Questions You Can't Ask in an Interview
For interviewers who want to know where the line is, and for candidates who were just asked something that felt wrong. These are the questions not to ask in an interview, the kind often called illegal interview questions, grouped by subject from age and family to health, money and records. Each note says which personal characteristic the question gets at and gives the job-related question to ask instead, where there is one. This is general hiring practice, not legal advice: the law differs by country and state, so check the rules where you hire.
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The questions
Each question, and why to ask it
Age and family
How old are you?
Why ask it
The most direct of the lot. Age is protected in many places, at least for older workers, and the number itself measures nothing the job needs. Where the law sets a minimum age, as it often does for serving alcohol, ask every candidate 'Are you over the minimum age this job requires?' and take the yes or no.
Are you married?
Why ask it
No job duty depends on the answer, and because the question has so often been put to women and not to men, it reads as a question about sex as well as marital status. If you are really wondering about travel, late hours or relocation, put that requirement to every candidate and leave the household out of it.
Do you have any children?
Why ask it
A question about being a parent, usually asked as a way of guessing at availability. The guess is the problem: plenty of parents can work any shift and plenty of people without children cannot. Describe the hours and ask 'Does that schedule work for you?'
Are you pregnant, or planning to be soon?
Why ask it
Pregnancy and plans for a family are among the most widely protected subjects in hiring, and no version of this question is about the job. Tell every candidate the start date and the main demands of the role, and say nothing more even when a pregnancy is plain to see.
When did you graduate from high school?
Why ask it
It sounds like a question about education, but a graduation year gives away an age to within a year or two. Ask 'Which qualifications do you hold that this job calls for?' and leave the dates out unless a credential has to be current.
What year were you born?
Why ask it
The same question as 'How old are you?' with the subtraction left to the interviewer. Forms ask it more often than people do, so read your application form as well. A date of birth is needed for payroll and some checks, and those come after an offer.
How much longer do you plan to work before you retire?
Why ask it
This one tends to be saved for older candidates, which makes it a question about age. The worry behind it is whether they will stay long enough to be worth training, and nobody of any age can promise that. Ask everyone 'What would you like to get done in this job over the next couple of years?'
Would you be comfortable reporting to someone younger than you?
Why ask it
The question assumes that age makes a person hard to manage, and it tells the candidate that theirs has been noticed. Ask what you would ask anyone about being managed: 'Tell me about a manager you worked well with, and what they did.'
Our team is mostly in their twenties. Do you think you would fit in?
Why ask it
'Fit' here means age, and the candidate will hear it that way. Describe what the team is like to work in, such as the pace, the tools and how decisions get made, then ask 'Which of those suits you, and which would take some adjusting to?'
Do you think you could pick up new software at this stage of your career?
Why ask it
'At this stage' carries the assumption that older people learn slowly. Name the tools the job runs on and ask every candidate 'Which of these have you worked with, and how did you learn the last one that was new to you?'
Aren't you overqualified for a job at this level?
Why ask it
Not a banned question in itself, but it can be a polite way of saying too old or too expensive, and an older candidate is likely to hear it that way. The fair concern is that they will be bored or gone within months, so ask about that: 'This role has less scope than your last one. What makes it the right move for you now?'
Aren't you a little young to be managing people?
Why ask it
Age cuts both ways, and some places protect younger workers as well as older ones. Years alive are not the requirement, experience of leading is. Ask 'What is the largest team you have led, and what was the hardest part of it?'
Who looks after your kids while you are at work?
Why ask it
Childcare is the candidate's business, and this one tends to be put to mothers and not to fathers. If the job starts at six or runs late without warning, say so plainly and ask 'Can you reliably work those hours?' The answer you need is yes or no, not how.
Will your family be all right with you traveling this much?
Why ask it
The travel is your business and the family's opinion is not. State the requirement in numbers and put it to the candidate, not their household: 'This job means about eight nights away a month. Can you do that?'
What does your husband do for a living?
Why ask it
The answer confirms a marriage and invites guesses about whether the candidate needs the money or will move when a partner's job does. Neither is yours to weigh, whoever the spouse is. If location matters, say 'This job is based here with no remote option. Is that workable for you?'
Who do you live with?
Why ask it
Asked as small talk, it gathers marital status, children, a partner's sex and sometimes a parent being cared for, all in one answer. A household is a poor guide to who turns up on time. If the real concern is cover for early shifts or being reachable on call, describe that and ask whether they can do it.
Who would we contact in an emergency?
Why ask it
Harmless on a new-hire form. In an interview the answer names a spouse, a partner or a parent and tells you about someone's home life before you have decided anything. Collect emergency contacts once the person is hired.
Gender and orientation
Is that Miss, Mrs. or Ms.?
Why ask it
Only women are handed a choice of titles that says whether they are married, so this is a marital status question in disguise. Ask 'What would you like me to call you?' and use whatever they say. Any title a payroll form needs can wait until someone has been hired.
What was your maiden name?
Why ask it
Only married women are asked it, so it covers sex and marital status together, and a surname can point to ancestry too. If references or a background check need it, ask 'Have you worked or studied under another name we would need in order to check your record?'
You mentioned a partner. Is that a husband or a wife?
Why ask it
The follow-up asks for sexual orientation, which many places protect and which bears on no job. When a candidate mentions a partner in passing, let it go by like any other small remark and move to your next question.
Are you transgender?
Why ask it
Gender identity is the candidate's to share or not, and nothing in the work turns on it. Ask 'What name would you like us to use?' and use it. Where a legal name is needed for payroll or checks, collect it on a form after an offer.
How would you feel about being the only woman on the crew?
Why ask it
It makes the candidate's sex the subject and hands her a problem that is the employer's to manage. The same goes for the only man on a team of women. Ask every candidate about the work: 'What has helped you settle into a new crew quickly?'
Would you have a problem taking direction from a woman?
Why ask it
It is aimed at men, and sometimes only at men of a certain age, faith or background, so it sorts candidates by a guess about them. It also presents the manager's sex as a difficulty to be got over. Ask anyone 'What do you need from a manager to do your best work?' and listen to how they describe past ones.
Race and origin
Where are you from originally?
Why ask it
'Originally' gives it away: the interest is in national origin or ancestry, not in where the candidate lives now. Someone raised ten minutes from your office can be asked this on the strength of a face or a surname. If relocation is the real concern, ask every candidate 'Can you work from this location by the start date?'
Where were you born?
Why ask it
Birthplace is national origin, and it says nothing about whether someone may work for you. Ask every candidate the same yes-or-no question, 'Are you legally allowed to work in this country?', and check documents at the stage and in the way your local rules set out.
Are you a citizen?
Why ask it
Citizenship and the right to work are different things: many people who are not citizens are fully entitled to take the job. Ask about the right to work. A few jobs do require citizenship by law, and if yours is one, put that in the posting and take advice on how to confirm it.
What kind of visa are you on?
Why ask it
The visa category is more detail than a hiring decision needs, and choosing among people who may all work on the basis of immigration status is restricted in a number of places. Two plain questions, put to every candidate, usually cover it: do they have the right to work here, and would they need the employer to sponsor it? Check which of those you may ask, and when, where you hire.
That's an interesting accent. Where is it from?
Why ask it
Meant as friendly, heard as 'you are not from here'. It is a question about national origin. If clear speech is part of the job, you are already assessing it by holding the interview, so there is nothing further to ask.
Is English your first language?
Why ask it
First language points to origin, and it is not the same thing as ability: plenty of people work superbly in their second or third. Ask about the level the job needs: 'This role involves writing client reports in English. Tell me about similar writing you have done.'
What kind of name is that?
Why ask it
A question about a name is a question about ancestry or ethnicity. The only thing you need from a name is to say it properly, so ask 'Have I got your name right?' and repeat it back.
Where are your parents from?
Why ask it
This reaches for ancestry by another route when 'where are you from' feels too direct. No job requirement lies behind it and nothing can be substituted. Keep the warm-up to the trip in and the role.
How long have you lived in this country?
Why ask it
The length of someone's stay is immigration history, and it tells you nothing that a right-to-work check does not. If what you need is local knowledge, ask for that: 'How well do you know the market here, and where did you learn it?' Someone who arrived last year can know it better than a lifelong resident.
What's your ethnic background, if you don't mind me asking?
Why ask it
Race and ethnicity have no place in an interview, and 'if you don't mind' does not soften it: a candidate can hardly say that they do mind. Some employers collect this for monitoring, on a separate and voluntary form that the people making the decision never see. If yours does, it is handled there and never across the table.
Would you be willing to wear your hair differently for client meetings?
Why ask it
Hair texture and hairstyles are tied closely to race, and sometimes to religion, and some places protect them by name. If there is a real rule, such as hair tied back near machinery, explain it to every candidate and ask 'Can you work within that?'
Mind if I take a quick photo so we remember who was who?
Why ask it
A photo clipped to the notes puts age, race and sex in front of everyone who reads the file, ahead of anything about skills. Customs on sending a photo with an application differ by country, but unless appearance is a real requirement of the role, as in acting or modeling, go without. To keep candidates straight, note something each one said about the work.
Religion and beliefs
What religion do you practice?
Why ask it
Religion is protected in most places that have anti-discrimination law, and the answer bears on no ordinary job. The narrow exception is a religious organization filling a role where faith is a real requirement. How far that reaches depends on local law, so take advice before relying on it.
Do you observe any religious holidays?
Why ask it
What you want to know is availability, and asking about faith is the wrong way to find out. Give the calendar instead: 'We are open every Saturday and through the December holidays. Can you work that schedule?' If a candidate then asks for a day off for observance, pass the request to whoever handles adjustments and keep it out of the scoring.
Is that head covering something you wear for religious reasons?
Why ask it
This is about religious dress, and behind it religion. If the job has a uniform or protective equipment, describe it to everyone and ask 'Can you meet that requirement?' A conflict the candidate raises is a conversation about adjustments, held outside the interview.
Our team prays together before each shift. Would that be a problem for you?
Why ask it
It asks the candidate to declare a faith, or the lack of one, as the price of fitting in. Leave prayer out of hiring altogether. Describe the work and the hours, and let people learn about optional customs once they are colleagues.
Is there anything your religion would stop you from doing in this job?
Why ask it
It asks the candidate to account for their faith before they have heard the duties. Turn it round: tell every candidate what the job involves, such as serving alcohol, handling meat or working Friday evenings, and ask 'Can you do all of these?' A plain yes is the whole answer.
Which political party do you support?
Why ask it
Political belief is protected in some places and not in others, and it says nothing about how someone will do an ordinary job. If the worry is whether they can work alongside people who disagree with them, ask 'Tell me about working closely with someone whose views you did not share.'
Are you a union member, or have you ever been one?
Why ask it
Screening candidates by union membership is unlawful in many places, and nothing about the work depends on the answer. Tell candidates the terms of the job and whether the workplace is covered by an agreement, and let them ask what they want to know.
What clubs or organizations do you belong to outside work?
Why ask it
Memberships can reveal religion, ethnicity, politics or a health condition in a single answer. Narrow it to the job: 'Do you belong to any professional or trade bodies that are relevant to this work?'
Could you log in to your social media so we can have a look?
Why ask it
A private account can show faith, health, family, politics and more in one scroll, and some places bar employers from asking for access. If their public work matters, as with a writer or a designer, ask 'Is there anything online you would like me to look at?'
Health and disability
Do you have any disabilities?
Why ask it
The question invites a decision based on a label instead of the work, which is what disability discrimination law exists to stop. List the essential duties and ask every candidate 'Can you do these, with or without adjustments?' That answer is the one the job needs.
Will you need any special accommodations to do this job?
Why ask it
Kindly meant, but before an offer it asks the candidate to disclose a disability. What you can usually offer everyone is help with the interview itself: 'Is there anything you need from us to take part on the day?' Adjustments to the job are typically worked out after an offer, by whoever handles them where you work, so check the order of things locally.
Have you ever had a serious illness or an operation?
Why ask it
Medical history is private and a poor guide to next year's work. Where health checks are allowed at all, they usually come after a job offer, apply to everyone hired into that role and are run by someone qualified. Find out how it works where you hire before you ask anything.
How many sick days did you take last year?
Why ask it
Absence records point straight at health conditions and disability, and sometimes at pregnancy or caring for family. State what the job needs: 'These shifts have to be covered and we plan the schedule a month ahead. Can you commit to that pattern?'
Are you taking any prescription medication?
Why ask it
Naming a medication names a condition. For a job where impairment is a safety matter, such as driving or running machinery, testing or medical clearance is handled by a set procedure, usually after an offer and only where the law allows it. Follow that procedure and do not improvise one in an interview.
Have you ever seen a therapist or been treated for a mental health condition?
Why ask it
Mental health history is medical history, and often the most stigmatized kind. If the job is high pressure, describe the pressure honestly and ask 'Which parts of that would you find hardest, and how do you usually handle them?'
Have you ever been treated for a drug or alcohol problem?
Why ask it
Past treatment is medical history, and in some places a history of addiction counts as a disability. What the job can require is fitness for work on the day. State the rule, including any testing that applies to everyone in the role where the law allows it, and ask 'Can you work under that policy?'
Have you ever filed a workers' compensation claim?
Why ask it
Past claims reveal old injuries and possible disability, and in many places making a claim is protected in itself. The job-related question is about the task ahead: 'This work means lifting boxes of up to fifty pounds through the shift. Can you do that?'
I noticed your hearing aid. How bad is your hearing?
Why ask it
A visible aid, a cane or a wheelchair does not open the condition for discussion. Talk about the job: explain how the team communicates or how a task is done, and ask 'How would you go about this part of the work?' only if you put it to every candidate.
How tall are you, and what do you weigh?
Why ask it
Height and weight cutoffs can screen out more women and more people from some ethnic groups, and weight can touch disability. The real requirement is almost always a task. Name it, such as reaching a top shelf or carrying a ladder, and ask whether they can do it, or test everyone the same way.
Do you smoke or drink?
Why ask it
Legal habits outside work can touch health, a past addiction or religion, and some places protect lawful off-duty conduct. State the workplace rule that actually exists, for example 'The whole site is smoke-free, including the yard. Can you work with that?'
Does anything run in your family, like heart trouble or cancer?
Why ask it
Family medical history is genetic information by another name, and it is protected in a number of places. A relative's illness is no forecast of this person's work, so the question has no fair version. Leave the subject out.
Money and records
What are you making in your current job?
Why ask it
Past pay carries old pay gaps into the new job, which is why a number of places restrict the question. Lead with your own figure: 'Here is the range for this role. Does it fit what you are looking for?' Check whether salary history may be asked at all where you hire.
Have you ever declared bankruptcy or had trouble with debt?
Why ask it
Financial history is restricted in some places and only loosely connected to most jobs. Where a role handles money and a credit check is allowed, it is done with written consent through a set procedure, usually after an offer. Find out the local rule before you raise it.
Do you own your home or rent?
Why ask it
Housing says more about wealth and family circumstances than about work, and it can stand in for race or age. There is nothing job-related to ask in its place: an address for the paperwork is collected once someone is hired.
Which part of town do you live in?
Why ask it
It passes for small talk, but a neighborhood can stand in for income, race or national origin. If the job has a real requirement, such as reaching the site within thirty minutes when on call, state it and ask 'Can you meet that?'
Do you own a car?
Why ask it
Car ownership is about money, and for some people about a disability that stops them driving. If driving is the job, ask 'Do you hold a valid license for this class of vehicle?' If it is only the commute, ask 'Can you reliably get to this site for a seven o'clock start?'
Have you ever been arrested?
Why ask it
An arrest is not a conviction, and screening on arrests can weigh more heavily on some racial groups than on others, so some places bar the question outright. If the job justifies a background check, ask only about relevant convictions, at the stage your local rules allow.
Do you have a criminal record?
Why ask it
Some places limit when this can be asked, in some cases not until an offer is on the table, and some convictions are treated as spent or sealed after a time. Find out what may be asked, and when, where you hire. Then weigh only what bears on this job, such as a theft conviction for a cash-handling role.
What type of discharge did you get from the military?
Why ask it
Veteran status is protected in some places, and the type of discharge can reveal medical or disciplinary history that has nothing to do with the job. Ask about the service itself: 'What training and experience from your time in the military would you draw on here?'
Are you in the reserves, and could you be called up?
Why ask it
The worry is that military duty will take the candidate away, and in a number of places a hiring decision cannot rest on that. Give every candidate the same schedule and the same question about whether they can work it, and plan cover for absences as you would for anyone.
Have you ever sued an employer or filed a complaint against one?
Why ask it
In many places, turning someone down because they once raised a complaint about discrimination, pay or safety can count as retaliation. Ask 'Why did you leave your last job?' and check references in the usual way.
Using this list on either side of the table
Practical guidance for the conversation itself
The rule behind the list
Ask only what bears on the job
The questions you cannot ask in an interview all fail the same test: the answer has nothing to do with whether the person can do the work. In many places it is unlawful to decide who to hire on age, sex, family, origin, religion, disability and similar characteristics, and asking about one suggests you mean to. Even where a question is not banned in itself, it can be held against the employer if the candidate is turned down.
Illegal interview questions differ by country and state
People call these illegal interview questions, but whether asking is itself against the law depends on where you are. Which characteristics are protected, whether a question is prohibited outright, and what may be asked once an offer has been made all change from one country, state and sometimes city to the next. This page describes general hiring practice and is not legal advice. Before you interview, check with whoever handles HR or employment law where you hire.
Ask about the requirement, not the reason
Nearly every question here is a clumsy attempt at a fair one. You want to know about weekend shifts, so you ask about church. You want to know about travel, so you ask about children. State the requirement in plain numbers, ask whether the candidate can meet it, and accept a yes without asking how.
Small talk counts
Many of these get asked in the first five minutes by someone trying to be friendly. 'Where is that accent from' and 'do you have kids' are ordinary questions at a party and risky ones in an interview, because the person asking also decides. The walk from reception and the coffee afterwards are part of the interview.
The narrow exceptions
Some jobs carry a real requirement that touches one of these subjects: a minimum age to serve alcohol, the right to work in the country, a faith requirement for some roles in a religious body, a physical standard for some safety work. These are narrower than people assume and are defined by local law. Put the requirement in the posting and take advice on how to ask about it.
Before the next interview
Write the questions down first
Take the questions from the job description, write them out, and ask every candidate the same ones in the same order. Off-limits questions tend to arrive when an interviewer is improvising. A written list also shows afterwards that everyone was treated alike.
Brief everyone who will meet the candidate
The risky question often comes from the colleague added to the panel that morning, or the manager who takes the candidate to lunch. Give each of them the six subjects on this page and the rule in two lines: ask about what the job requires, and take a yes without asking how.
Keep notes you would be willing to show
Write down what the candidate said about the work, in their words where you can. Leave out appearance, accent, family and everything else on this page, even as a memory aid. In some places candidates can ask to see interview notes, and notes are among the first things read in a dispute.
When a candidate brings it up themselves
Candidates mention a pregnancy, a diagnosis, a faith or a partner without being asked. Acknowledge it in a sentence, do not follow up, return to the question you were on, and keep it out of your notes and your scoring. A request for an adjustment is different: pass it to whoever handles those where you work.
If you already asked one
Stop, and say so
Do not wait for the answer and do not pretend it was a test. Say 'I should not have asked that, and you do not need to answer. Let's go back to the role.' One sentence is enough. A long apology keeps everyone on the subject.
Leave the answer out of the decision
If the candidate answered before you could withdraw the question, do not write the answer down and do not repeat it to the panel. Score them on the same criteria as everyone else. If you cannot put it out of your mind, tell whoever runs the hiring and consider stepping back from the decision.
Tell HR the same day
Report what you asked, in the words you asked it, to HR or whoever is responsible for hiring, before the decision is made. It is uncomfortable, and it is far better than the first report coming from the candidate. If the business has no HR and the candidate may be turned down, this is the moment to get advice from an employment lawyer or adviser.
Do not overcorrect
Offering the job out of guilt is unfair to the other candidates, and going cold to avoid another mistake is unfair to this one. Finish the interview at the same length and with the same warmth as the others. Do not contact the candidate afterwards to explain yourself unless HR asks you to.
If you are the candidate and were asked
You do not have to answer
Being asked does not oblige you to answer. Many of these questions come from nerves or habit and not from a plan to screen you out, so a calm reply often settles it. You are also free to answer if you would rather: that is your call, and it does not make the question a fair one.
Answer the concern behind it
Often the quickest way through. Asked about children, say 'If you are asking whether I can work the hours, yes, the schedule you described is fine.' Asked how long you have lived here, say 'If you are asking whether I can work here, yes, I have the right to.' You have given the employer the one fact that bears on the job and nothing else.
Decline and steer back
'I would rather keep this to my experience and the role. I am happy to say more about the project I mentioned.' Said evenly, it gives the interviewer an easy way back to the job. If they push after a clear no, that tells you a good deal about how the place is run.
Decide what the question tells you
One clumsy question from a nervous first-time interviewer who then backs off is different from a string of them, or from a question that comes straight after you mention a pregnancy or a condition. You are interviewing them too. Ask yourself whether this is someone you would want to report to.
Write it down and know where to take it
The same day, note the date, who was in the room and the words that were said, as closely as you can remember them. You can raise it with the recruiter or the employer's HR. If you think it cost you the job, an employment lawyer, a union, a workers' advice service or the government body that handles discrimination where you live can tell you where you stand. Deadlines for complaints can be short, so ask soon. This page is not legal advice.