What the directive says
Article 5 of Directive (EU) 2023/970 sets three rules for recruitment:
- applicants have the right to receive the initial pay or its range, based on objective, gender-neutral criteria, and where relevant the collective agreement provisions that apply to the position,
- employers may not ask applicants about their pay history in current or previous jobs, and
- job vacancy notices and job titles must be gender-neutral, and recruitment must be non-discriminatory.
Such information shall be provided in a manner such as to ensure an informed and transparent negotiation on pay, such as in a published job vacancy notice, prior to the job interview or otherwise.
Directive (EU) 2023/970, Article 5(1)
Read the full article in the official text on EUR-Lex. The directive does not require the range to be in the job ad itself: the ad is one option, alongside telling the applicant before the interview. Several countries go further, so check the national rule.
What it means in practice
Starting pay or a range, before the interview
The applicant must know the pay early enough to negotiate on an informed basis. A published range in the ad meets this everywhere; telling the applicant before the first interview meets the directive where national law allows it.
The range must come from your pay structure
The figure must be based on objective, gender-neutral criteria. In practice this means the range comes from the job’s level in your pay structure, not from a negotiation with the person in front of you.
No questions about current or past pay
Interviewers, application forms and recruitment agencies may not ask what the applicant earns now or earned before. Offers are set from the role’s range, not from the candidate’s history.
Gender-neutral ads and titles
Job titles and ad wording must not suggest that a role suits one gender, and the selection process must be non-discriminatory.
Country by country
Whether the range must appear in the ad, and when the rules apply, depends on each country’s law. The table comes from our tracker and changes when a country’s law moves.
| Country | Salary range in recruitment | Salary history questions banned | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Austria | Yes | – | Partly in force |
| Belgium | Yes | Yes | Partly in force |
| Bulgaria | Yes | Yes | Published draft |
| Croatia | – | – | In preparation |
| Cyprus | Yes | Yes | Published draft |
| Czechia | – | Yes | Partly in force |
| Denmark | Yes | Yes | Published draft |
| Estonia | Yes | Yes | Partly in force |
| Finland | Yes | Yes | Published draft |
| France | Yes | Yes | Published draft |
| Germany | – | – | In preparation |
| Greece | Yes | Yes | Adopted |
| Hungary | – | – | In preparation |
| Ireland | Yes | Yes | Published draft |
| Italy | Yes | Yes | In force |
| Latvia | Yes | Yes | Published draft |
| Lithuania | Yes | Yes | In force |
| Luxembourg | Yes | Yes | In preparation |
| Malta | Yes | Yes | In force |
| Netherlands | Yes | Yes | Published draft |
| Poland | Yes | Yes | Partly in force |
| Portugal | Yes | Yes | Published draft |
| Romania | Yes | Yes | Published draft |
| Slovakia | Yes | Yes | In force |
| Slovenia | – | – | In preparation |
| Spain | Unclear | Unclear | Published draft |
| Sweden | No | No | Paused |
How to prepare
- Give every open role a level and a range from your pay structure before the ad goes out.
- Write down how ranges are set: which criteria, which market data and who approves them.
- Update application forms and interview guides so nobody asks about current or past pay, including external recruiters.
- Review job titles and ad templates for gendered wording.
- Check offers against the range, and record the reason when an offer falls outside it.
- Align ranges with current employees’ pay, so a new range does not reveal gaps you cannot explain.
Questions employers ask
Evenpay builds the job architecture and pay ranges that your job ads and offers draw from, so every range has a documented basis. See how job architecture works in Evenpay.