It is now official. On 5 November 2026, the Prime Minister announced that the government will make it a legal requirement for all employers to publish salary information in job ads, and will bring forward legislation “as soon as possible” (Source: GOV.UK, New “say what you pay” law to help young people into work, 5 November 2026). Many of the details, from whether a salary range is enough to when the rules start, have still to be decided.

In October we asked whether UK job ads should show salaries. This follow-up sets out what was announced, what is likely to happen next, what we still don’t know, and what employers, in-house talent teams and recruitment agencies can do now so they are ready before the law arrives.

Last updated: 6 November 2026. We will update this article as the government publishes more detail.

At a glance

  • On 5 November 2026, the government announced that all employers will be legally required to publish salary information in job ads.
  • 94% of respondents to the government’s consultation backed the requirement, including 93% of businesses.
  • Legislation will follow “as soon as possible”. The government has not yet said whether a range will be enough, how wide it can be, or when the rules will start.
  • Only 41% of organisations always share salary ranges in external job ads (CIPD), and 58% of UK postings on Indeed included pay in the three months to June 2026.

The RMG view: the headline is settled. The detail still to come matters more. A range so wide it tells candidates nothing will technically “say what you pay”, but it won’t win the candidates you want. Employers who set honest, realistic pay in their job ads now will see the benefits first. Everyone else will simply be complying when the law arrives.

What was announced on 5 November 2026

The announcement came from the Prime Minister’s Office and set out plans to “legally require employers to publish salaries in job adverts”. In the government’s words, it will “mandate job adverts to ‘say what you pay’ by making publishing salaries a legal requirement” (Source: GOV.UK, 5 November 2026).

Prime Minister Andy Burnham said: “Whether you’re a young person starting out or a parent trying to support your family, you should know what a job pays before spending your time and effort applying for it. That’s why we will make it a legal requirement for all employers to say what you pay.”

The government framed the change as part of its work to help young people into jobs. It also links the change to closing the gender pay gap. Bridget Phillipson, Minister for Women and Equalities, said mandatory salary information “will help young people make informed choices, help close the gender pay gap, and tackle an everyday annoyance that can stand in the way of applying for a job”.

The government also pointed to strong support. 94% of respondents to its consultation backed the requirement, including 93% of businesses. It cited CIPD research showing that fewer than half of employers (41%) always publish salary ranges.

What happens next

The government has not published a timetable, but its announcement and its July 2026 consultation give a good idea of the route to law.

  1. The government responds to the consultation. The equal pay and pay discrimination consultation closed on 27 October 2026. The government has said that further detail on the scope of the requirement and the information employers must provide will follow “in due course” (Source: GOV.UK, 5 November 2026).
  2. Legislation creates the duty. The government will bring forward legislation “as soon as possible”. In the consultation, it proposed introducing the requirement “through a delegated power, enabling regulations to specify exact requirements. For example, the size of a salary range” (Source: GOV.UK, Equal pay and pay discrimination consultation document, July 2026).
  3. Regulations set the detail. This is where the practical rules will sit: whether a range or a specific salary is required, how wide a range can be, and what else must be shown.
  4. A preparation period follows before the rules start. The consultation commits to an extended implementation period before its measures take effect, so that employers and the tribunal system have time to prepare.

In short, the duty is coming, but the rules are not in force yet and won’t be for some time. That gives employers a window to get ready on their own terms.

What we know, and what we don’t

What we know

  • The government intends the requirement to apply to all employers. Neither the announcement nor the consultation mentions a size threshold.
  • Where there is no job ad, the consultation proposed that employers must give candidates pay information in writing before the interview.
  • The consultation proposed that the measures cover Great Britain: England, Scotland and Wales.
  • The detailed requirements are expected to be set in regulations, so they can be adjusted over time.

What we don’t know yet

  • Whether a pay range will be enough, or whether a specific salary or benchmark rate will be required. The consultation asked exactly this question.
  • How wide a range can be.
  • Which pay information beyond basic salary must be included, such as bonuses, benefits or collective agreements.
  • When the rules will start, how they will be enforced, and what the penalties will be.
  • Whether employers will be banned from asking candidates about their previous pay. The consultation did not propose this, but the Equality and Human Rights Commission has called for it (Source: Personnel Today, 6 November 2026).

The debate: support, and some real concerns

Support is broad, but not universal. Penny East, Chief Executive of the Fawcett Society, called the decision “a significant step towards making work fairer for women and tackling the gender pay gap” (Source: GOV.UK, 5 November 2026).

Some employer groups are more cautious. Jay Bhayani, executive director for legal at Make UK, warned that a legal requirement could become “yet another compliance headache for employers”. She said that publishing pay for new recruits could cause tension where market rates have moved ahead of what existing staff earn. She also noted that employers may not know until after interview whether they are hiring at the junior or senior end of a role (Source: Personnel Today, 6 November 2026).

The CIPD’s chief executive, Neil Carberry, said sharing salary details is “a good thing” in principle, but that the reality is “more complicated”, because employers may want to set pay according to a candidate’s skills, experience and potential (Source: BBC News, 5 November 2026).

These are fair points, and the answer to most of them is preparation, not delay. Internal pay tension is a reason to review pay structures now, before new ranges go public. The “junior or senior” problem is what a well-designed range is for.

Lessons from Ontario and the EU

The UK is not the first to make this move, and the regulations will probably borrow from rules elsewhere.

Ontario, Canada. Since 1 January 2026, employers in Ontario must include expected pay or a pay range in publicly advertised job postings. The rules do not apply to employers with fewer than 25 employees. Any range must be no wider than C$50,000 a year, and roles paying more than C$200,000 are exempt from the range requirement (Source: Ontario Regulation 476/24).

The European Union. Under Article 5 of the EU Pay Transparency Directive, job applicants have the right to information about “the initial pay or its range”, for example in the job ad or before the interview, and employers “shall not ask applicants about their pay history”. Member States had until 7 June 2026 to bring the Directive into national law (Source: EUR-Lex, Directive (EU) 2023/970). UK businesses hiring in EU countries need to follow the national rules in each country.

Two features are worth watching for in the UK regulations: a cap on how wide ranges can be, and a ban on asking about previous pay.

Why most employers shouldn’t wait

The voluntary approach has stalled. Indeed Hiring Lab found that 58% of UK job postings included pay information in the three months to June 2026, “meaningfully below the 64% high seen in September 2024”. It linked the dip to cooler hiring conditions: as employer bargaining power strengthens, “the incentive to compete on pay visibility diminishes” (Source: Indeed Hiring Lab, August 2026).

Employers who switch pay on and off with the market are noticed by candidates, and the law will soon remove that option. The good news is that most UK ranges are already fairly tight. Indeed found that the median UK annual salary range is 17% of the lower bound, equivalent to something like £30,000 to £35,100 (Source: Indeed Hiring Lab, May 2026). Wide-open ranges will stand out once every employer has to publish.

There is also a visibility benefit. Clear, consistent salary information makes job ads easier for job boards, search engines and AI tools to read and match to the right candidates. That supports both your SEO and AIO, as more candidates use AI assistants to look for roles.

What employers can do now

  1. Audit your live job ads. Check which roles show pay, which don’t, and how wide your ranges are.
  2. Agree salary bands for your common roles. Base them on your pay structure and current market data, not on what was used last time.
  3. Set a policy on range width. Decide how wide a range can be before it stops being useful. Ontario’s C$50,000 cap is a useful outer limit.
  4. Check for internal pay tension. Compare planned ranges with what existing staff earn, and deal with any gaps before ranges go public.
  5. Stop asking candidates about previous pay. The EU already bans it and the EHRC has called for a UK ban, so ask about salary expectations instead.
  6. Brief hiring managers and agencies. Make sure everyone who writes or posts job ads, including recruitment agency partners, follows the same approach.
  7. Explain the whole package. Pay is one part of your EVP. Show benefits, flexibility and progression alongside it, so candidates can compare your offer fairly.

Get your job ads ready before the rules land

We can review a sample of your live job ads, show you how your pay information compares with the market, and help you set out pay and benefits in a way that attracts better-matched applicants. See our recruitment advertising optimisation and employer branding and EVP services, or talk to us.

Frequently asked questions

Is it now law to include salaries in UK job ads?

Not yet. On 5 November 2026, the government announced that it will make publishing salary information in job ads a legal requirement for all employers and will bring forward legislation as soon as possible. Until that legislation is passed and in force, including pay is voluntary.

When will salary information in job ads become mandatory?

No date has been set. The government has said legislation will follow as soon as possible, with detail to come in due course. Its consultation also committed to an extended implementation period before its measures take effect.

Will a salary range be enough?

That has not been decided. The consultation asked whether a pay range, a specific salary or a benchmark rate should be required, and proposed that regulations would set exact requirements, such as the size of a salary range.

Does the requirement apply to small businesses?

The government says the requirement will apply to all employers, and neither the announcement nor the consultation mentions a size threshold. By comparison, Ontario’s rules do not apply to employers with fewer than 25 employees.

Can employers still ask candidates about their current salary?

For now, yes, in the UK, although candidates do not have to answer. The EU Pay Transparency Directive bans employers from asking about pay history, and the Equality and Human Rights Commission has called for a similar UK ban.

Conclusion

Salaries in UK job ads are moving from good practice to legal duty. The final rules on ranges, timing and enforcement are still to come, but the direction is clear, and the government is urging employers to start now. Employers who use this window to set honest pay, review their job ads and present their full offer well will attract better-matched candidates long before the law makes it compulsory.

Read the background in our earlier article: Should UK Job Ads Show Salaries? Pay Transparency in 2026.

Sources

Want your job ads ready before salaries become a legal requirement? Get in touch with RMG to talk about your job ads, employer brand and talent attraction plans for 2027.