On September 2, 2026, the Dutch government published its response memorandum for the Pay Transparency Act bill, Kamerstuk 36949 nr. 6, moving the Netherlands' transposition of Directive (EU) 2023/970 past the committee stage and toward a plenary vote in the Tweede Kamer. The memorandum, submitted by Minister J.A. Vijlbrief, answers the standing committee's report of 29 June 2026 and is the last procedural step before the lower chamber debates and votes on the bill.
The bill, formally the Wet implementatie Richtlijn loontransparantie mannen en vrouwen, amends the Wet gelijke behandeling van mannen en vrouwen and related acts to transpose the EU Pay Transparency Directive. The Directive's 7 June 2026 transposition deadline has already passed, as it has for most member states. The government's target for entry into force remains 1 January 2027 via a Koninklijk Besluit, though that date is now at risk because the file still has to clear both chambers of parliament.
Where does the Pay Transparency Act stand now?
The dossier has followed the standard Dutch legislative track: the bill was submitted on 21 May 2026, the Raad van State issued advice W12.26.00016/III, and the Tweede Kamer committee released its report, verslag nr. 5, on 29 June 2026. With the government's response memorandum, the Nota naar aanleiding van het verslag, now published, the file is ready for plenary consideration in the Tweede Kamer. No plenary date has been scheduled yet.
After a Tweede Kamer vote, the bill passes to the Eerste Kamer, which can only accept or reject it, then to Royal Assent and publication in the Staatsblad before a Koninklijk Besluit sets the entry-into-force date. Because the EU transposition deadline of 7 June 2026 has already passed, public-sector employers fall under the Directive's direct effect in the interim, and Dutch courts are expected to interpret existing equal-pay law in conformity with the Directive until the national act enters into force.
Which employers must comply, and with what obligations?
The bill binds all Dutch employers above phased headcount thresholds and introduces five concrete duties drawn from the Directive:
- Gender-neutral job classification: employers must use objective, gender-neutral analytical methods to classify jobs and structure pay.
- Pay-gap reporting: employers report gender pay-gap data to the government and share it with workers.
- Joint pay assessment: when a reported gap exceeds 5%, the employer runs a joint assessment with worker representatives to identify, justify and address unjustified differences.
- Salary-history question ban: recruiters may not ask applicants about their current or past pay.
- Worker information rights: employees gain the right to request pay information for comparable roles.
The reporting duty phases in by headcount. Employers with 250 or more employees report first, those with 150 to 249 follow, and those with 100 to 149 report last. This mirrors the Directive's staggered rollout across the EU.
When do the deadlines land?
The government's stated target for entry into force is 1 January 2027, but that depends on the bill clearing both chambers and receiving Royal Assent in time, which is not guaranteed at the current stage. The table sets out the known milestones and the employer tiers.
| Milestone or obligation | Date or employer tier |
|---|---|
| EU Pay Transparency Directive transposition deadline | 7 June 2026 (passed) |
| Government response memorandum published | 2 September 2026 |
| Tweede Kamer plenary vote | Not yet scheduled |
| Government target for entry into force | 1 January 2027 (at risk) |
| Pay-gap reporting, first tier | 250+ employees |
| Pay-gap reporting, second tier | 150 to 249 employees |
| Pay-gap reporting, third tier | 100 to 149 employees |
Continuous, per-jurisdiction real-time monitoring surfaces a change like this memorandum the moment it publishes, before the bill reaches the statute book.
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For compliance leads at Dutch employers above the 100-employee threshold, the obligations are effectively firm: the Directive's requirements are settled at EU level, and the Dutch bill tracks them closely. Three steps to take now: audit your job-classification system for gender neutrality, map your pay data against the 5% joint-assessment trigger, and update recruitment scripts to remove salary-history questions. Obsidian tracks this dossier through to Staatsblad publication and entry into force.
