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2026-01-25 · Taxua

The Pay Transparency Directive Takes Effect in 2026

loonstransparantie

In 2026, the EU continues to face a systemic issue: women on average earn less than men for the same or equivalent work. Causes:

  • non-transparent pay systems,
  • lack of access to compensation information,
  • bias in job postings and hiring,
  • difficulty proving discrimination.

Therefore, the EU adopted the Pay Transparency Directive (Loontransparantie) to make salaries more transparent and reduce the gender gap.

The Directive establishes minimum transparency standards for all employers in the EU:

  1. Transparency for candidates
  • Starting salary or range must be disclosed in job postings or before the interview.
  • Questions about previous salary are prohibited.
  • Job postings must be gender-neutral.
  1. Right of employees to information about compensation structures and average salaries.
  2. Reporting on the gender pay gap - companies with 100+ employees must publish data on the pay gap between men and women.
  3. Assessment - unjustified differences exceeding 5%, not corrected within 6 months, require a joint assessment with employee representatives (unions), with mandatory corrective measures.
  4. Sanctions:
  • Employees can file compensation claims for discrimination.
  • Reversed burden of proof: employers must prove the absence of discrimination.
  • Possible fines.
  • Employee representatives can file claims on behalf of employees.

The Netherlands announced it cannot meet the implementation deadline of 7 June 2026 and is moving the deadline to 1 January 2027. The European Commission refused to extend the deadline and officially stated on 18 December 2025:

  • all countries, including the Netherlands, must implement the Directive by June 2026,
  • reporting for 2026 is already mandatory.

Why implementation is difficult:

  • Job evaluation systems need to be completely redesigned.
  • Companies must create new processes for data collection and analysis.
  • Salary information must be made accessible to employees.
  • HR, managers, works councils, and unions need to be trained.
  • Large companies must prepare for public reporting.
  • Legal risks from the reversed burden of proof must be managed.

But now they will have to accelerate and, finally, ensure equal pay regardless of gender.