Whether employers can ask about previous salary depends on where the job is located. No federal law prohibits the question, but roughly 22 states and about two dozen cities and counties have banned it outright. Even in places where the question remains legal, employers who use your past pay to set your new pay run into discrimination risk under existing federal law.
Federal Law Does Not Ban the Question
There is no federal statute that specifically prohibits salary history inquiries. What federal law does is make it dangerous for employers to rely on your past pay when setting your new compensation. The Equal Pay Act requires employers to pay men and women equally for equal work, with only four narrow exceptions: seniority, merit, productivity-based pay systems, and a catch-all for factors genuinely unrelated to sex.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 29 USC 206 – Minimum Wage
The EEOC has taken a clear position: prior salary alone cannot justify a pay gap between men and women doing the same job. Because past salaries can themselves reflect discrimination, the agency’s guidance says allowing them as the sole basis for future pay “would swallow up the rule and inequality in compensation among genders would be perpetuated.”2U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Section 10 Compensation Discrimination An employer can consider prior salary as one factor, but only if it also weighs job-related qualifications and can prove sex played no role.
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act broadens the picture. It prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, and national origin, so using salary history in a way that systematically disadvantages any protected group can trigger a Title VII claim as well.3U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964
State and Local Salary History Bans
As of mid-2025, about 22 states have enacted statewide salary history bans, and roughly 24 cities and counties have adopted their own. These laws exist because federal law makes reliance on salary history risky but does not stop employers from asking. State and local bans close that gap by prohibiting the inquiry itself.
Specifics vary by jurisdiction, but most bans share a core structure:
- Employers cannot ask candidates what they currently earn or previously earned, whether on applications, in interviews, or through recruiters.
- Many bans also prohibit contacting a candidate’s former employer to obtain pay information.
- In stricter jurisdictions, even if a candidate voluntarily mentions their salary, the employer cannot use that figure to set compensation.
Common exceptions appear across many of these laws. Salary information that is a matter of public record, such as government pay rates, is typically fair game. Some jurisdictions allow candidates to voluntarily disclose salary history to negotiate a higher offer after one has already been extended. Several bans exempt internal transfers and promotions, since the employer already has that pay data.
Pay Transparency Laws
Salary history bans are only half the picture. A parallel wave of pay transparency laws now requires employers to disclose pay ranges to candidates, flipping the information dynamic. At least 14 states and the District of Columbia have enacted some form of pay transparency requirement, with more taking effect through 2027.
These laws typically require employers to include a salary or hourly wage range in job postings, though some only require disclosure during the interview process or upon a candidate’s request. A few also require employers to disclose benefits and other forms of compensation. Pay transparency and salary history bans often exist side by side in the same jurisdiction, creating a framework where employers must reveal what they are willing to pay without learning what a candidate previously earned.
What Employers Can Still Ask About Pay
Even in the strictest jurisdictions, employers have legitimate ways to discuss compensation. The line that matters is between what you earned before and what you want going forward.
- Salary expectations. Asking what pay range you are looking for is legal virtually everywhere.
- The position’s pay range. Employers can, and increasingly must, share what the role pays.
- Skills and qualifications. Education, certifications, years of relevant experience, and specialized training are all fair factors in setting compensation.
- Market data. Employers routinely use geographic cost-of-labor data and industry salary surveys to benchmark roles.
How to Handle the Question in an Interview
Knowing the law is one thing. Sitting in an interview and actually hearing “What did you make at your last job?” is another. How you respond depends on where the job is located.
Where the Question Is Banned
The employer should not be asking. You can address this directly but diplomatically. Something like “I don’t think that’s something we should discuss under current law, but I’d love to talk about the salary range for this role” redirects the conversation. If you prefer not to reference the law, simply pivot: “I’d rather focus on the value I can bring to this position. Can you share more about the compensation range?”
Where the Question Is Legal
Even where employers can legally ask, you are under no obligation to answer. A confident redirect works well: “I keep that confidential, but the range I’m looking for is…” That frames you as professional rather than evasive. If you choose to share a number, follow it immediately with your target range so the conversation anchors there.
On Applications and Online Forms
Required salary history fields on online applications create an awkward situation. Where the question is banned, entering zero and noting in any available comments field that you prefer not to disclose is reasonable. Where the question is legal, the same approach works, though some applicants worry about screening algorithms filtering them out. If you do enter a number, use your cover letter or interview to emphasize your expectations for the new role.
If an Employer Breaks the Rule or Retaliates
In jurisdictions with salary history bans, employers cannot retaliate against you for refusing to answer. They cannot withdraw an offer, refuse to interview you, or take any other adverse action because you declined to share your pay history. Penalties for employers vary widely by jurisdiction, ranging from written warnings for first offenses to civil penalties reaching $10,000 per violation, with some jurisdictions allowing fines as high as $25,000 for willful violations and giving applicants a private right to sue for damages and attorney’s fees.
Federal protections against pay-related retaliation apply on top of state law. The EEOC’s guidance makes clear that inquiring about potentially discriminatory wages and opposing suspected pay discrimination are protected activities, even if the employer’s conduct ultimately turns out to be lawful, so long as the employee held a reasonable good-faith belief that it was unlawful.4U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Enforcement Guidance on Retaliation and Related Issues
If you believe an employer violated a salary history ban or retaliated against you, file a complaint with your state’s labor department or the local agency that enforces the ban. For federal discrimination or retaliation claims, you can file a charge with the EEOC, which generally must be done within 180 days of the adverse action, though state laws can extend that deadline.5U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Retaliation