Recruiter asks 'any health issues?' on call one: 4 replies

UK law gives employers six narrow reasons to ask about your health before an offer, according to the Explanatory Notes to section 60 of the Equality Act 2010 (legislation.gov.uk). A general 'any health issues?' question on a first call names none of them. The US rules are close, and both sets are worth knowing before the phone rings.

What a recruiter is allowed to ask

UK first. Section 60 says an employer must not ask about a job applicant's health until the person has been offered a job or placed in a pool of successful candidates (Explanatory Notes, legislation.gov.uk). The exceptions include arranging reasonable adjustments for the recruitment process and checking whether you can do a function that is intrinsic to the job.

HR Zone's summary of the rule says the bar applies directly or indirectly, including through a recruitment agency. A recruiter calling on an employer's behalf is covered by that wording. The section says nothing that stops you volunteering information, if you choose to.

Now the US. EEOC guidance on preemployment disability-related questions (issued 10 October 1995 and still on the EEOC site) says an employer may not ask disability-related questions before an offer. It defines these as questions likely to elicit information about a disability, and it says an employer 'may not ask a third party' anything it could not ask you directly.

The same guidance lets employers ask whether you can perform the job functions. It also lets them ask you to describe how you would perform them, as long as every applicant in the job category is asked. Questions about the work are fair; questions about your diagnosis are not.

So what for you: questions about the job are fair on both sides of the Atlantic, and a blanket health question before an offer sits on restricted ground in the UK and the US.

Four replies, from least to most disclosure

All four replies are lawful for you to give, in the UK and the US. Pick the one that matches how much you want this recruiter to know today.

Reply 1: redirect to the work

'Nothing that stops me doing this job. Which tasks matter most in the first six months?' Use it only if it's true for you. It answers the fair part of the question and moves the call back to the role.

Reply 2: ask what they are checking

'Is there a specific requirement of the role you're checking? I'm happy to talk it through.' In the UK, this invites the recruiter to name an intrinsic function, which is the exception the law allows. In the US, it steers the talk to job functions, which the EEOC says employers may ask about.

If they have no specific requirement in mind, the question has nowhere to go. You've also given them nothing to write in their notes.

Reply 3: disclose for the process

'I'm dyslexic. For any timed test or written task I'd like extra time and a format I can run through text-to-speech. Who should I send that to?' In the UK, arranging adjustments is one of the section 60 exceptions.

The EEOC guidance says applicants may volunteer medical information 'as long as it's really voluntary'. It also allows employers to ask about accommodation for the hiring process.

This works best when a test or assessment is already on the table. Our piece on timed coding tests and extra time shows how to word the request with the task, the effect and a number.

Reply 4: decline and move it to email

'I'd rather keep health out of the first call. Could you send the role requirements and the interview format by email?' It's polite and it creates a paper trail. You've also learned whether the recruiter accepts a boundary.

So what for you: write the four replies on a card before the call, because a reply you've rehearsed sounds calm and a reply you invent sounds like a confession.

A worked call

Picture it. The recruiter finishes the salary question and says, 'Any health conditions I should know about?' You answer with reply 2: 'Is there a specific requirement of the role you're checking?'

One of two things happens. The recruiter names something concrete, such as 'the role involves night shifts' or 'there's a 30-minute written test', and you now have a job-related question you can answer on the merits. Or the recruiter says 'No, it's just a standard question', and you can say 'Then I'll keep that for after any offer' without apology.

If a written test did come up, move to reply 3 in the same breath: 'I'm dyslexic, so I'd like 25% extra time and the paper in a format I can run through text-to-speech.' You've disclosed for a reason, on your terms, and you've asked for something specific. It's a specific request, which is easier for an employer to grant than a vague one.

So what for you: a rehearsed two-step reply turns an ambush into a conversation about the job, which is where you want it.

After the offer, the rules change

In the UK, health questions become lawful once you've been offered the job or placed in a pool of successful candidates. HR Zone's summary says employers can also ask after a conditional offer. Expect an occupational health questionnaire at that stage.

That questionnaire is a good moment to state what you need, in your own words. List the tasks, the effect dyslexia has on each, and the change that fixes it. In the US, the EEOC guidance allows disability-related questions only after an offer has been made.

Keep your answers factual and short. A line such as 'I'm dyslexic; I read faster with text-to-speech and need documents as files, not paper' tells them what to do without handing over your school reports.

So what for you: save the full disclosure for the offer stage, when they have already chosen you.

When the call goes cold after you answer

Say you declined, the recruiter's tone changed, and the application stalled. In the UK, the Explanatory Notes say only the Equality and Human Rights Commission can enforce section 60 itself. If you're rejected after a prohibited question, you can bring a direct disability discrimination claim, and the Notes say it 'will be for the employer to show that it had not discriminated against the candidate'.

The time limit matters. Most UK tribunal claims for acts on or after 1 October 2026 have a six-month limit (Lewis Silkin, 24 September 2026), and ACAS early conciliation comes first. In the US, the EEOC charge deadline is 180 days, extended to 300 days where a state or local agency enforces a similar law (EEOC).

Your evidence is your own record. Write down the date and time, the recruiter's name, the agency or employer, and the exact words of the question. Add your answer and what happened next, and email yourself a copy that day so it carries a timestamp.

So what for you: a dated note made within hours is worth more than a clear memory six months later, so make the note before you put the phone down on anything else.

What this means for you

Use reply 2 on the first call. It costs nothing, it tests whether the question has a lawful purpose, and it leaves every other option open. Move to reply 3 the moment a timed test or assessment appears, because that is the point where telling them gets you something concrete.

Save reply 4 for a recruiter who presses after you've answered once. If you do decide to disclose dyslexia, the disclosure guide sets out what to say and when. Once you have an offer, the Access to Work calculator shows what UK support could be worth.

So what for you: you don't owe a recruiter your medical history, and you do get to choose the moment you share it.