Quick answer: In the EU and UK, interview questions that dig into protected personal characteristics (age, sex, pregnancy or family plans, disability or health, religion or belief, racial or ethnic origin, sexual orientation, and in Poland also politics and trade union membership) are generally off-limits. They can support discrimination claims, and collecting that data usually fails GDPR/RODO data minimisation. Ask about the job: skills, experience, how the person would do the work. In the EU and in Poland since 24 December 2025, do not ask for pay history. Give a salary range instead.
Most interview questions you can’t ask do not sound illegal. They sound like small talk. “Do you have kids?” “Where is that accent from?” “How old are you, roughly?” On a five-person team nobody meant harm. The law still cares about the question and what you do with the answer.
This post is educational. It is not legal advice. National rules differ. If you are unsure for your country or your hire, ask counsel.
Why do two legal tracks matter for interview questions?
Because equality law and data protection both constrain what you may ask, for different reasons.
| Track | What it stops | Typical hook |
|---|---|---|
| Equality / anti-discrimination | Treating someone less favourably because of a protected ground, including in recruitment | Directive 2000/78/EC, 2000/43/EC, 2006/54/EC; UK Equality Act; PL Kodeks pracy Ch. IIa |
| Data protection (GDPR / RODO) | Collecting personal data you do not need for the hiring decision | GDPR Art. 5(1)(c) data minimisation; PL Art. 22¹ KP closed candidate-data list; UODO recruitment guidance |
If the answer cannot change a lawful, job-related hiring decision, do not ask. If you asked by accident, do not write the protected answer into the ATS as a selection reason. Retention is the twin of this rule: see how long to keep job applications under GDPR and RODO.
What is a plain checklist of unsafe questions and safer swaps?
Use the same job criteria for every candidate. Swap personal chat for work evidence.
| Unsafe question | Why it is risky | Ask instead |
|---|---|---|
| ”How old are you?” / “What year did you graduate?” | Age is protected under 2000/78/EC and the UK Equality Act. Graduation year is a common age proxy. | ”This role needs X years of hands-on work with Y. Walk me through relevant projects." |
| "Are you married?” / “Do you have kids?” / “Are you planning a family?” | Sex, pregnancy and maternity, marriage or civil partnership are protected. GOV.UK says do not ask about marriage or children plans. 2006/54/EC covers sex discrimination in recruitment. | ”This role needs travel X days a month and occasional weekend on-call. Can you meet that schedule?” (same question for everyone) |
| “Do you have any disabilities?” / “How many sick days last year?” (pre-offer) | Disability is protected. UK: Equality Act s.60 and ACAS generally ban health enquiries before offer, with narrow exceptions. EU: timing of health questions varies by member state. Do not treat UK s.60 as an identical EU-wide rule. Health is also special-category data under GDPR. | ”Do you need any reasonable adjustments for the interview or assessment?” Save job-related health checks for after an offer where national law allows. |
| ”What religion are you?” / “Will you need Fridays off for worship?” (as a filter) | Religion or belief is protected under 2000/78/EC and the UK Equality Act. | ”The roster includes Saturday shifts and public holidays. Are you able to work that pattern?" |
| "Where are you really from?” / “Is English your mother tongue?” | Racial or ethnic origin: 2000/43/EC. Accent or origin chat as a proxy is high risk. | ”This role needs fluent Polish or English for client calls. Please do a short work sample in that language.” Right-to-work checks only where lawful, asked the same way for everyone. |
| ”Are you gay?” / “Do you have a husband or wife?” / identity probes | Sexual orientation is protected under 2000/78/EC and the UK Equality Act. The UK also protects gender reassignment. Do not overclaim one uniform EU “gender identity” ground identical to UK wording. | Nothing. Stick to job performance. Use the name the candidate gives. |
| ”Are you in a union?” | GOV.UK: must not use trade union membership as a hire factor. Poland lists przynależność związkowa in Art. 18³a KP. | Nothing related to union membership as a hire factor. |
| ”Who did you vote for?” / “What are your political views?” | Charter Art. 21 lists political opinion. Poland Art. 18³a KP lists przekonania polityczne. The UK Equality Act does not list politics as a protected characteristic, so avoid hard UK claims. Still skip it for normal SMB roles. | Skip unless the role itself is political (rare). |
| ”What do you earn now?” (EU / PL) | Directive (EU) 2023/970 Art. 5(2): employers shall not ask about pay history. Consilium confirms the same. Poland: Dz.U. 2025 poz. 807 amended KP from 24 December 2025 (Art. 18³ca pay range; Art. 22¹ excludes past pay from employment history). UK: no general statutory salary-history ban found. Giving a range is still good practice there. | Publish or share the initial pay or range. Ask “Does our published range work for you?” |
Poland also has a data-minimisation choke point. UODO treats Art. 22¹ KP as a closed catalogue of what employers may demand from candidates. Do not demand surplus fields “just in case” (mandatory photo, PESEL at application, parents’ names, marital status on the form).
How do I keep interviews job-related instead of chatty?
Use the same core questions for every candidate, written from the real work.
ACAS interviewing guidance pushes non-discriminatory questions, the same questions where possible, and a reasonable-adjustments ask for the interview process. That is the same idea as a structured interview: same prompts, same evidence, less vibe.
For early filters, keep phone screen questions on skills, schedule, and whether your published range works. In the EU and Poland, salary-band talk is not a past-pay dig.
An interview scorecard template (a doc you paste into notes) helps you score against published criteria. That is process advice, not a claim that any ATS has a special scorecard UI.
What should I write in interview notes?
Write job-related, defensible observations only.
Log skills evidence, examples given, and schedule fit against published requirements. If someone asked a borderline personal question by accident, note the process correction (“redirected to job requirements; personal answer not used”) rather than storing the protected attribute as a hire reason. On reject or advance, write a short decision reason tied to published criteria.
In Canvider, Internal Comments stay internal. Candidates never see them. Write as if counsel might read them later. InterviewGen suggests questions after AI analysis. Humans must review before use. Those suggestions are not legal clearance and can still be inappropriate. Screening questions carry editorial guidance not to ask protected characteristics. That is not an automated blocker. The product stores notes. It does not flag illegal interview questions.
You are the controller. Delete Candidate wipes comments. A vacancy marked Deleted purges related data after 30 days.
What should small EU and UK teams do tomorrow?
Print the checklist above. Write five job-based questions before the next interview. Share your pay range where EU or Polish rules apply. Ask counsel when a case looks fuzzy.
Same job criteria for everyone beats friendly small talk that becomes an evidence trail.
Frequently asked questions
What interview questions can't you ask in the EU and UK?
Questions that dig into protected characteristics (age, sex, pregnancy or family plans, disability or health, religion or belief, racial or ethnic origin, sexual orientation, and in Poland also politics and trade union membership) are generally off-limits. In the EU and Poland you also must not ask about pay history. This is general information, not legal advice.
Can I ask about health or disability before a job offer?
In the UK, Equality Act section 60 generally bans health or disability enquiries before an offer, with narrow exceptions such as interview adjustments. EU member-state timing rules vary, so do not copy the UK rule as an EU-wide ban. Asking about reasonable adjustments for the interview itself is the safer process question.
Is asking about past salary illegal in the UK?
There is no general UK statutory salary-history ban in the Equality Act pages reviewed for this post. In the EU, Directive (EU) 2023/970 Article 5(2) says employers shall not ask about pay history, and Poland amended the Labour Code from 24 December 2025. In the UK, giving a range and avoiding past-pay anchoring is still good practice.
Does Canvider block illegal interview questions?
No. Canvider does not flag illegal questions. InterviewGen suggestions still need human review and are not legal clearance. Screening guidance says not to ask protected characteristics, but that is editorial guidance, not an auto-blocker.