I’m applying for a US-based position but the recruiter/hirer is from Europe. The position requires me being fluent in Spanish (I’m not sure if they need Portuguese fluency, but I know they wanted other languages for the position). My last name is Portuguese because I married a Brazilian, but I am not Brazilian. My native language is English and I learned Spanish and Portuguese as non-native languages.
I always decline to disclose gender/orientation/ethnicity/race/army affiliation/disabilities.
They asked me: “Could you please confirm where you were born? Your last name seems Portuguese, but I would like to confirm where you were born and where you studied.”
I get that they want to know if I’m truly fluent in Spanish (and/or Portuguese) but they had me do a Spanish translation test, so if I passed it, why is my country of birth relevant? I’m authorized to work in the US so it’s not to figure out my citizenship. It’s to figure out my ethnicity. I did tell them in the interview that the languages are my non-native languages and my resume lists where I’ve studied.