Directive (EU) 2023/970 requires employers to give a pay range before the first interview, bans questions about salary history, and gives workers the right to pay data for their own role broken down by sex. Member states had until 7 June 2026 to put it into national law. Only Slovakia, Italy, Lithuania and Malta met the deadline; the rest are at draft stage or have published nothing.
What the Directive actually requires
Before you apply. The initial pay level or range in the posting, or communicated before the first interview. Employers may not ask what you currently earn or have earned.
Once you are employed. A right to request average pay levels for work of the same value, broken down by sex.
From the employer. Gender pay gap reporting for larger organizations, and where an unjustified gap of at least five per cent is found, a joint pay assessment with worker representatives.
Why it may not apply to you yet
A directive is not directly a law you can rely on against a private employer. It instructs member states to legislate, and those national laws are what bind. As of the June 2026 deadline four states had done so — Slovakia, Italy, Lithuania and Malta — with Italy implementing by legislative decree and Slovakia by act.
Several large economies missed it outright. Germany had no published draft, France published a draft targeting entry into force in January 2027, the Netherlands is targeting the same date, and Sweden paused its process. The Commission has said the deadline would not move and that infringement proceedings are available.
What that means practically
Two people doing the same job for the same multinational in two member states currently have different rights, and the difference is which country transposed. If you are job-hunting in Europe, the useful question is what your country has enacted, not what the Directive says.
Where some countries were already ahead
Several had transparency or reporting rules before the Directive, so parts of it changed less there than the timeline suggests. Equally, some drafts go beyond the minimum, which is why the eventual landscape will not be uniform even once everyone has legislated.
What comes next
The first gender pay gap reports under the Directive are due in 2027, which is the point at which the reporting half becomes visible rather than theoretical.
Common questions
What does the EU directive require?
A pay range before the first interview, no questions about salary history, a right to request pay data for your own role by sex, and gap reporting for larger employers.
Does it apply to me now?
Only if your country has transposed it. A directive binds member states to legislate; the national law is what you can rely on.
Which countries met the deadline?
Slovakia, Italy, Lithuania and Malta met the 7 June 2026 deadline. The remaining twenty-three did not.
What happens to states that missed it?
The Commission can open infringement proceedings, and it has said the deadline would not be postponed.
When does pay gap reporting start?
The first reports under the Directive are due in 2027, which is when the reporting half becomes visible.