs, branding (CSS template) |
| 3. Integrations |
2–4 weeks |
1C, AD, email, telephony, EDI |
| 4. Data migration |
1–2 weeks |
Documents, directories, employees from current systems |
| 5. Training and pilot |
1–2 weeks |
Administrators, key users, pilot of 20–30 people |
| 6. Scaling |
2–4 weeks |
Connecting departments, fine‑tuning based on feedback |
- Audit — we record current processes, measure time losses.
- Design — choose portal type, plan integrations.
- Implementation — configure business processes, permissions, interface.
- Test — pilot group tests scenarios, we fix issues.
- Launch — connect all employees, train, hand over documentation.
What you receive after implementation
- Project documentation: architecture, integration scheme, business process diagrams.
- Configured portal with all integrations (1C, AD, telephony, EDI).
- Business process descriptions and instructions for administrators and users.
- 30 days of technical support after launch.
- Access to our knowledge base and migration scripts.
Post‑launch support: how to prevent the portal from becoming obsolete
After six months, many portals become abandoned. To avoid this, we offer packages with fixed SLA and a dedicated administrator. Performance monitoring, platform updates, user administration, development of new modules. Our team has over 10 years of experience and more than 50 implemented corporate portals on Bitrix24. We are a certified 1C‑Bitrix partner, guaranteeing quality and deadlines.
Mobile access. Native Bitrix24 app (iOS/Android) with push notifications, tasks, chats. Responsive web interface for extranet users (no app installation required). Offline access to documents and tasks, sync when connectivity is restored.
Order a turnkey corporate portal implementation
Schedule a free audit – we will evaluate your project, propose architecture, and give clear timelines. Get a comprehensive proposal and see that the portal pays for itself within the first six months. Contact us today.
