Resume for international jobs: adapting a Latin American CV
Updated October 17, 2026
Translating your local CV word for word isn't enough. International roles follow different conventions: details that are standard at home can hurt you abroad, and the text has to read like the English of someone who works in it, not like a translation.
What to remove
These are common in Brazil and much of Latin America, but abroad they don't help and can bias screening:
- Photo.
- Age or date of birth, marital status, children.
- National ID numbers (CPF, RG, DNI) unless the job asks for them.
- Full street address: city and country are enough.
- A generic "career objective". Use a short, job-focused Summary instead.
What to adjust
- Phone with country code: +55 11 91234-5678.
- Location: "São Paulo, Brazil", and for remote roles, your time zone or availability ("Remote, UTC−3").
- Dates as MM/YYYY and "Present" for your current role.
- Section names the market expects: Summary, Experience, Education, Skills, Languages.
- Length: up to 2 pages with several years of experience; 1 page if you're starting out.
Titles and degrees without literal translation
Some local terms have no direct equivalent. Use what a recruiter abroad recognizes:
- Desenvolvedor Pleno / Semi Senior → Software Engineer (or Mid-level Software Engineer).
- Desenvolvedor Sênior → Senior Software Engineer.
- Estágio / Pasantía → Software Engineering Intern.
- Bacharelado / Licenciatura en Ciencias de la Computación → B.Sc. in Computer Science.
- Pós-graduação lato sensu / Especialización → Postgraduate Specialization in … (only say "MBA" if it is one).
Write like someone who works in English
Start each bullet with an action verb, in the past tense for previous roles (Built, Led, Reduced, Migrated) and in the present for your current one. Replace "Responsible for" with what you actually did.
Proofread with a tool or a fluent speaker. A grammar mistake on an English resume for an English-speaking role costs more than it seems.
Responsible for the development of new functionalities in the system of payments.
Built recurring billing for the payments platform in Node.js and PostgreSQL, now processing 40k charges a month.
Languages with a clear level
"Advanced English" is vague. Use the CEFR scale recruiters abroad know: "English: Advanced (C1)". Your first language goes in as "Native". If you have a certificate (TOEFL, IELTS, Cambridge), include it with the year.
Show you work well remotely
For remote roles, make visible what lowers the hiring risk: experience with teams in other time zones, written and async communication, and how much your hours overlap with the team's. One line under Additional Information does it.