CV tips 2026: how to get past the ATS filter

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Why your CV sometimes never reaches a human

You've spent hours on that beautiful CV. Sleek font, a column here, an icon there. You hit send and... silence. The culprit usually isn't a recruiter having a bad day, but an algorithm that had already rejected your CV before a human ever laid eyes on it.

In 2026, three-quarters of Dutch companies with more than 100 employees use AI-driven ATS systems to screen CVs. And it's fast: a few seconds on average for the AI, versus over half a minute for the first human glance. Your CV literally has less time to make an impression than it takes to soft-boil an egg.

The biggest ATS pitfalls

• A creative design with columns and icons. Lovely for Pinterest, unreadable for a parser. A non-optimised CV simply won't pass the first filter, no matter how good you actually are.
• Contact details in the header or footer. Some systems don't read these. Just put your name, phone number and email in the main body.
• One CV for every vacancy. ATS systems score on relevance per role. Spending ten to fifteen minutes tailoring your CV per application can make the difference between an automatic rejection and an invitation.
• Using synonyms instead of the exact term. Does the vacancy say "agile" while you write "flexible way of working"? Same thing to you, not to the algorithm. It misses the match.

How to build a CV that actually gets seen

1. Keep it simple. One column, standard headings (Work Experience, Education, Skills), no tables or charts.
2. Steal the keywords straight from the job posting. Literally. The ATS compares word for word, not the intent behind it.
3. Make results measurable. "Increased revenue by 18%" beats "responsible for revenue growth" hands down — for both humans and machines.
4. Test it yourself. Copy the text of your CV into Notepad. Does everything stay readable and in the right order? Then your formatting is safe.
5. Check your LinkedIn too. Nearly 9 out of 10 recruiters check your LinkedIn profile before or during the interview process — make sure it matches your CV, or it'll raise questions.

Let's be honest

Fine-tuning a CV yourself for keywords, formatting and readability takes time most job seekers would rather spend elsewhere. That's why we built the CV-Refresher: upload your current CV, choose an industry template, and within a few minutes you'll get back an ATS-friendly, professionally formatted version — ready to download as Word or PDF. No hassle with columns that still get rejected.

Try the CV-Refresher →

In short

• 3 out of 4 large Dutch employers use AI to filter CVs before a human ever sees them.
• Simple formatting, exact keywords and measurable results are your best friends.
• Tailor your CV to each vacancy — one standard version is no longer a strategy in 2026.
• Not sure if your CV will pass the filter? Let the CV-Refresher do the work.