Starting July 1, every Virginia employer must include a wage or salary range in every job posting — and asking applicants about their pay history is off the table.
Why it matters: HB 636 and SB 215 (Chapters 1063 and 996) apply to virtually every employer regardless of size. The Attorney General can bring enforcement actions with civil penalties up to $1,000 for a first violation and up to $5,000 per subsequent violation. Aggrieved applicants and employees also have a private right of action to recover actual damages, attorney fees, and equitable relief.
The big picture: Virginia joins more than a dozen states and localities — including Maryland, New Jersey, Colorado, and Washington, DC — that now require some form of wage range disclosure. For most independent businesses in the Commonwealth, this is the single change from the 2026 session that will require action in every hiring cycle going forward.
What is prohibited
Beginning July 1, an employer cannot:
- Seek the wage or salary history of a prospective employee
- Rely on wage or salary history when considering an applicant for employment
- Rely on wage or salary history when setting the wages or salary at hire
- Refuse to interview, hire, employ, or promote — or otherwise retaliate against — a current or prospective employee for declining to provide wage history or for requesting a wage range
- Fail to disclose the wage, salary, or wage or salary range in any public or internal posting for a job, promotion, transfer, or other employment opportunity
- Fail to set a wage or salary range in good faith
Who is covered
The law uses the term “employer” without a minimum employee count. Plan as if it applies to your business.
What “in good faith” means
The statute does not prescribe a specific dollar spread, but the good-faith requirement effectively prohibits posting an unreasonably wide range to satisfy the technicality. In other states with similar laws, enforcement agencies have challenged ranges that are not anchored in defensible methodology. Document how your business sets its ranges.
What employers should do before July 1
- Audit every active job posting. Public listings, internal job boards, and any postings handled by recruiters or third-party platforms. Every one needs a wage or salary range by July 1.
- Update your standard posting template. Add a structured compensation field so future postings cannot go live without it.
- Notify recruiters and staffing agencies in writing. If a third party posts on your behalf without a range, your business carries the exposure.
- Train hiring managers and HR. Pay history questions are now off-limits — including indirect framings such as asking what an applicant’s current compensation expectations are based on.
- Document your good-faith range methodology. When setting ranges, record the basis: market data, internal equity, budget. If challenged later, you will want a record.
- Review application forms. Many standard applications still ask for current and prior salary. Remove those fields.
- Coordinate with payroll and finance. Posted ranges should align with what your business is actually prepared to pay.
One nuance to watch
The wage history prohibition applies to employer conduct — not applicant conduct. If an applicant volunteers their prior compensation, the employer still cannot rely on that information in considering the applicant or setting pay. Document the source of every pay decision carefully.
Enforcement window
The Attorney General is authorized to bring enforcement actions. Aggrieved prospective employees and employees have one year from the date of the violation to bring a private claim, with recovery of actual damages, reasonable attorney fees, and any other appropriate legal and equitable relief.
The bottom line: Pay transparency is the single change from this session that requires action from virtually every employer in the Commonwealth. Audit your postings this month. Update your templates and recruiter contracts before July 1. Train your team. The administrative work is modest. The litigation exposure for skipping it is not.
Next in the series: A full overview of the eight employment-related changes that affect every local employer — including the under-reported expansion of the Virginia Human Rights Act that pulls employers as small as five people into discrimination jurisdiction for the first time.
This communication is provided for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Statutory citations and effective dates reflect the bills as enacted by the 2026 Virginia General Assembly. Member businesses should consult qualified legal counsel for guidance on specific compliance obligations applicable to their circumstances.
