German CV Format: How to Write a CV for Germany

The German CV format is a tabular CV (Lebenslauf) of at most two A4 pages, with the newest job first. It opens with your personal details and, in most applications, a professional photo. Work experience comes next, then further training, education and skills. It ends with place, date and your signature. You send it as one PDF together with a one-page cover letter (Anschreiben) and your certificates (Zeugnisse).

The rules below come from the Federal Employment Agency (Bundesagentur für Arbeit) and the government portal Make it in Germany, checked in October 2026. I have coached more than 2,000 adults in Germany's publicly funded career and integration programmes since 2022, and CVs are a fixed part of that work. Most of the people I work with are starting over in a new country, so this guide is written for you if German is not your first language.

German CV format at a glance

Make it in Germany notes that applications by post in a printed folder are rare now. Most companies want a PDF by email or an upload to their career site, and the job ad usually lists the documents they expect.

German CV template, section by section

This order follows the Federal Employment Agency's 2026 application guide for adults (Bewerbungskompass). Use German headings if you apply in German. A Lebenslauf in English keeps the same order and layout with English headings.

1. Personal details (Persönliche Daten)

Put these at the top, in the body of the page. Applicant tracking systems (ATS) often skip the document header, and the agency's guide warns about it.

• Full name, postal address, phone number with the country code, and a plain email address (firstname.lastname@provider)
• Date and place of birth
• Optional: nationality and family status. Leave out religion unless the employer asks for it.
• Optional: the job title you are applying for, right under your name

If you include a photo, it goes at the top right of this section, or on a cover page if you use one.

2. Profile (Kurzprofil)

Write a few short sentences on what you have done, what you do well and what sets you apart. The agency recommends writing it without "I". For example: "Accountant with SME bookkeeping experience in DATEV. Prepares monthly closings for small business clients. German B2, English C1."

3. Work experience (Berufserfahrung)

Start with your current or last job. For each position, give:

• the dates in month and year
• your job title
• the employer and its city
• three to five short bullets

Write what you were responsible for and what came out of it. The agency's guide asks for results, and a list of duties alone tells a recruiter little. If you are at the start of your career, list internships, side jobs and volunteer work here.

4. Further training (Weiterbildung)

List courses, certificates and in-house training that matter for this job, newest first, with dates and the provider. Leave out old or unrelated courses.

5. Education (Ausbildung)

Name your highest degree or vocational qualification first, with dates, institution and city. Add older qualifications only when they fit the job. Primary school does not belong on the CV.

If your degree comes from outside Germany, keep its original name and add a German or English translation of the title in brackets.

6. Skills (Kenntnisse)

• Languages with CEFR levels, as Make it in Germany shows: "German: B2, English: C1"
• Software and IT skills relevant to the job
• Driving licence, if the job needs one
• Job-specific certificates, such as a forklift licence

Describe each level in words, such as "English, business fluent". The agency lists stars and bars among the design elements that trip up ATS software.

7. Optional extras

Volunteer work and club memberships belong here when they say something about you. Hobbies go in only if they fit the job. "Reading" and "travel" add nothing.

8. Place, date, signature

End with your city, the date and your signature, for example "Berlin, 06.10.2026". For an email or online application, insert a scanned signature.

Copy this skeleton

[Full name]
[Job title you are applying for]
[Street, postcode, city] | [+49 phone] | [email]
Date and place of birth: [DD.MM.YYYY, city]

PROFILE
[A few short sentences: experience, strengths, languages]

WORK EXPERIENCE
MM/YYYY to today    [Job title], [Employer], [City]
                    - [Responsibility or result]
                    - [Responsibility or result]
                    - [Responsibility or result]

FURTHER TRAINING
MM/YYYY             [Course or certificate], [Provider]

EDUCATION
MM/YYYY to MM/YYYY  [Degree], [Institution], [City]

SKILLS
Languages           German B2, English C1, [native language] native
IT                  [Software relevant to the job]

[City], [date]
[Signature]

Photo, personal details and German anti-discrimination law

Since 18 August 2006, Germany's General Equal Treatment Act (AGG (opens in a new tab)) has protected applicants against discrimination on grounds of race or ethnic origin, sex, religion or belief, disability, age and sexual identity. A photo and a date of birth reveal some of those traits before anyone reads your experience. The Federal Anti-Discrimination Agency advises employers who run anonymised hiring to remove every detail that points to these traits, especially photos.

Hiring habits lag behind the law. In its first 2026 newsletter, the Federal Employment Agency's international placement service (ZAV) wrote that a photo is not required but most employers still expect one. Some employers ask for anonymised CVs instead, with no photo and nothing that points to your gender or origin. Follow the job ad: if it asks for an anonymised CV, send one.

If you use a photo, the agency's guide recommends:

• a photographer's headshot, 4 x 6 cm to 4 x 8 cm on the CV
• a new photo once yours is more than a year old or you look different
• no selfies, holiday shots or passport photos
• no AI-edited phone pictures, which tend to look artificial

When you have no good photo, leave it out.

German CV vs UK and US CV

Sources: Federal Employment Agency, UK National Careers Service and Prospects, US EEOC and CareerOneStop.

If you searched for a "German resume", this table is the short answer. The other big change is the paperwork. In the UK, Prospects tells applicants they need not name referees at this stage. A German employer expects proof: your degree certificate, training certificates and a written reference (Arbeitszeugnis) from each former employer, all as copies in the same PDF. The German CV also ends with place, date and signature.

What else goes in a German application

The cover letter (Anschreiben)

Keep it to one A4 page. Say where you found the job, why you fit it and when you can start, if the ad asks. The Federal Employment Agency advises active sentences without "would" and "could", and salary only when the employer asks for it. Write a new letter for each job.

Certificates and employer references (Zeugnisse)

German employees have a legal right to a written reference when a job ends (§ 109 GewO (opens in a new tab)). A simple reference covers the type and length of the job; a qualified one also rates your performance and conduct. The law requires clear wording and bans hidden coded statements.

Attach your references from former employers, your last degree or vocational certificate and relevant training certificates. Scan copies and keep the originals.

Translations and recognition

Make it in Germany recommends translating foreign certificates into German or English. Start early so the translation does not push you past an application deadline. If you come from outside the EU on a skilled-worker route, the portal's checklist reminds you to prove that your qualification is recognised or equivalent. Regulated professions such as medicine also need a licence to practise.

Europass

Europass, the EU's CV tool, builds a CV in German or English. Make it in Germany and the Federal Employment Agency both say German employers usually prefer an individual layout. Use Europass for structure, then make the design and wording your own.

Common German CV mistakes

1. A UK or US résumé sent unchanged. It lacks the month-and-year timeline, the closing signature and the attached references a German employer looks for.
2. Years without months. "2021 to 2023" looks vague. The agency's guide says year-only dates raise questions.
3. Unexplained gaps. Pauses of two or three months need no comment. Name longer ones in a line: job search, caring for a relative, language course, retraining.
4. Design that breaks ATS software. Nested tables, contact details in the header, icons and skill bars confuse the systems many companies use to pre-sort applications. Use clear headings and plain formatting.
5. One CV for every job. Copy the key terms from the job ad into your profile and bullets. The agency tells you to tailor the CV each time.
6. Mistakes in German. If you write in German, have a native speaker proofread the CV and the cover letter. The international placement service recommends it.
7. Applying in German too early. For jobs that need German, the placement service suggests waiting until you reach B1 or B2. Below that level, recruiters may reject your application sooner.

Get your CV checked

A template gets the format right. Fitting your story to a German employer takes more work: which job to lead with, how to explain a career change or a gap, how to present a foreign degree. Those are the questions I work on with clients in my career coaching sessions, in English, German, Lithuanian or Russian. If you are applying in Germany now, book a call and bring your CV and the job ad.