CV in Switzerland: what Swiss employers expect

Deutsch · Français · Italiano

A Swiss CV is short, set out as a table and full of facts. It goes with a signed one-page letter and copies of all your work certificates.

• Checked on 22 October 2026
• What SECO, EURES and cantonal career centres advise

A Swiss CV, annotated

Sample CV

Laura Muster

Musterstrasse 1, 3000 Bern

+41 79 000 00 00 · laura.muster@example.com

2Personal details

Date of birth

14 May 1994

3Nationality

German, B permit

Marital status

Single

1Photo (optional)

4Work experience

since 03.2022

Product manager, Beispiel Reisen AG, Bern
Plans 40 group tours a year to 12 countries. Leads a team of 3.

08.2018 to 02.2022

Sales consultant, Muster Bahnreisen GmbH, Munich (Germany)
Advised about 30 customers a day on rail travel in Europe.

Education

510.2014 to 07.2018

Bachelor of Arts in Tourism Management, Muster University of Applied Sciences, Munich (Germany). Comparable to a Swiss bachelor’s degree from a university of applied sciences.

Further training

Project management

Certificate course, Beispiel Academy, Bern, 2023

Languages

French course to level B2, Muster Language School, Bern, 2024

Languages and IT

6Languages

German: native language. English: C1. French: B2.

IT

Excel (advanced), booking and customer software

Interests

Hiking, singing in a choir

7References

Available on request

8No signature, no date

1. 1

   Photo (optional)Top right, about 4 × 6 cm (St. Gallen). Usual, not required: leaving it out is a fair choice. The photo

2. 2

   Personal detailsDate of birth, nationality and marital status. Children and place of origin only if you want. What goes in

3. 3

   PermitNot Swiss? Add your permit, for example B (residence), C (settlement) or G (cross-border commuter). What goes in

4. 4

   A table, newest firstMonth and year on the left, newest job first. What matters most belongs in the first third of the page. What goes in

5. 5

   Foreign degreeSay which Swiss qualification it compares to (EURES). What goes in

6. 6

   LanguagesA level from A1 to C2, or a short description such as “native language”. No bars or dots. What goes in

7. 7

   ReferencesNo names in the CV (SECO). “Available on request” is fine (Vaud, Bern). Copies of your work certificates go in the file. What stays out

8. 8

   No signature, no dateA Swiss CV ends without them (Vaud, Bern). One page here, two A4 pages at most. What stays out

What goes in, part by part

Write the parts in this order. It is the order SECO sets, and the order of the sample.

1. Contact

   Name, address, phone and a private e‑mail address. Never apply from your current employer’s address.

2. Personal details

   Date of birth, nationality, marital status. Children and place of origin (Heimatort) only if you want. Your permit if you are not Swiss.

3. Experience

   Month and year on the left, newest first. Job title, employer, town and what you did. Put what matters most in the first third of the page.

4. Education

   Degrees and schools, newest first. For a foreign degree, say which Swiss qualification it matches.

5. Further training

   Grouped by theme, not by date.

6. Languages and IT

   A level from A1 to C2, or a short description. No bars or dots.

7. Interests

   One short line.

Who says what

SECO sets the format, the order and most personal details. EURES lists the same details and asks you to compare foreign degrees. Vaud adds the permit. The Bern career centre adds the language levels and warns against bars, which software cannot read.

What stays out

• Personal qualities. SECO says they do not belong in the CV. Show them in the letter, with examples.
• References. Not in the CV either (SECO). Give them when asked, usually your last two employers. “References available on request” is fine (Vaud, Bern). A new employer needs your consent before it contacts your employer (Federal Data Protection Commissioner).
• Signature and date. A Swiss CV is not signed or dated (Vaud, Bern). Germany does the opposite: its federal employment agency says to add place, date and signature. So people mix them up.
• Health limits. Not in the written application. If one could limit you in the new job, do not hide it: raise it in the interview (St. Gallen).
• Salary. Only if the ad asks. SECO treats it as part of preparing for the interview.
• Skill bars, unexplained gaps, more than three pages, and AI text that invents facts (Bern career centre).

The photo: usual, not required

A photo is usual in Switzerland, but no rule requires it. SECO lists “possibly a photo” in the file. Vaud: recommended, not compulsory unless the ad asks for one. Ticino: not compulsory. EURES describes a Swiss CV “with photo”.

If you add one, St. Gallen advises a recent colour photo, top right, about 4 × 6 cm, friendly and dressed for the job. The empty frame on the sample is drawn to that size.

Leaving it out is a fair choice. Personal details can expose people to bias: on the Swiss public job platform, recruiters contacted immigrants and minorities 4% to 19% less often than comparable Swiss jobseekers (study in Nature, 2021).

The application file: letter, CV and every certificate

Swiss employers expect a full file, the “Bewerbungsdossier” or “dossier de candidature” (SECO, EURES). Tick what you already have.

Your application file, in this order

• Cover letterOne A4 page, signed.
• CVTwo A4 pages at most, not signed, not dated.
• Copies of all your work certificatesArbeitszeugnisse, certificats de travail, certificati di lavoro.
• A copy of your degree or apprenticeship certificateYour vocational or university qualification.
• Copies of diplomas and training certificatesIncluding further training courses.

Only if the employer asks: a criminal record extract or a handwriting sample. Right after training, school reports help. Your ticks stay on this screen: nothing is saved or sent.

• Copies are enough. They need not be certified (SECO).
• Put the attachments in the order of the CV (Vaud), in one PDF.
• Spontaneous application: send only the letter and the CV. Certificates follow when the employer asks (EURES, Vaud).

Why so many documents? EURES: in Switzerland, great value is placed on degrees and work certificates. St. Gallen: missing certificates raise the suspicion that you have something to hide.

Work certificates: ask for one every time

• When you leave a job, your employer gives you a written work certificate (Arbeitszeugnis). The legal basis is Art. 330a of the Code of Obligations.
• It must describe the job completely and truthfully, and judge your work with goodwill. It may not use unclear wording or codes (ch.ch).
• Ask for an interim certificate when you take on a new role or get a new manager, even in the same company (ch.ch).
• If something in it is wrong, ask your manager to correct it (ch.ch).
• SECO: always ask for a certificate when you leave, or at least a confirmation of employment. Your certificates must cover your working life without gaps.

The cover letter: one page, signed

• One A4 page (SECO, EURES and every cantonal guide).
• Name the job, show what you bring and why this employer, and ask for an interview.
• Write directly, not in the conditional. SECO’s example: “Ich freue mich, von Ihnen zu hören” (I look forward to hearing from you), not “Ich würde mich freuen” (I would be glad).
• Sign it (Vaud, St. Gallen, Bern). Vaud asks for a handwritten signature; the Bern career centre also accepts a digital one.

The CV and the cover letter follow different rules.

Point	CV	Cover letter
Length	Two A4 pages at most	One A4 page
Signature	None	Yes. Vaud: by hand. Bern: a digital one is fine too.
Date	None	Yes (St. Gallen). Bern adds the place.
Personal qualities	Leave them out	Show them, with examples

German, French or Italian?

• Write in the language of the ad and the region. The advice is the same in all three regions. Vaud is the strictest on length: one page as a rule, two at most.
• The CV is the “Lebenslauf” in German, the “CV” or “curriculum vitae” in French and Italian.
• In German, use Swiss spelling: “Strasse” and “gross”, with a double s.

Mistakes Swiss guides warn about

• The same letter to every employer: mass applications fail (St. Gallen).
• An e‑mail address from your current employer, or an info@ address (SECO, St. Gallen).
• A vague subject line such as “My application” (SECO).
• Missing certificates and typos. Vaud: employers read typos as a lack of respect or as carelessness.
• Gaps without a word of explanation, skill bars, CVs over three pages, AI text with invented facts (Bern career centre).
• Criticising a former employer (SECO).

Your data

An employer may only ask about what matters for the job. Asking about pregnancy is discrimination and not allowed. If you do not get the job, your file should come back to you and copies should be destroyed, unless you agree that they keep it. (Federal Data Protection Commissioner, 2014 guideline.)

Questions

Do I need a photo on my CV in Switzerland?

It is usual, not required. Leaving it out is fine unless the ad asks for one.

Should I sign my Swiss CV?

No. Swiss CVs are not signed or dated. Sign the cover letter.

How long should a Swiss CV be?

Two A4 pages at most. In Vaud, one page is the rule.

Do I give my date of birth and nationality?

Yes, both are usual, with your marital status. If you are not Swiss, add your permit.

Do I attach all my work certificates?

Yes, copies of all of them, in the order of the CV, in one PDF. For a spontaneous application, send them only when asked.

Can I write my CV in English?

Use the language of the job ad.

Related tools

Sources

1. SECO, Wie bewerbe ich mich richtig?Federal brochure in German, edition of March 2019. Checked on 22 October 2026.
2. SECO, the same brochure in ItalianEdition of February 2018. Checked on 22 October 2026.
3. EURES, Living and working in SwitzerlandGerman page, dated 30 April 2026. Checked on 22 October 2026.
4. ch.ch, Reference letter (work certificate)Federal portal. Checked on 22 October 2026.
5. Zurich courts, Arbeitszeugnis (Art. 330a OR)Checked on 18 October 2026. The page did not answer on 22 October.
6. SEM, B EU/EFTA permit, C permit and G permitState Secretariat for Migration. Checked on 22 October 2026.
7. Canton of Vaud, OCOSP, Dossier de candidatureReprint of 2019. Checked on 22 October 2026.
8. Canton of St. Gallen, BewerbungsdossierEdition of 2025. Checked on 22 October 2026.
9. Canton of Ticino, UOSP, Candidatura istruzioni per l’uso: CVChecked on 22 October 2026.
10. Canton of Bern, BIZ, application workshop for migrantsChecked on 22 October 2026.
11. Federal Data Protection Commissioner (EDÖB), guideline on personal data at workOctober 2014. Checked on 22 October 2026.
12. German Federal Employment Agency, Bewerbungskompass für ArbeitsstellenFor the German CV: place, date and signature. Checked on 22 October 2026.
13. Monitoring hiring discrimination through online recruitment platformsStudy in Nature 589 (2021). Checked on 22 October 2026.