Salary transparency on recruitment

A pay transparency survey has revealed that 70% of employers intend to share salary ranges with external candidates during recruitment ahead of the EU Pay Transparency Directive coming into force. Will this become a legal requirement?

There is currently no legal requirement in the UK to include salary details, or salary bands, in job adverts. However, the following developments are of relevance:

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• the EU Pay Transparency Directive must be transposed into national law by EU Member States by 7 June 2026 and it will require employers to provide information on the starting salary for a role, or the salary range, as part of the recruitment process, either in the job advert or vacancy notice or by sharing this information with candidates prior to interview, without candidates having to request it – UK employers won’t generally have to comply as the UK isn’t subject to the EU Directive, although those who have operations in the EU may have to make changes
• the UK government ran a call for evidence on equality law in spring 2025 which sought evidence and views on improving pay transparency, and this noted that one measure to improve pay transparency could involve employers providing the specific salary or salary range of a role in the job advert or prior to interview, i.e. a measure which would effectively mirror the EU Directive – the outcome of this call for evidence is awaited, so it’s possible the law on pay transparency in the UK may change in the future.

Even if UK law on pay transparency during recruitment doesn’t change, if publishing salary ranges in job adverts starts to become the expected “norm” as a result of a cultural shift, then you may have to follow suit to ensure you continue to receive sufficient job applications from high-quality candidates. If you do include a salary range, also consider setting out information about your benefits package. Alternatively, you could state that salary information will be provided before interview to those candidates who are selected to progress to that stage.

If you would like any assistance with any of these points.

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