France CV format: the CV and the lettre de motivation, as French public sources describe them
A French CV fits on one page, two after about ten years of varied work, opens with a job title and an accroche, and lists jobs newest first. The lettre de motivation is one page in a fixed layout.1
Written 13 October 2026. CitedCV. How we write our guides
Before writing: lift the words out of the annonce
A French job ad is the template for both documents. The labour ministry's guide to candidates' rights says an offer cannot contain text written in a foreign language, since French is the national language, so the ad you answer will normally be in French and so should your reply. France Travail tells applicants to pick precise keywords for the title, such as 'technicien de maintenance' rather than 'technicien', and the Spanish public employment service's 2025 sheet on France adds that automated screening that scans for the ad's keywords is increasingly common there.
- Copy the job title exactly as the annonce writes it; it becomes the title of your CV and the subject line of your letter.
- Mark the skills the ad names twice or more. Each one needs a line in the CV and, for the two or three that matter most, an example in the letter.
- Note the reference number (réf.) if there is one; the letter quotes it in the Objet line.
- Read what the ad asks you to send. The SEPE sheet on France notes that letters are used less than before but still make the difference for skilled and specialised posts.
- Decide your CV type (chronological, thematic or mixed) from your own history, using the section below.
How a French CV is built
One page, two only with a long record
France Travail's article on two-page CVs says a young graduate or someone with little experience should keep to one page. Two pages become justified with at least about ten years in varied roles, and the more senior the post, the more range you need to show. Page one then carries the name, contact details and everything significant for the job; page two holds older roles, side skills and hobbies. EURES France puts the ceiling at two pages for everyone.
A title and an accroche at the top
Next to your name and contact details, France Travail asks for a short accroche: a line or two on your career goal, your key skills, or both. EURES France calls the same element the title and gives the example 'TRILINGUAL SALES ASSISTANT', written in capitals with the languages after it.
Chronological, thematic or mixed
France Travail describes three models. The chronological CV lists jobs from newest to oldest under a heading such as 'Expérience professionnelle' or 'Parcours' and suits people with a steady line of work. The thematic CV groups achievements under the skills you want to sell and suits career changers, returners and new graduates. The mixed CV keeps the dates but names each block after a skill; France Travail suggests the heading 'Réalisations et expériences'. The general trade-offs are on the formats guide linked at the end.
Formation after experience, unless you are new
France Travail puts the education section after experience and asks for less detail the older your studies are. A recent graduate can expand it. Each line runs left to right: date, school, then a title a recruiter can understand, with abbreviations such as BTS MHR written out. EURES France adds that a foreign qualification should be given with its equivalent in the French system, which is where a recognition statement belongs.
Languages with three levels for French
EURES France asks you to give your mother tongue and, for French, separate levels for reading, writing and speaking. France Travail suggests naming certificates such as TOEIC or TOEFL in a languages section.
Interests, renamed
France Travail suggests retitling 'Centres d'intérêt' as 'Mais aussi…' and choosing hobbies that show the personality the job needs, such as volunteering or a team sport. It is also where certificates outside work, like the BAFA youth leader diploma, go. EURES France adds that time already spent in France is worth mentioning here.
Personal details the employer may not ask for
Article L.1221-6 of the Code du travail, as the labour ministry summarises it, limits what an employer may ask a candidate to information about the ability to do the job and professional aptitudes, with a direct and necessary link to the job; private life and union membership are out, a driving licence is in when the job needs one. France Travail repeats the rule for what you put on the CV. EURES France lists marital status, age and nationality as optional. None of the French sources read for this guide asks for a photo; whether to add one is covered in the CV photo guide.
The lettre de motivation, block by block
The layout below combines EURES France, which describes where each block sits, with France Travail's ten tips for the letter, which describe what goes in it. The sample is invented: Deniz Arslan, a hotel receptionist in Antalya with a B2 in French, answering an ad for a night receptionist in Nice. The letter text is in French because the employer reads French; the right-hand column explains it.
| Block and position | Sample text | What it does and who says so |
|---|---|---|
| Sender, top left | Deniz Arslan · 12 Atatürk Caddesi, 07100 Antalya, Turquie · +90 532 000 00 00 · deniz.arslan@example.com | Your identity and contact details on the left (France Travail); EURES France adds the international dialling code. |
| Place and date, top right | Antalya, le 13 octobre 2026 | EURES France puts the place the letter is sent from and the date at the top right. |
| Recipient, a few lines down | Hôtel des Oliviers, Service des ressources humaines, 4 avenue des Fleurs, 06000 Nice | The company and the person you write to (EURES France); France Travail places the recipient on the right. |
| Objet | Objet : candidature au poste de réceptionniste de nuit, réf. RN-2026-14 | The subject repeats the job title and the ad reference (France Travail; EURES France gives a reference example). |
| Formule d'appel | Madame, Monsieur, | France Travail's opening formula when you have no name. |
| Accroche | Votre offre de réceptionniste de nuit, publiée sur francetravail.fr, a retenu toute mon attention. | One sentence that can reuse the ad's wording (France Travail). |
| Vous: the employer | Votre hôtel reçoit une clientèle internationale toute l'année et rouvre son aile rénovée au printemps 2027. | Shows you researched the company, for example on its website (France Travail, part 1). |
| Moi: you, with proof | Depuis 2022, j'assure seul le service de nuit trois fois par semaine dans un hôtel de 180 chambres à Antalya. J'ai réduit le temps moyen d'arrivée de 9 à 5 minutes en préparant les dossiers la veille. Je parle turc, anglais (C1) et français (B2, DELF B2 en 2025). | Matches your experience to the ad with examples and action verbs; it links the CV to the need rather than repeating it (France Travail, part 2). |
| Nous: what you bring | Je souhaite mettre cette expérience au service de votre équipe de nuit et je suis disponible dès janvier 2027. | What the hire would give the company; present or future tense, not the conditional (France Travail, part 3). |
| Call to interview | Je me tiens à votre disposition pour un entretien et pour toute information complémentaire. | Invites the recruiter to meet you (France Travail). |
| Formule de politesse | Veuillez agréer, Madame, Monsieur, l'expression de mes salutations distinguées. | The closing formula France Travail names. |
| Signature, bottom right | Deniz Arslan | EURES France puts the signature at the bottom right. |
The form rules France Travail adds
- One page, with paragraphs of roughly equal length and white space between them.
- One easy font, for example Times New Roman or Arial at 12 points.
- Write each letter from a blank page; reusing an old one risks leaving in lines that do not fit the offer.
- Mention only the skills the job asks for, and do not inflate them: the interview will test them.
- Vary your words: France Travail says recruiters read too many letters from candidates who call themselves compétent, dynamique, ouvert or sérieux.
- Have another person proofread it; France Travail warns that a letter with spelling mistakes is quickly eliminated.
Sending by email instead? The email itself is the first thing a recruiter reads; the email guide linked below covers what to put in it.
What each source says, read on 13 October 2026
| Point | France Travail articles | EURES France (page dated 3 July 2026) | SEPE sheet on France (2025) |
|---|---|---|---|
| CV length | One page if new; two can be justified after about ten years | No more than two pages | One page; two at most with long experience |
| Top of the CV | Contact details plus a short accroche | Civil status, then a title for the desired post | Full name, a phone and an email, then a title |
| Order | Newest first; education after experience | Reverse chronological, chronological, by skill or combined | Reverse chronological |
| Personal data | Only what has a direct link to the job (L.1221-6) | Marital status, age and nationality optional | No marital status, children, religion or politics |
| Letter length | One page | No more than one page, usually typed | Unique to each application |
| Keywords | Precise job titles help online search | Adapt to the terms used in the ad | Reuse the ad's keywords for automated screening |
France Travail's articles carry no publication date. The labour ministry fiche on candidates' rights was last updated on 6 December 2024; the service-public.gouv.fr page on work authorisation was checked by its editors on 18 June 2026.
Limits of this guide
- APEC, the association for managers (cadres), publishes its own CV advice, but its site refused every connection on 13 October 2026, so nothing here comes from APEC.
- Work permits: service-public.gouv.fr says an employer hiring a national from outside the EU, EEA and Switzerland must first obtain a work authorisation, usually after publishing the job for three consecutive weeks. A carte de séjour talent holder needs none for the activity it was granted for. Rules change; read that page again before you rely on it.
- Public-sector jobs recruited by concours follow their own application files, not this format.
- Academic and research CVs are longer and list publications; this page does not cover them.
Next steps and other ways to build it
- France Travail's free tools: the 20-minute online B.A.-BA CV module, a one-day CV workshop, and a generator that builds a CV from your profil de compétences. Only recruiters logged in to a certified recruiter space can see the CVs and achievements you make visible there.
- The EURES France page, for job search channels and living conditions.
- Your degree equivalence and your French level, each with its own guide below, before you fill the formation and languages lines.
- CitedCV, if you also need an English version: it writes English, Turkish or German CVs with EU conventions from facts you confirm, but not French ones, so the French letter and CV stay your own work.
Questions people ask
What is the French CV format?
A one-page CV, two pages after about ten years of varied work, with contact details, a job title and accroche at the top, experience newest first, then education, languages and interests.
How do you write a lettre de motivation?
Follow the block layout: sender top left, place and date top right, recipient, Objet with the job and reference, Madame Monsieur, three paragraphs on the company, you and your joint future, then a closing formula and signature.
How long should a lettre de motivation be?
One page. France Travail and EURES France both set that limit, with paragraphs of similar length and a single readable font such as Arial 12.
Is a two-page CV acceptable in France?
Yes, with at least about ten years of experience in varied roles, according to France Travail. A young graduate should keep to one page.
Do I need a photo on a French CV?
No French source read for this guide requires one. The labour code limits what employers may ask to information linked to the job, and EURES France lists age and marital status as optional.
Should my CV for France be in French or English?
In French when the ad is in French, which the labour code makes the norm for job offers in France. An English CV fits an ad written in English for an international team.
What is an accroche on a French CV?
It is a short line at the top, next to your contact details, that states your career goal, your key skills or both, as France Travail describes it.
What is the vous moi nous structure?
It is the three-part body of a lettre de motivation: vous shows you know the employer, moi proves your fit with examples, nous says what you would achieve together.
Sources
- France Travail, Comment rédiger un CV efficace et percutantwww.francetravail.fr/candidat/vos-recherches/preparer-votre-candidature/cv-lettre-de-motivation-e-mail/comment-rediger-un-cv-efficace-e.html
- France Travail, Le CV sur 2 pages, bonne ou mauvaise idée ?www.francetravail.fr/candidat/vos-recherches/preparer-votre-candidature/cv-lettre-de-motivation-e-mail/cv-sur-2-pages--une-bonne-idee.html
- France Travail, 10 astuces pour écrire votre lettre de motivationwww.francetravail.fr/candidat/vos-recherches/preparer-votre-candidature/cv-lettre-de-motivation-e-mail/10-astuces-pour-ecrire-votre-let.html
- France Travail, Quelle responsabilité quant au contenu du CV ?www.francetravail.fr/candidat/vos-recherches/preparer-votre-candidature/cv-lettre-de-motivation-e-mail/quelle-responsabilite-quant-au-c.html
- France Travail, Créez un CV à partir de votre Profil de compétenceswww.francetravail.fr/candidat/vos-services-en-ligne/creez-un-cv-a-partir-de-votre-pr.html
- France Travail, Votre recherche d'emploi (services)www.francetravail.fr/candidat/votre-recherche-demploi.html
- Code du travail numérique (Ministère du Travail), Offre d'emploi et embauche : les droits du candidatcode.travail.gouv.fr/fiche-ministere-travail/offre-demploi-et-embauche-les-droits-du-candidat
- Service-Public.gouv.fr, Autorisation de travail d'un salarié étranger en Francewww.service-public.gouv.fr/particuliers/vosdroits/F2728
- EURES, Living and working conditions: Franceeures.europa.eu/living-and-working/living-and-working-conditions/living-and-working-conditions-france_en
- SEPE, Herramientas de búsqueda de empleo en Francia (2025)www.sepe.es/SiteSepe/contenidos/personas/encontrar_empleo/encontrar_empleo_europa/pdf/2025/CV-y-CARTAS-de-PRESENTACION/2025_CV_Carta_Francia.pdf