Cyprus prepares for salary transparency. No more questions about previous salaries.

Cyprus is preparing implementing regulations transparency of salaries During recruitment and hiring, candidates should be informed of the starting salary or salary range early enough to be able to negotiate the terms. However, employers will not be permitted to ask how much a person earned in their previous job.

The changes are not yet in force. The draft passed public consultations and discussions with employer organizations and trade unions, and was then submitted for legal review. Cyprus was late in implementing the EU directive, with the deadline set for June 7, 2026.

Pay transparency already during recruitment

One of the most important changes will be the candidate's right to receive information about the remuneration planned for a given position.

This could be a specific amount or a salary range. Information should be provided early enough for the candidate to conduct transparent and informed negotiations.

This doesn't automatically mean, however, that the salary range will have to be included in every job advertisement. The EU directive allows for it to be included, among other things, in the advertisement, before the interview, or in another way preceding the negotiation of employment terms.

The final way in which this obligation is implemented in Cyprus will depend on the wording of national law.

The employer will not ask about your previous salary

The new rules will prohibit employers from asking job applicants about their current or previous job salaries.

Such questions can cause previous pay inequalities to follow an employee to another company. If someone earned below-market wages in their previous job, the next employer may use that amount as a starting point for negotiations.

Once the directive is implemented, remuneration should be determined based on the value of the position, required competencies, responsibility and objective criteria – not the earnings history of a specific candidate.

The recruitment process and job titles should also be gender neutral.

The employee will be able to ask about the salary level

Pay transparency will not end at the hiring stage. Employed individuals will have the right to information regarding the principles by which their salary is determined.

The employee will be able to apply for:

• information about your own salary level,
• criteria used in determining wages,
• criteria for pay raises and promotions,
• average wage levels of people performing the same work or work of the same value,
• comparative data by gender.

The information provided is not intended to reveal the salaries of specific colleagues. Its purpose is to enable verification that the employee is not receiving lower pay for reasons the employer cannot objectively justify.

Employers will have to regularly inform staff about the right to obtain such data and how to make a request.

The employee will be able to talk about his salary

The new regulations are also intended to prevent the use of provisions that prohibit employees from disclosing their own remuneration when doing so for the purpose of verifying or asserting their right to equal pay.

This is important because without the ability to compare employment conditions, it is difficult to determine whether two people performing the same or equivalent work are paid according to the same principles.

This doesn't mean a universal obligation to publish salaries for all employees. Each employee decides for themselves whether to disclose their earnings. However, employers should not penalize employees for disclosing their own salary in connection with pursuing employment rights.

Larger companies will report pay differences

Additional obligations will apply to companies employing at least 100 people. They will be required to report the pay gap between women and men.

The obligations will be introduced gradually. According to the EU directive:

• companies employing at least 250 people must report annually;
• enterprises employing 150 to 249 people – every three years;
• companies employing 100 to 149 people – also every three years, but the obligation for this group will start later.

The first reporting period for companies employing at least 150 people is scheduled for 2027. Companies with 100 to 149 employees will be covered from 2031, unless Cypriot regulations introduce an earlier deadline.

Any difference exceeding 5 percent will require an explanation.

If the report shows a gender pay gap of at least 5% in a specific employee category, the company will have to objectively justify it or eliminate it.

If the difference cannot be explained by neutral criteria and is not corrected within the required time, the employer and employee representatives may be required to conduct a joint pay assessment.

Not every difference in salary will automatically constitute discrimination. Salary may depend on factors such as experience, responsibility, performance, length of service, or specific qualifications.

However, the criteria must be explainable, objective and applied in a gender-neutral manner.

Easier to claim compensation

The directive also strengthens the employee's position in a dispute concerning unequal pay.

Anyone who has suffered harm as a result of a violation of the equal pay principle should be able to obtain full compensation. This could include back pay, lost bonuses or benefits, and other discrimination-related damages.

The change in the burden of proof will also be significant. If an employee presents facts suggesting pay discrimination has occurred, the employer will have to prove that the principle of equal pay has not been violated.

Detailed procedures, sanctions and competent institutions will be specified in Cypriot law.

Cyprus did not manage to pass the law on time

European Union countries were supposed to implement the Pay Transparency Directive by June 7, 2026. Cyprus did not complete the legislative process by that date.

The draft was subject to consultation and discussion with employer and employee representatives. It was then submitted to the legal service, which is reviewing its compliance with the applicable legal system.

Previous announcements called for the bill to be presented to the Council of Ministers in September, and then submitted to Parliament. Until the bill is passed and promulgated, the new obligations should not be considered binding law.

What do the changes mean for Poles working in Cyprus?

The new rules will apply to employees regardless of their citizenship. Poles legally employed in the Republic of Cyprus will be able to enjoy the same rights as other employees covered by Cypriot labor law.

For those just looking for a job, the biggest change will be the ability to learn about the proposed salary before the negotiations end and the ban on making the new salary dependent on previous earnings.

Employees will gain broader access to information allowing them to assess whether they receive comparable remuneration for the same work.

This doesn't mean full disclosure of all salaries or the obligation to pay everyone the same amount. However, employers will have to be much more thorough in explaining why employees in equivalent positions earn differently.

Sources: European Commission, EUR-Lex, Cyprus Mail, statements by the Cypriot Commissioner for Gender Equality