Ghost job laws: what is in force, what passed and what is pending (October 2026)

As of October 2026, no US state has a ghost job law in force. Ontario, Canada, does: since January 1, 2026, employers there with 25 or more employees must state in every public job posting whether it is for an existing vacancy, and tell interviewed applicants within 45 days whether a hiring decision has been made. In the US, New York's legislature passed a ghost job bill (S8877) in 2026, though the Senate's website does not show it delivered to or signed by the governor; New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Kentucky have bills in committee, and California's AB 1251 was held in committee in 2025. There is no federal ghost job law.

This page tracks the primary sources: the statute or regulator for laws in force, the legislature's own record for bills. Status changes quickly, so each row names the date we checked it.

What counts as a ghost job?

There is no single legal definition yet. Kentucky's 2026 HB 342 offers the clearest one in a bill: "any job posting that is not intended to be filled within a reasonable time frame or is posted by an employer without the intention to hire." Ontario takes the opposite approach and defines the thing employers must disclose instead: an existing vacancy "means a position that is imminently available for a qualified candidate to fill." Most bills follow Ontario's model: rather than banning pipeline postings, they require employers to say which kind of posting it is.

Which ghost job laws and bills exist, and where do they stand?

What does Ontario's law require?

Ontario's rules, explained in the province's guide to the Employment Standards Act, apply to publicly advertised job postings posted on or after January 1, 2026, by employers with 25 or more employees on the day the posting goes up (counted across the whole employer, not per location). Each posting must:

• state whether it is for an existing vacancy or not (the guide notes this does not create an obligation to fill the vacancy);
• include the expected compensation or range;
• disclose any use of artificial intelligence to screen, assess or select applicants;
• not require Canadian experience, in the posting or any associated application form.

Two further duties reach past the posting itself:

• Telling interviewed applicants. An employer that interviews an applicant must tell them whether a hiring decision has been made within 45 days after the interview, or after the last interview if there were several. This applies when a recruiting firm interviews on the employer's behalf, and it can be done by phone, email, text or a status page the applicant is linked to.
• Keeping records. Employers must keep a copy of every publicly advertised posting, each revised version and any linked material, for three years after it comes down, and copies of the information given to interviewed applicants for three years.

If an employer uses a third party or job board to advertise, the employer remains responsible. Job posting platforms themselves must offer a way to report fraudulent postings and publish a written policy on handling them. The pay transparency in Canada page covers the compensation side.

What would New York's S8877 require if it becomes law?

As passed by both houses, S8877 would add a new section 219-b to the Labor Law:

• Who: employers with at least 100 employees (not the state or public authorities), and third-party job posting entities that list multiple employers' jobs on one platform.
• What every ad must say, in capital letters and bold type: that the posting is for a current vacancy and the employer intends to fill it by a stated date (90 days or less) or no sooner than a stated date (more than 90 days); or that the posting is not for a current vacancy and the employer is collecting resumes for the future.
• Removal: filled postings come down within two weeks, and employers must notify third-party sites that posted the job independently.
• Enforcement: Department of Labor audits; a fine of $2,500 per print publication or digital platform, rising to $5,000 if not corrected within 30 days and doubling for each later 30-day period.
• Effective date: immediately on enactment.

On the Senate's bill page, "Delivered to Governor" and "Signed By Governor" were still unreached milestones when we checked. Watch that page rather than relying on online articles, some of which have described the bill as already in force.

Is posting a ghost job illegal under US federal law?

Not as such. The Congressional Research Service's April 25, 2025 In Focus, "Ghost" Job Postings, notes that Section 5 of the FTC Act prohibits "unfair or deceptive acts or practices in or affecting commerce" and that the FTC has acted against fake job placement schemes, but concludes that extending enforcement to ghost jobs "would likely present legal challenges" because an employer's intent to hire "is not easily discoverable and may be subjective." CRS also notes that employers generally have no legal duty to respond to applicants, though responding differently based on protected characteristics could violate Title VII. A posting that impersonates a real employer is a different matter: see recruitment scams impersonating your company.

Are evergreen and pipeline postings still allowed?

Under every measure so far, yes, if the posting says what it is. Ontario requires a statement that there is no existing vacancy. New York's bill supplies the wording for a resume-collection posting. New Jersey goes further: the Senate committee's amended S2136 would allow an "anticipated vacancy" disclaimer only if, in the preceding 18 months, the employer listed the same position at least three times or hired at least four employees for similar roles, and such postings would expire after 120 days. The sponsor's announcement describes penalties of up to $300 for a first offense and $600 for later ones, with each month a separate violation.

Colorado already regulates one piece of this. Its Equal Pay for Equal Work Act, as amended effective January 1, 2024, requires employers to disclose in good faith "the date the application window is anticipated to close" for each job opportunity (C.R.S. 8-5-201(2)(c)); the pay transparency laws by state page covers the rest of that statute.

What should employers do now?

Most of what these laws require is good practice that is cheap to adopt everywhere:

1. Label every posting. Open vacancy with a target fill date, or pipeline posting with no current vacancy. Never leave a candidate to guess.
2. Remove filled postings within two weeks, including syndicated copies on job boards, and keep a record of when each came down.
3. Set expiry dates on pipeline postings and re-approve them deliberately rather than letting them run indefinitely.
4. Close the loop with everyone you interview within 45 days, as Ontario requires. The candidate rejection email templates make this quick.
5. Keep copies of postings and versions for three years if you hire in Ontario, and consider doing it everywhere.
6. Check the other required content while you are in the posting template: pay ranges and AI-use disclosures; see AI hiring laws by state.
7. Agencies: agree with clients who confirms a role is real and when it is filled. Under Ontario's rules the employer stays responsible for postings a third party runs, and New York's bill would reach job posting sites directly.

The reputational case does not wait for legislation. Candidates who apply to roles that were never going to be filled remember it; see the candidate experience guide.