Resume rules in Cabo Verde
What employers in Cabo Verde expect on a Curriculum Vitae (CV), what the law lets them ask for, and where the two disagree.
Call it a CV for Cabo Verde or a resume for Cabo Verde: it's the same document. Employers there usually want it written in Portuguese.
This is research, not legal advice. Employment and data protection law changes, state and provincial rules matter in federal countries, and practice varies by industry and seniority. Each entry shows when it was looked up and how confident we are. Where nothing reliable was published it says Not found rather than a guess.
Law and practice, side by side
The label on the right is what local hiring expects. The two lines under it are the law and the habit, which often disagree.
Photo: Not found
Conflicting guidance: one source says common/expected, another says not common unless requested
What the law says: No law requiring or prohibiting CV photos; data protection law applies to processing photos
Date of birth: Common
Common, included by island (per practice)
What the law says: No explicit legal requirement on CV; data protection law applies to processing DOB
Marital status: Not found
Not found
What the law says: No legal requirement on CV; data protection law applies
Sex or gender: Uncommon
Uncommon, not typically included
What the law says: No legal requirement on CV
Nationality: Not found
Not typically included
What the law says: No legal requirement on CV
National ID number: Uncommon
Uncommon on CV itself
What the law says: No legal requirement on CV
The rest of the entry
- Local name of the document
- Curriculum Vitae (CV)
- Language to submit in
- Portuguese
- Typical length
- 1 to 2 pages
- Other customary attachments
- Professional certificates relevant to the job; for work visa: CV and proof of qualifications
- Employer may not ask for
- Employment discrimination on basis of sexual orientation prohibited since 2008; CNPD ensures non-discrimination in data processing
- Named statutes
- Law No. 133-V-2001 of 22 January 2001 on Personal Data Protection; Law No. 41 (2013) updating previous law; Constitution providing habeas data right
- Data protection regime
- Law No. 41 (2013) updating Law 133-V-2001 (2001); enforced by National Commission of Data Protection (CNPD, operational since 2015); Constitutional protection with habeas data right
- Anti-discrimination statutes
- Employment discrimination on basis of sexual orientation prohibited since 2008; Data Protection Law with non-discrimination guarantees
- Local language source
- English only
Where this came from
Looked up 2026-08-15. Independently checked 2026-08-15. High confidence. Result of that check: Confirmed.
Notes: Cabo Verde was first African country to enact comprehensive data protection legislation (2001), largely based on Portuguese legal framework. Law includes innovative constitutional habeas data right. One of few African countries with explicit employment discrimination ban based on sexual orientation (since 2008). Conflicting sources on whether photo is expected or optional.
Researched with AI assistants working from a written checklist, then independently checked. How we researched this