Resume rules in Poland
What employers in Poland expect on a Curriculum Vitae (CV), what the law lets them ask for, and where the two disagree.
Call it a CV for Poland or a resume for Poland: it's the same document. Employers there usually want it written in Polish, 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: Avoid
Avoid: Photos not permitted during recruitment phase under Article 22-1; increasingly omitted in international/tech sectors despite traditional practice
What the law says: Article 22-1 of Labour Code (Kodeks pracy) specifies closed list of data employer may request: name, date of birth, contact details, education, qualifications, employment history. PHOTO IS NOT on the list. Employers cannot lawfully request photos during recruitment.
Date of birth: Uncommon
Uncommon: increasingly omitted on modern CVs due to GDPR alignment; still common in traditional sectors
What the law says: Article 22-1 § 1 Kodeks pracy: Employer may demand date of birth. However, Article 11.3 prohibits age discrimination. Date of birth not required in CV; can be requested after hiring decision.
Marital status: Avoid
Avoid: not included
What the law says: Labour Code Article 22-1 does not include marital status in permitted requests
Sex or gender: Uncommon
Uncommon: not included
What the law says: Labour Code + Equal Treatment Act prohibit gender discrimination
Nationality: Optional
Optional: sometimes included for work permit context
What the law says: Labour Code Article 22-1 does not explicitly include nationality
National ID number: Avoid
Avoid: PESEL no longer standard on private sector CVs following GDPR
What the law says: Article 22-1 does not include PESEL or ID number during recruitment; can be requested post-hire under § 3
The rest of the entry
- Local name of the document
- Curriculum Vitae (CV)
- Language to submit in
- Polish, English
- Typical length
- 1-2 pages
- Address detail expected
- Contact details (city or email); full address optional; residential address collected post-hire under Article 22-1 § 3
- Signature and date
- Not required
- Officially prescribed form
- None mandated; Europass optional
- Religion, ethnicity or caste
- Labour Code + Equal Treatment Act protect; not disclosed
- Health, disability or pregnancy
- Labour Code protects; not required on CV
- Other customary attachments
- Education, qualifications, employment history (per Article 22-1 § 1 closed list)
- Employer may not ask for
- Photos (Article 22-1 closed list excludes them); marital status; sexual orientation; age-based screening; current/previous salary info (prohibited as of 24 Dec 2025); any data enabling age, gender, race, religion, disability discrimination
- Named statutes
- Kodeks pracy (Labour Code), Article 22-1 (Artykuł 22-1 Kodeksu pracy) as amended; Ustawa o równym traktowaniu w zatrudnieniu (Equal Treatment Act); Criminal Code articles on discrimination
- Data protection regime
- GDPR (EU 2016/679) + Polish implementation law; Polish Office for Personal Data Protection (UODO)
- Anti-discrimination statutes
- Kodeks pracy (Labour Code), Articles 11.3 (age discrimination), 18 (sex discrimination), 22 (data scope); Ustawa o równym traktowaniu w zatrudnieniu (Equal Treatment Act, Ustawa o równym traktowaniu w zatrudnieniu i zawodach); Criminal Code provisions
- Local language source
- Polish
Where this came from
Looked up 2026-08-15. Independently checked 2026-08-15. High confidence. Result of that check: Confirmed.
Notes: Poland is a high-priority research country. Article 22-1 Kodeks pracy (Labour Code) is the critical statute: it specifies a closed list of data employers can demand during recruitment, and PHOTOS ARE NOT INCLUDED. Date of birth is permitted under Article 22-1 § 1 but not required on CV; can be requested post-hiring decision. Age discrimination is prohibited (Article 11.3). 2019 amendment narrowed employer powers. As of 24 Dec 2025, salary history inquiries are prohibited.
Researched with AI assistants working from a written checklist, then independently checked. How we researched this