Resume rules in Canada

What employers in Canada expect on a Resume / Curriculum Vitae, what the law lets them ask for, and where the two disagree.

Call it a CV for Canada or a resume for Canada: it's the same document.

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

Strongly discourage/Avoid; many employers reject resumes with photos on principle

What the law says: Canadian Human Rights Act prohibits discrimination on protected grounds; photos violate this principle

Date of birth: Avoid

Avoid/Never include

What the law says: Treated as protected characteristic under Canadian Human Rights Act; must be excluded

Marital status: Avoid

Avoid/Never include

What the law says: Protected characteristic; must be excluded

Sex or gender: Not found

Do not include

What the law says: Protected under Canadian Human Rights Act and provincial codes

Nationality: Avoid

Avoid/Never include

What the law says: Protected characteristic; national origin protected

National ID number: Avoid

Avoid/Never include

What the law says: Protected characteristic

The rest of the entry

Local name of the document
Resume / Curriculum Vitae
Language to submit in
English; French (bilingual in Quebec and federally)
Typical length
1 page (0-5 years experience); 2 pages (experienced)
Address detail expected
City/postal code acceptable; full address not necessary
Religion, ethnicity or caste
Protected under Canadian Human Rights Act; must not be included
Health, disability or pregnancy
Protected under Human Rights Act; AODA compliance required
Employer may not ask for
Canadian Human Rights Act prohibits requesting or considering: race, national origin, age, gender, sexual orientation, disability, marital status, family status, conviction record, physical appearance
Named statutes
Canadian Human Rights Act (R.S.C., 1985, c. H-6); provincial Human Rights Codes vary by province
Data protection regime
Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA) federal; provincial laws (Ontario FIPPA, BC PIPA, etc.)
Anti-discrimination statutes
Canadian Human Rights Act; various provincial Human Rights Codes (Ontario, BC, Alberta, Quebec, etc.)
Local language source
English and French

Where this came from

Looked up 2026-08-15. Independently checked 2026-08-15. High confidence. Result of that check: Confirmed.

Notes: Clear legal framework prohibiting protected characteristic information on CVs. HR best practice scrubs protected information before review. Applies across federal and all provincial jurisdictions.

Researched with AI assistants working from a written checklist, then independently checked. How we researched this

4 sources we opened