Resume rules in Ghana
What employers in Ghana expect on a Curriculum Vitae (CV), what the law lets them ask for, and where the two disagree.
Call it a CV for Ghana or a resume for Ghana: it's the same document. Employers there usually want it written in English.
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: Common
Common; especially in private sector; less common in public sector
What the law says: No legal requirement or prohibition. Equal treatment under Employment Act not violated by photo presence/absence.
Date of birth: Common
Common; many candidates include for biographical completeness
What the law says: Employment Act 2006 (NRCD 191) prohibits age discrimination; date of birth not mandated by law
Marital status: Uncommon
Uncommon; many modern CVs omit
What the law says: No specific requirement; Employment Act forbids marital-status discrimination
Sex or gender: Optional
Optional; some candidates include, many omit for privacy
What the law says: Constitution (1992) and Employment Act prohibit gender discrimination; no requirement to state gender
Nationality: Optional
Optional; Ghanaian candidates often omit, expatriates may indicate
What the law says: Work permit required for non-Ghanaians separately; nationality not required on CV per law
National ID number: Uncommon
Uncommon; not standard on CV
What the law says: Not required on CV; Ghana National Identification Authority (GNIA) ID used in employment verification separately
The rest of the entry
- Local name of the document
- Curriculum Vitae (CV)
- Language to submit in
- English
- Typical length
- 1-2 pages
- Address detail expected
- City/region common; full address varies; increasingly privacy-conscious
- Signature and date
- Not standard; typed CVs dominant, signatures rare
- Officially prescribed form
- None; Europass used occasionally for EU opportunities but not mandatory
- Religion, ethnicity or caste
- PROTECTED. Constitution (1992, Article 17-5) and Employment Act forbid discrimination. Religion, ethnicity, race must not be requested or acted upon.
- Health, disability or pregnancy
- PROTECTED. Persons with Disability Act 2006 (PWDA) forbids discrimination; medical data not required on CV.
- Other customary attachments
- References typically provided separately; certificates not required at CV stage
- Employer may not ask for
- Age, religion, ethnicity, race, family/marital status, disability, health, sexual orientation, political views, union membership
- Named statutes
- Labour Act 2003 (Act 651); Constitution of the Republic of Ghana (1992); Persons with Disability Act 2006 (Act 715); Labour (Relations) Act 2007
- Data protection regime
- Not found; Ghana lacks comprehensive data protection law equivalent to GDPR. No national DPA. Employment data governed by Employment Act provisions only.
- Anti-discrimination statutes
- Labour Act 2003 (Act 651); Constitution of the Republic of Ghana, Article 17(5); Persons with Disability Act 2006 (Act 715); Labour (Relations) Act 2007
- 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: Corrected.
Notes: Ghana has clearer employment legislation than many African countries, including explicit anti-discrimination provisions. However, published guidance on CV content requirements minimal. Private sector practice more liberal than public sector. No central registry or ministry guidance on CV standards found.
Researched with AI assistants working from a written checklist, then independently checked. How we researched this