How many pages should a CV be in South Africa?

Two pages is a good target for most people, and three is the most you should need unless you are applying for a senior, academic or technical post with a long project list. A first-job CV can be a single page. Recruiters and small business owners often read a CV on a phone, so a short, clear document with the most recent work at the top does better than a long one. If your CV runs longer, cut duties that every job of that type includes, remove old short-term jobs that add nothing, and keep only the courses and certificates that matter for the job you want.

Should I put my ID number on my CV?

You do not need to. An employer only needs your ID number once they are seriously considering you, for example to run a criminal record or qualification check with your written consent, or to put you on the payroll. A CV gets forwarded, printed and left in inboxes, and an ID number together with your name, date of birth and address is exactly what fraudsters use for identity theft. Write that you are a South African citizen or permanent resident, or state your work permit status, and give the number later when a real employer asks for it. The same goes for a copy of your ID document.

How do I write a CV with no work experience?

Lead with what you can show instead of paid jobs. Start with a short profile that says what kind of work you want and where. Then list your education, including your matric subjects and results if they are good, and any short courses, learnerships or skills programmes. Add informal and unpaid work: helping in a family shop, caring for a relative, volunteering at church or a school, a holiday job, piece work, or anything you have fixed, built or organised. Say what you did and what the result was. Finish with practical details such as a driver’s licence code, the languages you speak and when you can start.

Do I need to include references on my CV?

Many South African employers still expect two or three references, usually previous supervisors or managers rather than friends or family. You can list them at the end of the CV with name, job title, company and phone number, or write “references available on request” and send them when asked. Either way, call your references first, tell them what job you applied for and check that the number still works. Under POPIA, their phone number is their personal information, so it is polite and sensible to ask before you share it. A reference who does not answer or does not remember you can cost you the job.

Should my CV have a photo?

It is optional in South Africa. Some employers in hospitality, retail and sales like to see one, and many do not care. Nothing in law requires a photo, and the Employment Equity Act prohibits unfair discrimination on grounds such as race, colour, gender and age, so a photo should not decide who gets the job anyway. If you add a photo, use a clear, recent head-and-shoulders picture against a plain background, not a selfie or a party photo. If you are unsure, leave it out and let your experience speak.

How to Write a CV in South Africa: Format, What to Include, References and Mistakes to Avoid

A CV is the first thing an employer in South Africa sees of you, and often the only thing they see before deciding whether to phone you. A site manager in Tshwane, a restaurant owner in Cape Town or an HR officer at a warehouse in Durban may read dozens of CVs for one post, often on a phone between other tasks. The good news: what they look for is simple. They want to know what work you can do, where you are, when you can start and whether the people you worked for would recommend you.

This guide shows how to write a CV in South Africa step by step: the format and length that work, what to include, what to leave out for your own safety, how to describe matric and NQF qualifications, how to handle references, and the mistakes that get CVs put aside. It works for office jobs and for trades, general work, hospitality and domestic work alike.

The South African CV format: length, layout and file

Keep the CV to two pages if you can. A first-job CV can be one page; very experienced people with long project lists may need three. Use one simple font, clear headings and enough space between sections. Fancy templates with columns, icons and progress bars often look messy when opened on a phone or read by an applicant tracking system, and they waste space.

Order: reverse chronological, meaning your most recent job first. That is what South African recruiters expect.
File: save it as a PDF so the layout does not move, and name the file sensibly, for example Thandi-Mokoena-CV.pdf, not CV final final 2.pdf.
Printed copies: for walk-in applications at shops, sites and restaurants, carry a few clean printed copies in a plastic sleeve.
Language: write in clear English unless the advert asks for another language. Short sentences beat long ones.

What to include in a CV in South Africa

These are the sections most employers expect, in the order that usually works best:

A practical outline. Leave out any section that is empty rather than filling it with padding.
Section	What goes in it	Tip
Contact details	Full name, cell number, email address, the area you live in (suburb and city, not your street address).	Use an email address with your name in it. Check that your voicemail works.
Short profile	Two or three lines: the work you do or want, your main experience and the area where you can work.	Change it for each job type you apply for.
Work experience	Job title, employer, town, months and years; then three to five lines on what you did and achieved.	Start lines with action words: installed, served, trained, supervised, repaired.
Education	Highest qualification first: degree, diploma, N-certificate, NC(V), matric (NSC) or the last grade you passed.	Add the NQF level if you know it.
Courses and certificates	Learnerships, skills programmes, trade tests, first aid, forklift certificate, PSIRA grade, food safety, computer courses.	Only current ones that matter for the job.
Skills and languages	Practical skills, tools and software; the languages you speak and how well.	Languages are a real selling point in customer-facing jobs.
Other details	Driver’s licence code and PrDP if you have one, own transport, citizenship or work permit status, notice period or availability.	Employers in trades and delivery often filter on the licence code first.
References	Two or three previous supervisors with name, title, company and number, or “available on request”.	Phone them first so they expect the call.

Writing your work experience so it gets read

The biggest improvement most CVs need is in this section. “Duties: cleaning, general work” tells an employer almost nothing. Compare it with: “Cleaned and restocked a 12-room guesthouse daily; trained two new staff on the checklist; handled laundry and linen stock.” The second version shows the size of the job, responsibility and something extra.

For each job, answer three questions: what did you do, how much or how many, and what changed because of you. Numbers help when they are true: tables served per shift, sites worked on, vehicles serviced, customers handled per day. Never invent them. An employer who phones your reference will find out.

Gaps, piece jobs and informal work

Many South Africans have gaps in their work history or have earned money through piece jobs, contract work, family businesses and self-employment. That is normal and it is work. List it honestly: “Self-employed painter, Soshanguve, 2023–2025: interior and exterior painting for private homes, own customers by referral.” If you had a gap because of studies, caring for a family member or retrenchment, one short line is enough. You do not need to explain every month.

Matric, NQF levels and foreign qualifications on your CV

Employers often ask for “matric” or “Grade 12”. If you have your National Senior Certificate, say so and add the year. If you passed with a bachelor’s or diploma pass, or with good marks in subjects that matter for the job (maths, physical science, accounting, English), mention them. If you did not finish school, write the last grade you passed. Being honest about it is far better than a CV that says “matric” with no certificate behind it: qualification checks are common and a false claim can cost you the job even after you are hired.

For post-school training, name the qualification exactly as it appears on the certificate and give the NQF level where you know it, for example an N3 engineering certificate, an NC(V) Level 4, a trade test certificate, or a learnership through a SETA. If you studied outside South Africa, employers may ask for your qualification to be evaluated by SAQA (the South African Qualifications Authority); if you have that evaluation, say so on the CV.

No matric? That does not rule you out of a lot of work. Put your practical experience, short courses and certificates first and education lower down.

Put your CV to work on Hirovo

Hirovo is free and new in South Africa. Create a profile, list the trades or jobs you do and the area where you can work, and apply to or message employers who post jobs near you.

Create a free profile →

What to leave off your CV: POPIA, your ID number and personal details

Older South African CV templates ask for a long list of personal details: ID number, date of birth, marital status, number of children, religion, health, sometimes even race. Most of it does not belong on a CV you hand out to people you have never met.

ID number and a copy of your ID document. Leave them off. Your CV will be forwarded, printed and stored in inboxes you cannot control, and an ID number with your name and address is what fraudsters need to open accounts in your name. Give it when a real employer asks, for example for a background check or for the payroll.
Street address. Your suburb and city are enough. Employers want to know whether you can get to work, not where your gate is.
Marital status, children, religion, health. The Employment Equity Act prohibits unfair discrimination on these and other grounds, so employers should not be deciding on them. You do not need to give them.
Salary history. You do not have to state your current salary. If an application form asks for your salary expectation, give a considered range once you know what the job involves.

Some employers ask applicants to indicate their population group on an application form for employment equity reporting. That is a separate form with its own purpose; whether you add anything like it to your own CV is your choice.

POPIA, the Protection of Personal Information Act, also works in your favour: an employer who collects your CV should use it only for recruitment and keep it safe. If a “recruiter” asks for your ID copy, bank details or a fee before any interview, stop and check the warning signs in the next section.

Before you send your CV, check:

Your cell number and email are correct and your voicemail works.
Your most recent job is at the top, with months and years.
No ID number, ID copy, street address or bank details.
Your references know you listed them and their numbers work.
It is saved as a PDF with your name in the file name.
You have read the advert once more and changed the profile line to match it.

Common CV mistakes and warning signs

These are the mistakes that most often get a CV put aside, and they are all easy to fix:

No phone number, or one that does not work. Employers rarely try twice.
Spelling mistakes in the first lines. Ask someone you trust to read it.
A general CV sent to every job. Change the profile line and the order of your skills for each type of work.
Claims you cannot prove. A licence code you do not have, a trade test you did not pass, a “matric” without a certificate.
Pages of personal information and very little about what you can do.

Be alert to fake adverts as well. A genuine employer does not ask you to pay for your CV to be “processed”, for an interview slot, a uniform or training before you start, and does not need your banking PIN or a one-time password. If anything about an advert or a “recruiter” feels wrong, do not send documents or money until you have checked the company exists.

Tailoring your CV for trades, domestic work and general work

The same structure works for every type of job, but the emphasis changes:

Type of work	Put near the top	Useful extras
Trades (electrical, plumbing, welding, building)	Trade test or certificate, the kind of work you have done, tools and equipment you use.	Registration or licence where your trade needs one; driver’s licence code; own tools.
Security	PSIRA registration and grade, sites you have guarded.	Firearm competency if you have it, first aid, shift availability.
Domestic work, childcare and caregiving	Years of experience, the kind of households, children’s ages or care needs you have handled.	First aid, cooking, languages, references from previous families.
Hospitality and retail	Customer service experience, cash handling, the type of venue or store.	Languages, weekend and night availability, food safety training.
Warehouse, driving and general work	Forklift or other equipment certificates, licence code and PrDP, physical work you have done.	Shift availability, own transport, safety training.

For trade-specific advice, see our guides to electrician jobs in South Africa and security guard jobs in South Africa.

Using your CV on Hirovo

A lot of hiring in South Africa, especially for trades, domestic work and small businesses, happens without a formal application portal. Hirovo is a free jobs and local services marketplace that is new in South Africa: employers and households post jobs, and workers create a free profile listing the trades or jobs they do and the area where they can work, then apply or send a message in the app.

Your CV still matters there. Use the same short profile line and the same clear description of your experience in your Hirovo profile, and keep your CV ready to send when an employer asks for it. Be clear about what Hirovo is: it does not vet employers or applicants and it is not a recruitment agency, so the same caution applies as anywhere else. Keep your ID number and banking details private until you have met the employer and agreed on the job.

In short

A good South African CV is two pages or less, starts with your most recent work, and tells an employer clearly what you can do, where you are and when you can start. Describe your experience with specifics, list matric, NQF-level qualifications and certificates honestly, and prepare references who expect the call. Leave out your ID number, street address and other personal details that an employer does not need at this stage, and never pay anyone to consider your CV.