A first test CV template from the official Europass template, if its licence allows #12

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opened 2026-10-01 10:39:56 +00:00 by tiagoagueda · 0 comments

tiagoagueda commented

2026-10-01 10:39:56 +00:00

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#2 already plans "a Europass-style" CV template. This issue is about the step before it: whether the official template can be the starting material, and on what terms.

What a first look found (2026-10-01, to be confirmed, not legal advice)

The reuse terms are favourable for the content. The legal notice that covers europa.eu sites says content owned by the EU may be reused under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (credit given, changes indicated), implementing the Commission Decision of 12 December 2011 on the reuse of Commission documents: https://european-union.europa.eu/legal-notice_en.
The same notice excludes names and logos. It does not cover "software or documents covered by industrial property rights, such as patents, trade marks, registered designs, logos and names". So the layout and the wording of a template may be reusable while the Europass name and logo are not: a template here could not carry the logo, and could not be presented as the Europass CV, without permission. The core's TRADEMARKS.md already lists Europass among other people's marks.
The Word template may no longer be where it used to be. The portal's document library today offers no CV template to download; it sends people to the online editor (https://europass.europa.eu/en/document-library). The downloadable templates and instructions, in Word and OpenDocument for each language, were published on the earlier Cedefop-run site. Whether they are still offered officially, and under which notice, has to be checked at the source.
Europass's own terms of use are about the platform's users and say nothing on reusing its templates (https://europass.europa.eu/en/node/2161).

What to do

Settle the licence, at the source. Find the official download (current portal or the archived earlier site), read the notice that travels with the files themselves, and write down: who owns them, the licence, what attribution it asks for, and what it excludes. If anything is unclear, ask the Europass team; the answer goes in this issue.
Decide what is taken. Three things can be taken separately, and the licence may treat them differently:
- the layout (the two-column page, the order of sections, the language grid);
- the wording: the section headings and field labels, which exist officially in every EU language and are exactly what #7 needs translated;
- the name and logo, which the legal notice excludes.
Build it as a Postulo template, not as a Word file. A template here is HTML and CSS drawn by the core (and exported to PDF and Word by the core). The official document is the reference to draw from, not something to ship.
Name it honestly. If the name cannot be used, the template says what it is ("in the layout of the Europass CV") without claiming to be it, carries no logo, and the README says why.
Record the attribution where CC BY asks for it: a third-party register in this repository (as the core's THIRD-PARTY.md is), naming the source, the licence, and that the work was changed.

If the licence does not allow it, #2's Europass-style template is drawn from scratch and this issue closes with the reason written down.

Why it is a good first test

It exercises nearly everything the other issues ask of a template at once: every section of the career record, the language-skills grid, many languages (#7), no text inside pictures (#8), a fixed paper format (#9), and a known result to compare against. The core also reads Europass files on import, so a person can bring a Europass CV in and print it back out in a layout they recognise.

Done when

The licence question is answered in this issue with its sources: what may be reused, under what attribution, and what may not.
If allowed: the template exists as a Postulo CV template (after #1 has made the repository a plugin), with the attribution recorded, no logo, and a name the licence permits.
If not: the reason is recorded here and #2 proceeds without the official material.

Requested by the maintainer on 2026-10-01: if the licence allows it, the first CV template to test this repository with may be the Europass template itself; the original is believed to be available from the official site as a Word document in several languages. #2 already plans "a Europass-style" CV template. This issue is about the step before it: whether the **official** template can be the starting material, and on what terms. ## What a first look found (2026-10-01, to be confirmed, not legal advice) - **The reuse terms are favourable for the content.** The legal notice that covers europa.eu sites says content owned by the EU may be reused under **Creative Commons Attribution 4.0** (credit given, changes indicated), implementing the Commission Decision of 12 December 2011 on the reuse of Commission documents: <https://european-union.europa.eu/legal-notice_en>. - **The same notice excludes names and logos.** It does not cover "software or documents covered by industrial property rights, such as patents, trade marks, registered designs, logos and names". So the layout and the wording of a template may be reusable while the **Europass name and logo are not**: a template here could not carry the logo, and could not be presented as *the* Europass CV, without permission. The core's `TRADEMARKS.md` already lists Europass among other people's marks. - **The Word template may no longer be where it used to be.** The portal's document library today offers no CV template to download; it sends people to the online editor (<https://europass.europa.eu/en/document-library>). The downloadable templates and instructions, in Word and OpenDocument for each language, were published on the earlier Cedefop-run site. Whether they are still offered officially, and under which notice, has to be checked at the source. - Europass's own terms of use are about the platform's users and say nothing on reusing its templates (<https://europass.europa.eu/en/node/2161>). ## What to do 1. **Settle the licence, at the source.** Find the official download (current portal or the archived earlier site), read the notice that travels with the files themselves, and write down: who owns them, the licence, what attribution it asks for, and what it excludes. If anything is unclear, ask the Europass team; the answer goes in this issue. 2. **Decide what is taken.** Three things can be taken separately, and the licence may treat them differently: - the **layout** (the two-column page, the order of sections, the language grid); - the **wording**: the section headings and field labels, which exist officially in every EU language and are exactly what #7 needs translated; - the **name and logo**, which the legal notice excludes. 3. **Build it as a Postulo template, not as a Word file.** A template here is HTML and CSS drawn by the core (and exported to PDF and Word by the core). The official document is the reference to draw from, not something to ship. 4. **Name it honestly.** If the name cannot be used, the template says what it is ("in the layout of the Europass CV") without claiming to be it, carries no logo, and the README says why. 5. **Record the attribution** where CC BY asks for it: a third-party register in this repository (as the core's `THIRD-PARTY.md` is), naming the source, the licence, and that the work was changed. If the licence does not allow it, #2's Europass-style template is drawn from scratch and this issue closes with the reason written down. ## Why it is a good first test It exercises nearly everything the other issues ask of a template at once: every section of the career record, the language-skills grid, many languages (#7), no text inside pictures (#8), a fixed paper format (#9), and a known result to compare against. The core also reads Europass files on import, so a person can bring a Europass CV in and print it back out in a layout they recognise. ## Done when - The licence question is answered in this issue with its sources: what may be reused, under what attribution, and what may not. - If allowed: the template exists as a Postulo CV template (after #1 has made the repository a plugin), with the attribution recorded, no logo, and a name the licence permits. - If not: the reason is recorded here and #2 proceeds without the official material.

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2026-10-01 10:39:56 +00:00