Ghost jobs: how to spot a job ad that isn't real

Why companies post jobs they are not filling

An ad that goes nowhere often exists for ordinary reasons rather than bad faith:

• The ad was never taken down. The role was filled, put on hold or cancelled, and nobody removed the listing.
• Building a pool. Some employers and recruitment agencies keep an ad running to collect CVs for roles they expect to fill later.
• A strong internal candidate. Some organisations advertise every role as a matter of policy, even when an internal candidate is likely to be appointed. The role is real, but an outside applicant's chances may be slimmer than the ad suggests.
• Testing the market. An employer may advertise to see who is out there, or what the role would cost, before deciding to hire.

From the outside these all look the same: an ad that goes nowhere. Ghosting is a related but separate problem. It means hearing nothing back from a real process, and it is common: in Criteria's 2025 Candidate Experience Report, a global survey of job seekers, 48% said an employer had ghosted them in the past year, up from 38% in the previous year's report. That is not New Zealand data, but it shows how often a real hiring process goes quiet.

Five signals of a ghost job

No single sign proves an ad is not real, but several together are worth a check before you apply:

• It has been up a long time. A listing 45 days old or more with no closing date (on Seek, where ads run for 30 days, that means it has been relisted), or one reposted with the same wording every few weeks.
• It is vague. No clear duties, no team, no location beyond a region, and requirements that could fit almost any job.
• There is no named person. No hiring manager, no recruiter's name, and no way to ask a question.
• The employer does not list it. The role is on a job board but not on the organisation's own careers page.
• The news does not fit. The organisation has announced a hiring freeze or job cuts in the same team.

A ghost job is different from a scam. A scam wants something from you: money for training or equipment, your bank details, or a quick move to a messaging app. Our guide to job scams in New Zealand covers those signs and where to report one.

Checking the employer, not just the ad

Five minutes of checking usually settles it. Look for the role on the employer's own careers page, and look at the organisation's recent news. If there is a contact name or number, ask directly: "Is this role still open, and when are you hoping to fill it?" A real recruiter will answer that easily, and the answer tells you how much effort the application deserves.

If an agency posted the ad without naming the employer, ask the recruiter whether they have been engaged to fill this specific role, or whether they are building a list. Both are legitimate, but they call for different amounts of your time.

When to apply anyway

A doubtful ad can still be worth answering. If the employer is one you would like to work for, an application puts your name in front of them, and a role put on hold today can reopen next month. If an agency is building a pool for the kind of role you want, being in it is useful.

What changes is the effort. Send a tidy CV and a short, specific cover letter rather than a fully tailored application, and put your main hours into ads that pass the checks. That keeps a doubtful ad from crowding out the applications most likely to lead somewhere.

Closing it honestly at day 21

An application with no reply three weeks after your last contact is worth closing; if they do come back, you can reopen it. Send one short follow-up at around a week, then decide at three weeks. Our guide to following up on a job application has the wording.

Closing it clears it from the list you check every day and gives you an honest count of where your hunt stands. In jobtracker.co.nz, each application shows how many days it has been quiet, and at 21 days it suggests closing it or sending one last note. In Everything mode, a job listed 45 or more days ago that is still at Saved or Applied carries a warning that listings that old are often stale, and "Presumed ghosted" is one of the reasons you can close it with, which the insights count separately. The demo opens with no account and includes applications closed that way.

Let the dates tell you when to move on