Two enforcement deadlines land this week, and both have teeth. California pay data reporting for the 2025 cycle is due today, May 13. Any California employer with 100 or more employees who has not filed yet is already late. Meanwhile, the EU Pay Transparency Directive countdown hits 25 days, with France and Denmark both looking likely to miss the June 7 transposition deadline. And Singapore confirmed July 1 as the date it raises statutory retirement and re-employment ages. If you run a distributed team touching California, the EU, or Singapore, read this before you close your laptop today.
California Pay Data Reporting Deadline Falls Today
The California Civil Rights Department’s annual pay data report for Reporting Year 2025 is due today, May 13, 2026. Under Government Code section 12999(a), the deadline is the second Wednesday of May each year. The only accepted submission channel is the portal at calcivilrights.ca.gov.
The penalty for a first failure is $100 per employee. However, repeat violations cost $200 per employee. For a 150-person company, that is $15,000 to $30,000 in civil penalties. The California Civil Rights Department has shown it will pursue non-compliant employers. So even if you are filing a few hours late today, submit anyway. A late report reduces your exposure versus no report at all.
What Changed for the 2025 California Pay Data Reporting Cycle
The 2025 cycle adds three mandatory fields that did not exist in prior years. Specifically, employers must now report each employee’s exempt vs. nonexempt classification, their employment type (full-time, part-time, or intermittent), and the annual weeks worked. These additions affect how you export and map data from your HRIS before submission.
Two reporting tracks remain in force. First, “payroll employee” reports cover workers on your direct payroll. Second, “labor contractor employee” reports cover workers supplied through third-party staffing agencies or farm labor contractors who perform work in your usual course of business. The threshold for each track is 100 or more workers. As a result, many companies that filed only one report in prior years now need to file two. Check your workforce structure before assuming last year’s process is sufficient.
If your HR team has been using last year’s export template, it is missing the three new fields. The portal will reject submissions that omit them. Build the new fields into your HRIS export query and validate the file format against the 2025 Pay Data Reporting Handbook before uploading.
California Pay Data Compliance Checklist
If you have not filed yet today: Go to pdr.calcivilrights.ca.gov immediately. Even a late submission is better than none.
If you already filed: Confirm the portal shows “certified” status. The report is not complete until it is both submitted and certified.
If you use labor contractors: Confirm whether you needed to file a separate labor contractor employee report. The 100-worker threshold applies independently to that track.
For future cycles: Add the three new fields to your standing HRIS export template now, so the 2026 cycle does not catch you off-guard.
For a broader view of US-based employment law obligations, the US employment laws guide on Asanify’s EOR hub covers federal and state compliance requirements for distributed teams.
EU Pay Transparency Directive: 25 Days Left, Two Countries Already Off-Track
All EU member states must transpose the EU Pay Transparency Directive into national law by June 7, 2026. That is 25 days from today. As of this writing, no member state has formally notified the European Commission of completed transposition. However, 23 of 27 have active legislation in progress, according to Ogletree Deakins.
France and Denmark are the clearest risks. The French Minister of Labour said the draft bill will reach parliament “before the summer,” which in practice means after June 7. Denmark’s 2025-26 legislative programme includes no measures to implement the directive at all. In contrast, Slovakia’s bill is the most advanced, covering both transparency and reporting obligations, and is expected to take effect June 1. The European Commission confirmed in April that it will not extend the deadline, so both France and Denmark face infringement proceedings if they miss it.
For employers, the directive’s core obligations are clear regardless of which country’s law lands first. After transposition, you must include a starting salary or salary range in every job vacancy. You cannot ask candidates about past compensation. And if your gender pay gap at any EU entity exceeds 5%, you must take documented corrective action or face regulatory scrutiny.
Companies with 100 or more EU employees will face mandatory gender pay gap reporting. The first data collection period is 2026 — meaning your current payroll data is what goes into the first report, due in 2027. Therefore, if you have not started auditing pay equity across EU entities, start now. The June 7 deadline is not when you begin the work. It is when your country’s law formally requires it.
EU Pay Transparency: What Employers Should Do Before June 7
First, map which EU countries you hire in and where each one’s transposition stands. Second, audit whether your job postings already include salary ranges or starting salaries. Third, run a preliminary pay equity review across EU headcount. Specifically, identify any entity where the gender pay gap exceeds 5% and document the business rationale for existing gaps now. Unexplained gaps above that threshold trigger mandatory joint pay assessment with employee representatives once the directive is in force.
For teams using an EOR to hire across Europe, confirm your provider has updated job-offer templates before June 7. Onboarding flows should also reflect the new pay disclosure requirements.
Singapore Raises Retirement Age to 64, Effective July 1
From July 1, 2026, Singapore’s statutory retirement age rises from 63 to 64. The re-employment age rises in parallel from 68 to 69. Both changes are confirmed by the Ministry of Manpower. They are part of Singapore’s phased roadmap to reach retirement age 65 and re-employment age 70 by 2030.
For employers, the change has direct contract implications. You cannot retire an employee before they turn 64. In addition, you must offer eligible employees re-employment up to age 69 before you can end their tenure. Any employment contract that specifies a retirement age below 64 is non-compliant from July 1. Review contracts now for employees approaching 63 or 64, because the update cannot be applied retroactively after the fact.
Meanwhile, Singapore’s Employment Pass salary thresholds will rise again in January 2027. The minimum qualifying salary for EP holders increases from S$5,600 to S$6,000. The S Pass threshold rises from S$3,300 to S$3,600. Furthermore, COMPASS framework updates that took effect January 1, 2026 now apply to EP renewals from July 1, 2026. If you have EP holders due for renewal this quarter, run a fresh COMPASS assessment under the updated criteria before submitting the renewal application.
For Singapore statutory details, the Singapore employment laws guide on Asanify’s EOR hub covers CPF rates, leave entitlements, and work pass rules. The Singapore payroll compliance page covers withholding and CPF contribution rates. The employee benefits guide for Singapore covers the full statutory leave picture.
Quick Hits
- US federal contractor minimum wage rose May 11. Executive Order 13658 set the new rate at $13.65/hour, with a tipped worker rate of $9.55/hour. This applies to workers on covered federal contracts, not private employers generally. (Source: US Department of Labor)
- Maryland FAMLI contribution rates confirmed for 2027. Maryland’s Department of Labor confirmed a total contribution rate of 0.9% of covered wages for the Family and Medical Leave Insurance program starting January 2027, split equally between employer and employee (0.45% each). Small employers with fewer than 15 employees are responsible for only half the employer share. First contributions cover wages paid January 1 to March 31, 2027, and are due April 30, 2027. (Source: Maryland Department of Labor)
Action Items This Week
If you have California employees (100+): File your 2025 California pay data reporting today if not already done. Verify both payroll employee and labor contractor tracks are covered. Confirm “certified” status in the portal before end of day.
If you have EU employees: Map which countries you hire in and each one’s transposition status. Audit job postings for salary range compliance. Begin a pay equity analysis for any EU entity with 100 or more employees — your 2026 payroll data is the first reporting period.
If you have Singapore employees: Update employment contracts to reflect the new retirement age of 64 and re-employment age of 69, effective July 1. Complete COMPASS assessments for EP renewals due this quarter. Start budgeting for higher EP and S Pass salary thresholds from January 2027.
If you have Maryland employees: Confirm FAMLI deductions are configured in your payroll system well ahead of the January 2027 contributions start date.
Tracking compliance deadlines across multiple jurisdictions is exactly what Asanify’s Global EOR service handles. Country-specific payroll, statutory compliance, and legal entity management are built in, so your team focuses on hiring, not regulation calendars.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is California pay data reporting and who must file?
California pay data reporting is an annual submission to the California Civil Rights Department covering pay, demographic, and workforce data broken down by race, ethnicity, sex, and job category. Private employers with 100 or more payroll employees must file. Client employers with 100 or more labor contractor employees must also file a separate track. The deadline is the second Wednesday of May each year.
What happens if you miss the California pay data reporting deadline?
The California Civil Rights Department can seek civil penalties of $100 per employee for a first failure, increasing to $200 per employee for repeat violations. The CRD also has authority to compel late filers to submit the report. There is no statutory grace period, but filing late still reduces your penalty exposure compared to not filing at all.
What does the EU Pay Transparency Directive require employers to do?
The directive requires employers to include salary ranges or starting salaries in job postings and prohibits asking candidates about prior compensation. Companies with 100 or more employees in EU member states must report gender pay gaps annually starting with 2026 data. If a gap exceeds 5%, employers must conduct a joint pay assessment and take documented corrective action. Non-compliance can result in fines, back-pay liability, and adverse presumptions in discrimination proceedings.
What is Singapore’s new retirement age from July 2026?
From July 1, 2026, Singapore’s retirement age rises to 64 and the re-employment age rises to 69. Employers cannot dismiss employees on age grounds before they turn 64 and must offer re-employment to eligible workers up to 69. Employment contracts that specify a lower retirement age become non-compliant from July 1 and should be updated before that date.
Do EOR providers automatically handle statutory changes like retirement age increases?
Most EOR providers update their payroll and compliance engines for statutory changes like minimum wage or retirement age adjustments. However, confirm directly with your provider that specific changes are reflected before the effective date. This includes Singapore’s July 1 retirement age and the new California pay data fields. Do not assume automatic coverage. Verify it in writing.
Not to be considered as tax, legal, financial or HR advice. Regulations change over time so please consult a lawyer, accountant or Labour Law expert for specific guidance.
