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Right to change legal gender

You can change your legal gender in 112 countries and territories, but 38 require surgery.

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  • Legal, surgery not required
  • Illegal
  • Legal, but requires surgery
  • Unknown, N/A, or ambiguous

Recent Changes

  • Jun 30 2021Became Legal, surgery not required in Michigan
  • May 1 2021Became Legal, surgery not required in Ohio
  • Jan 1 2021Became Illegal in Kuwait
  • Jun 18 2020Became Legal, surgery not required in West Virginia
  • May 28 2020Became Illegal in Hungary
  • May 1 2020Became Legal, surgery not required in Victoria
  • Feb 11 2020Became Legal, surgery not required in New Zealand
  • Jan 10 2020Became Legal, but requires surgery in India

Right to change legal gender

Legal recognition of sex reassignment by permitting a change of legal gender on an individual's birth certificate.

Summary

74
Legal
74 regions (32%)
Legal
38
Somewhere in between
38 regions (16%)
Somewhere in between
36
Illegal
36 regions (16%)
Illegal
84
No data, no laws, N/A, or ambiguous
84 regions (36%)
No data, no laws, N/A, or ambiguous
Europe
52%
LEGAL EQUALITY
Legal
27 regions (52%)
Somewhere in between
13 regions (25%)
Illegal
3 regions (6%)
No data, no laws, N/A, or ambiguous
9 regions (17%)
Oceania
42%
LEGAL EQUALITY
Legal
10 regions (42%)
Somewhere in between
1 regions (4%)
Illegal
2 regions (8%)
No data, no laws, N/A, or ambiguous
11 regions (46%)
South America
50%
LEGAL EQUALITY
Legal
7 regions (50%)
Somewhere in between
2 regions (14%)
Illegal
2 regions (14%)
No data, no laws, N/A, or ambiguous
3 regions (21%)
North America
31%
LEGAL EQUALITY
Legal
11 regions (31%)
Somewhere in between
2 regions (6%)
Illegal
3 regions (8%)
No data, no laws, N/A, or ambiguous
20 regions (56%)
Africa
20%
LEGAL EQUALITY
Legal
12 regions (20%)
Somewhere in between
3 regions (5%)
Illegal
15 regions (25%)
No data, no laws, N/A, or ambiguous
29 regions (49%)
Asia
15%
LEGAL EQUALITY
Legal
7 regions (15%)
Somewhere in between
17 regions (37%)
Illegal
11 regions (24%)
No data, no laws, N/A, or ambiguous
11 regions (24%)

Progress over time

Number of countries with equality for right to change legal gender over the past 60 years.

Recent changes

Right to change legal gender by country

(and dependent territories)

Legal, surgery not required

Right to change legal gender is legal, surgery not required in 74 regions.

  1. Asia (7)
  2. Bangladesh 2013
  3. Israel 2015
  4. Macau
  5. Pakistan 2018
  6. South Korea 2013
  7. Sri Lanka 2010
  8. Uzbekistan
  9. Europe (27)
  10. Austria 2009
  11. Belarus
  12. Belgium 2018
  13. Denmark 2014
  14. France
  15. Georgia
  16. Germany 2011
  17. Greece 2017
  18. Iceland 2019
  19. Ireland 2015
  20. Isle of Man 2009
  21. Italy 2015
  22. Lithuania
  23. Luxembourg
  24. Malta 2015
  25. Netherlands 2013
  26. Norway 2016
  27. Poland 1964
  28. Portugal 2018
  29. Russia 2018
  30. Serbia 2019
  31. Spain 2006
  32. Sweden 2013
  33. Switzerland
  34. Turkey 2017
  35. Ukraine
  36. United Kingdom 2005
  37. North America (11)
  38. Bermuda 2004
  39. Canada 2017
  40. Costa Rica
  41. Cuba
  42. Greenland 2014
  43. Guadeloupe
  44. Guatemala
  45. Haiti 2016
  46. Jamaica
  47. Martinique
  48. Saint Pierre and Miquelon
  49. Africa (12)
  50. Angola
  51. Botswana 2017
  52. British Indian Ocean Territory
  53. Equatorial Guinea
  54. Kenya
  55. Lesotho
  56. Mauritius
  57. Mayotte
  58. Mozambique
  59. Réunion
  60. Saint Helena 2016
  61. Seychelles
  62. Oceania (10)
  63. Christmas Island
  64. Cocos (Keeling) Islands
  65. Cook Islands
  66. French Polynesia 2013
  67. New Zealand 2020
  68. Niue
  69. Norfolk Island
  70. Samoa
  71. Vanuatu
  72. Wallis and Futuna
  73. South America (7)
  74. Argentina 2012
  75. Brazil 2018
  76. Chile 2019
  77. Ecuador 2016
  78. French Guiana
  79. Peru 2016
  80. Uruguay 2018

Illegal

Right to change legal gender is illegal in 36 regions.

  1. Asia (11)
  2. Afghanistan
  3. Brunei
  4. Kuwait 2021
  5. Malaysia 1965
  6. Myanmar
  7. Oman
  8. Qatar 1915
  9. Saudi Arabia
  10. Thailand 1932
  11. Timor-Leste
  12. United Arab Emirates
  13. Europe (3)
  14. Hungary 2020
  15. Kosovo
  16. North Macedonia
  17. North America (3)
  18. Bahamas
  19. British Virgin Islands
  20. Dominican Republic
  21. Africa (15)
  22. Algeria
  23. Cape Verde
  24. Comoros
  25. Côte d’Ivoire
  26. Democratic Republic of the Congo
  27. Ethiopia
  28. Gambia
  29. Malawi
  30. Mauritania
  31. Morocco
  32. Nigeria
  33. Rwanda
  34. Somalia
  35. South Sudan
  36. Tunisia 1957
  37. Oceania (2)
  38. Kiribati
  39. Tonga
  40. South America (2)
  41. Falkland Islands 2014
  42. Guyana

Legal, but requires surgery

Right to change legal gender is legal, but requires surgery in 38 regions.

  1. Asia (17)
  2. Bahrain 2014
  3. China
  4. Hong Kong 2013
  5. India 2020
  6. Indonesia 1973
  7. Iran 1987
  8. Japan 2004
  9. Kazakhstan 2003
  10. Kyrgyzstan
  11. Lebanon 2016
  12. Mongolia 2009
  13. Nepal 2013
  14. Singapore 1996
  15. Syria 2004
  16. Taiwan 2013
  17. Tajikistan
  18. Vietnam 2017
  19. Europe (13)
  20. Bosnia and Herzegovina
  21. Bulgaria
  22. Croatia 1994
  23. Czech Republic
  24. Estonia 1999
  25. Faroe Islands
  26. Finland 2003
  27. Latvia 2009
  28. Moldova
  29. Montenegro
  30. Romania 1996
  31. Slovakia 2016
  32. Slovenia 2011
  33. North America (2)
  34. Mexico 2003
  35. Panama 2006
  36. Africa (3)
  37. Egypt
  38. Namibia
  39. South Africa 2004
  40. Oceania (1)
  41. Fiji
  42. South America (2)
  43. Bolivia 2015
  44. Colombia 2013

No data, no laws, N/A, or ambiguous

Data on right to change legal gender is unclear, not applicable, or missing in 84 regions.

  1. Asia (11)
  2. Bhutan
  3. Cambodia
  4. Iraq
  5. Jordan
  6. Laos
  7. Maldives
  8. North Korea
  9. Palestine
  10. Philippines
  11. Turkmenistan
  12. Yemen
  13. Europe (9)
  14. Albania
  15. Andorra
  16. Armenia
  17. Azerbaijan
  18. Cyprus
  19. Liechtenstein
  20. Monaco
  21. San Marino
  22. Vatican City
  23. North America (20)
  24. Anguilla
  25. Antigua and Barbuda
  26. Aruba
  27. Barbados
  28. Belize
  29. Cayman Islands
  30. Curaçao
  31. Dominica
  32. El Salvador
  33. Grenada
  34. Honduras
  35. Montserrat
  36. Nicaragua
  37. Saint Kitts and Nevis
  38. Saint Lucia
  39. Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
  40. Sint Maarten
  41. Trinidad and Tobago
  42. Turks and Caicos Islands
  43. United States
  44. Africa (29)
  45. Benin
  46. Burkina Faso
  47. Burundi
  48. Cameroon
  49. Central African Republic
  50. Chad
  51. Djibouti
  52. Eritrea
  53. Eswatini
  54. Gabon
  55. Ghana
  56. Guinea
  57. Guinea-Bissau
  58. Liberia
  59. Libya
  60. Madagascar
  61. Mali
  62. Niger
  63. Republic of the Congo
  64. Sao Tome and Principe
  65. Senegal
  66. Sierra Leone
  67. Sudan
  68. Tanzania
  69. Togo
  70. Uganda
  71. Western Sahara
  72. Zambia
  73. Zimbabwe
  74. Oceania (11)
  75. Australia
  76. Federated States of Micronesia
  77. Marshall Islands
  78. Nauru
  79. New Caledonia
  80. Palau
  81. Papua New Guinea
  82. Pitcairn Islands
  83. Solomon Islands
  84. Tokelau
  85. Tuvalu
  86. South America (3)
  87. Paraguay
  88. Suriname
  89. Venezuela
  90. Antarctica (1)
  91. Antarctica

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