Pay transparency 2026: what applies when you look for work?

In short

• The EU Pay Transparency Directive should have become Swedish law by 7 June 2026 at the latest. Sweden has not introduced it.
• On 26 March 2026, the Government announced that for the time being it is not presenting a bill and that it wants to renegotiate the directive.
• Today, the Swedish Discrimination Act applies. The employer does not have to state the salary in the job advert and may ask about your previous salary.
• The question is not settled. That is why it pays to prepare for the salary discussion already now.

What is the Pay Transparency Directive?

Directive (EU) 2023/970 was adopted on 10 May 2023. The aim is equal pay for women and men who do the same work or work of equal value. The tool is transparency: it should become easier to see how pay is set and to spot differences that cannot be explained.

In the directive, pay means more than the basic salary. Other compensation and benefits also count, for example bonuses, overtime pay and pension.

What would change when you look for work

• The salary before the interview. You would be told the starting salary or a pay range in the job advert or before the interview.
• No questions about your pay history. The employer would not be allowed to ask what you earn today or have earned before.
• Gender-neutral adverts. Job adverts and job titles must be gender-neutral.
• Right to information. As an employee you would be able to request information about your own pay and the average pay for women and men who do the same work or work of equal value. The answer must come within two months.
• You may talk about your pay. Agreements that forbid employees to tell others about their pay would not be allowed.
• Clear criteria. Employees must be able to see easily which criteria determine pay and pay progression.

The situation in Sweden in autumn 2026

What applies today

As long as the directive has not been introduced, the Discrimination Act (diskrimineringslagen) applies:

• All employers must survey and analyse pay every year and check whether women and men who do the same work or work of equal value are paid differently.
• From 10 employees, the pay survey must be documented in writing. From 25 employees, all work on active measures must be documented.
• Pay differences that cannot be explained must be corrected. Employers with at least 25 employees must document a plan for pay adjustments, which must be made as soon as possible and within three years at the latest.
• The question about previous salary is not prohibited today. But the employer may never discriminate against a job seeker, and pay may not be set in a discriminatory way.

Pay reports and the 5 per cent threshold

Under the directive, larger employers must report the pay gap between women and men:

If the report shows a difference of at least 5 per cent in any group of employees, and the employer cannot justify it with objective, gender-neutral reasons or correct it within six months, the employer must carry out a joint pay assessment together with the employees’ representatives.

Since Sweden has not introduced the directive, the dates above do not apply in Sweden today.

The pay gap in figures

In 2025, women earned on average 90.1 per cent of men’s pay: SEK 40,600 against SEK 45,100 per month. That is a difference of 9.9 per cent. When occupation, age, education, working hours and sector are taken into account, 4.4 per cent remains unexplained. The figures come from Medlingsinstitutet, the Swedish National Mediation Office (June 2026).

The unexplained part does not automatically mean that anyone has been discriminated against, but these are exactly the kind of differences that the directive wants to make visible.

How to prepare for the salary discussion

You do not need to wait for a new law to go into the salary discussion well prepared.

1. Check what the occupation usually pays. Pay statistics from Statistics Sweden (SCB) and from trade unions give a picture of pay levels.
2. Ask about the pay range early. If the advert says nothing, you can ask at the first contact. That is perfectly reasonable and shows that you are serious.
3. Decide how to answer about your previous salary. The question is allowed today. You can choose to say instead what salary you expect and why.
4. Look at the whole package. Ask about pension, holidays, wellness allowance and other benefits, not just the basic salary.
5. Practise out loud. Say your salary expectations and your reasons: education, experience and what the job requires. It gets easier once you have said it before.

If you take part in Prepare and Match (Rusta och matcha) with us, your coach can help you understand the pay level in your industry and practise for the discussion. Read more about what you get as a participant.

Written by Ajdin KurbegovicCo-founder, operations manager and job coach at Swefleet

We are a provider of Prepare and Match on behalf of Arbetsförmedlingen in Gothenburg. The text is based on the sources below and was updated on 23 September 2026. Rules can change, so always check your own case with Arbetsförmedlingen or Försäkringskassan.