HR asked me the strangest illegal question at the end of my interview

I had a final interview with a mid-sized software company yesterday for a senior developer position. The technical assessment and management interviews went incredibly well, and the salary range matched what I was looking for.

As we were wrapping up, the HR director said, “Just one last question before we finish up…” Then she hit me with: “Could you tell me if you’re planning to have children in the next few years?”

I was completely caught off guard. After an awkward pause, I asked her to repeat the question, thinking I must have misheard. Nope – she actually doubled down and said, “We just want to know about your family planning situation for our team planning purposes.”

I’ve been through dozens of interviews in my career, but this was a first. I politely told her that I wasn’t comfortable answering that question as it’s not legally appropriate for hiring decisions. She seemed genuinely surprised I called her out on it.

The entire positive vibe of the interview immediately evaporated. I thanked her for her time but mentioned that I had concerns about a company culture where such questions were considered acceptable.

On my drive home, I was still in disbelief. Has anyone else encountered something like this in tech interviews recently? I’m not sure if I should report this or just move on to other opportunities.