Right to change legal gender
You can change your legal gender in 105 countries and territories, but 33 require surgery.
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- Legal, surgery not required
- Illegal
- Legal, but requires surgery
- Unknown, N/A, or ambiguous
Recent Changes
- Jun 15 2023Became Legal, surgery not required in New Zealand
- Apr 3 2023Became Legal, surgery not required in Finland
- Feb 21 2023Became Illegal in Bulgaria
- Feb 17 2023Became Legal, surgery not required in Andorra
- Feb 6 2023Became Legal, surgery not required in Hong Kong
- Jan 31 2023Became Illegal in Hungary
- Dec 22 2022Became Legal, surgery not required in Spain
- Sep 19 2022Became Legal, surgery not required in Montana
Right to change legal gender
Legal recognition of sex reassignment by permitting a change of legal gender on an individual's birth certificate.
Summary
Progress over time
Number of countries with equality for right to change legal gender over the past 60 years.
Recent changes
- BulgariaIllegalFeb 21, 2023
- AndorraLegal, surgery not requiredFeb 17, 2023
- Hong KongLegal, surgery not requiredFeb 6, 2023
- HungaryIllegalJan 31, 2023
- SpainLegal, surgery not requiredDec 22, 2022
- Montana, United StatesLegal, surgery not requiredSep 19, 2022
- North Carolina, United StatesLegal, surgery not requiredJun 23, 2022
- Montana, United StatesIllegalMay 23, 2022
- MexicoLegal, surgery not requiredJan 1, 2022
- Oklahoma, United StatesIllegalJan 1, 2022
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 72 regions.
- Europe (29)
- Andorra 2023
- Austria 2009
- Belarus
- Belgium 2018
- Croatia 2014
- Denmark 2014
- Estonia 2002
- Finland 2023
- France 2018
- Germany 2011
- Greece 2017
- Iceland 2019
- Ireland 2015
- Isle of Man 2009
- Italy 2015
- Luxembourg
- Malta 2015
- Netherlands 2013
- Norway 2016
- Portugal 2018
- Russia 2018
- Serbia 2019
- Slovenia 2018
- Spain 2022
- Sweden 2013
- Switzerland
- Turkey 2017
- Ukraine
- United Kingdom 2005
- North America (11)
- Canada 2017
- Costa Rica 2018
- Cuba
- Greenland 2014
- Guadeloupe
- Guatemala 2017
- Haiti 2016
- Jamaica
- Martinique
- Mexico 2022
- Saint Pierre and Miquelon
- Oceania (9)
- Christmas Island
- Cocos
- Cook Islands
- French Polynesia 2013
- New Caledonia 2018
- New Zealand 2023
- Niue
- Norfolk Island
- Wallis and Futuna
- South America (9)
- Argentina 2012
- Bolivia 2016
- Brazil 2018
- Chile 2019
- Colombia 2015
- Ecuador 2016
- French Guiana
- Peru 2016
- Uruguay 2018
- Antarctica (1)
- Antarctica
Illegal
Right to change legal gender is illegal in 72 regions.
- Asia (11)
- Afghanistan
- Brunei
- Cambodia
- Malaysia 1965
- Myanmar
- North Korea
- Oman
- Saudi Arabia 1932
- Timor-Leste
- Turkmenistan
- United Arab Emirates
- Europe (8)
- Azerbaijan
- Bulgaria 2023
- Hungary 2023
- Kosovo
- Liechtenstein 2016
- Monaco
- San Marino 2013
- Vatican City
- North America (14)
- Anguilla
- Antigua and Barbuda
- Aruba
- Bahamas
- Barbados
- Belize
- British Virgin Islands
- Dominican Republic
- El Salvador 2017
- Nicaragua
- Saint Kitts and Nevis
- Saint Lucia
- Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
- Trinidad and Tobago
- Africa (23)
- Algeria
- Cameroon
- Cape Verde
- Central African Republic
- Comoros
- Côte d’Ivoire
- Democratic Republic of the Congo
- Djibouti
- Equatorial Guinea
- Ethiopia
- Gabon
- Gambia
- Guinea-Bissau
- Libya
- Malawi
- Mauritania
- Morocco
- Nigeria
- Rwanda
- Seychelles
- Somalia
- South Sudan
- Tunisia 1957
Legal, but requires surgery
Right to change legal gender is legal, but requires surgery in 33 regions.
- Asia (18)
- Bahrain 2014
- China
- India 2020
- Indonesia 1973
- Iran 1987
- Japan 2004
- Jordan
- Kazakhstan 2003
- Kyrgyzstan
- Laos 2009
- Lebanon 2016
- Mongolia 2009
- Singapore 1996
- Sri Lanka 2010
- Syria 1949
- Taiwan 2013
- Tajikistan
- Vietnam 2017
- Europe (10)
- Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Czech Republic
- Faroe Islands
- Georgia 2008
- Latvia 2009
- Moldova
- Montenegro
- North Macedonia
- Poland 1964
- Romania 1996
- North America (1)
- Panama 2006
No data, no laws, N/A, or ambiguous
Data on right to change legal gender is unclear, not applicable, or missing in 55 regions.
- North America (10)
- Bermuda
- Cayman Islands
- Curaçao
- Dominica
- Grenada
- Honduras
- Montserrat
- Sint Maarten
- Turks and Caicos Islands
- United States
- Africa (26)
- Benin
- Burkina Faso
- Burundi
- Chad
- Eritrea
- Eswatini
- Ghana
- Guinea
- Lesotho
- Liberia
- Madagascar
- Mali
- Mauritius
- Mozambique
- Niger
- Republic of the Congo
- Sao Tome and Principe
- Senegal
- Sierra Leone
- Sudan
- Tanzania
- Togo
- Uganda
- Western Sahara
- Zambia
- Zimbabwe
- South America (1)
- Guyana
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