DIRECTIVE (EU) 2023/970

What the pay transparency directive actually requires

The directive was adopted in May 2023 and member states had until 7 June 2026 to write it into national law. Some obligations already apply. This page explains them in plain language, and what each country has done so far.

FIVE OBLIGATIONS

What changes for employers

Salary ranges before the interview

Candidates must be told the pay range for the role in the advert or before the first interview. Asking about their previous salary is prohibited. This applies to every employer, whatever their size.

An objective job evaluation system

Pay must rest on gender-neutral criteria — skills, effort, responsibility and working conditions. Ranking roles by feel, or by what someone negotiated, no longer holds up.

The employee's right to information

A worker may ask in writing for their own pay level and the average for colleagues doing equal work, split by gender. The employer has to answer within the national deadline.

Gender pay gap reporting

Employers above the national headcount thresholds report their gap periodically. A gap over 5% that cannot be objectively justified triggers a joint pay assessment with worker representatives.

The burden of proof reverses

In an equal-pay dispute it is the employer who must prove there was no discrimination — not the worker who must prove there was. Documented evaluation is your starting point if you are ever challenged.

WHERE EACH COUNTRY STANDS

The deadlines are national, not European

Each member state writes the directive into its own law, sets its own fines and reporting thresholds, and may go further than the minimum.

Poland

Recruitment transparency in force

Full law expected around Q1 2027 · fines up to PLN 60,000

Czechia

Transposition from 01.01.2027

Minimalist transposition · fines up to CZK 1,000,000

Austria

Transposition in progress

Kollektivvertrag rates act as a pay floor

Knowing the rules is the easy part. Documenting that you follow them is the work.

FairGrade turns your job list into graded roles, market-tested pay bands and an audit-ready file — in an afternoon, from €490 a year.

Check your readiness

ABOUT THIS INFORMATION

Last reviewed July 2026. National transposition is still moving in most member states, and dates, thresholds and penalties change. This page is general information, not legal advice — check the current position with a qualified adviser in your country before acting on it.