What the directive asks, and when
Directive (EU) 2023/970 had to be transposed into national law by 7 June 2026. It sets minimum rules that apply in every member state, and national laws may go further. The exact date on which the rules become enforceable in your country depends on its national law, which is why this checker shows the current status of each country next to the baseline duties.
A large part of the directive applies to all employers. Candidates must receive information about the starting pay or pay range before the interview, in practice usually in the job ad. You may not ask candidates about their current or previous pay. Job ads and job titles must be gender-neutral, and recruitment must be non-discriminatory. Workers may ask for their own pay level and for average pay levels, broken down by sex, for workers doing the same work or work of equal value. You reply within a reasonable time and at the latest within two months, and you inform all workers of this right every year. Contract clauses that stop workers from disclosing their own pay are not allowed.
Your pay structure must rest on objective, gender-neutral criteria. The directive names four: skills, effort, responsibility and working conditions. The criteria for setting pay, pay levels and pay progression must be easily accessible to workers. Member states may exempt employers with fewer than 50 workers from the pay progression part.
Gender pay gap reporting is size-dependent. Employers with 250 or more workers report every year, the first time by 7 June 2027 for 2026. Employers with 150 to 249 workers report every three years, also starting by 7 June 2027. Employers with 100 to 149 workers report every three years from 7 June 2031. Below 100 there is no reporting duty under the directive. A joint pay assessment only applies to reporting employers, when a gap of at least 5% in a category is neither justified by objective, gender-neutral criteria nor remedied within six months.
Frequently asked questions
- Does the directive apply to companies with fewer than 50 employees?
- Yes. Pay information for candidates, the ban on salary history questions, the right to information and objective pay criteria apply regardless of size. Member states may exempt employers under 50 from the pay progression part only.
- When do the rules start in my country?
- The transposition deadline was 7 June 2026. The actual start depends on national law. Check the status and last-checked date shown for your country and the official source before publishing job ads.
- Does the directive apply to the public sector?
- Yes. The directive covers employers in both the public and the private sector.
- We have 80 employees. Do we have to report our pay gap?
- Not under the directive: reporting starts at 100 workers. National law may add rules, so check your country page. You still need objective pay criteria and must answer pay information requests.