Do You Still Need a Cover Letter? The Honest Answer, Country by Country

The question isn't "are cover letters dead" — it's "where"

Most "is the cover letter dead?" advice is written for the US market, where they've genuinely become optional at many companies. In Europe that advice is actively misleading, because the answer changes completely depending on the country. It's less a yes/no question than a map:

• Near-mandatory: Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Omitting the Anschreiben is a real reason to be rejected.
• Expected: France (the lettre de motivation), and commonly the UK and Ireland.
• Standard but lighter: the Netherlands (motivatiebrief), Belgium, and much of Southern Europe (Spain, Italy, Portugal) — shorter and less formal.
• Increasingly optional: the Nordics, and startups and tech teams almost everywhere — many explicitly tell you not to bother.

Germany, Austria & Switzerland: the Anschreiben is near-mandatory

The German-speaking market is the clearest case in Europe. A traditional application (Bewerbung) is expected to be a "complete" package — cover letter (Anschreiben), CV (Lebenslauf), and often certificates — and the Anschreiben is the part that carries your motivation and fit.

• Leaving it out signals carelessness. For most non-tech roles, an application with no Anschreiben is quietly set aside — the recruiter reads its absence as "didn't make the effort."
• It's formal and structured. Proper salutation and sign-off, your address block and the employer's, a subject line, and a clear argument for why you and why this company — closer to a formal business letter than a US cover note.
• The exception is modern tech and international startups in Berlin, Vienna or Zurich, which increasingly run US-style and may not ask for one. But when in doubt in DACH, include it.

France: the lettre de motivation is expected

In France a lettre de motivation is expected for most applications and internships, in French, and it follows a recognisable structure often summarised as "vous, moi, nous": a paragraph on the company (you), a paragraph on what you bring (me), and a paragraph on the fit between the two (us). A generic, untailored letter is worse than a well-made one — French recruiters read it as a test of effort and written French.

Where it's standard but lighter — and where it's optional

Outside the DACH/France core, the cover letter still exists but the stakes drop:

• Netherlands & Belgium: a motivatiebrief is standard but concise and less formal than the German Anschreiben — a few tight paragraphs on why this role.
• Southern Europe (Spain, Italy, Portugal): a carta de presentación / lettera di presentazione is common but short; many online applications make it optional.
• UK & Ireland: a cover letter is commonly expected, especially for graduate and non-tech roles, but plenty of applications (and most Easy-Apply flows) don't require one.
• Nordics (Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland): increasingly optional and, when included, short and direct.
• Startups & tech, everywhere: often explicitly optional — some ask for a note in a form field instead, or say "no cover letter needed." Read the ad.

So do you need one? A simple rule

Read the job ad first — it overrides every country default. If it tells you not to send a cover letter, don't; if it asks for one, always include it. When the ad is silent: in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, include the Anschreiben every time; almost everywhere else, a short, tailored cover letter rarely hurts and sometimes tips a close decision, so default to including a concise one. The only place skipping it is clearly safe is a startup or tech role that says so.

If you write one, match the local convention

A cover letter that ignores local norms can hurt as much as a missing one. Match the country's format and language: a formal, structured German Anschreiben in German; a "vous, moi, nous" lettre de motivation in French; a concise motivatiebrief or UK cover letter of three short paragraphs; and, in every case, the same language as the CV you're sending (a French CV pairs with a French letter). Keep it to one page — ideally half — and tailor it to the specific role and company, because a generic letter is the one kind that's genuinely worse than none.