Right to change legal gender
You can change your legal gender in 80 countries, but 41 require surgery.
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- Legal, surgery not required
- Legal, but requires medical diagnosis
- Legal, but requires surgery
- Illegal
- Varies by region or ambiguous
- Unknown or N/A
Recent Changes
- Jul 19 2023Became Illegal in Russia
- 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
- Dec 22 2022Became Legal, surgery not required in Spain
- Dec 2 2022Became Legal, surgery not required in Queensland
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.
There are no recent changes about Right to change legal gender.
Right to change legal gender by Country
Legal, surgery not required
Right to change legal gender is legal, surgery not required in 39 regions.
Legal, but requires medical diagnosis
Right to change legal gender is legal, but requires medical diagnosis in 12 regions.
- Europe (8)
- Austria 2009
- Belarus 2004
- Germany 1981
- Poland 1991
- Serbia 2019
- Slovenia 2005
- Sweden 2013
- United Kingdom 2005
- Africa (1)
- South Africa 2004
- South America (1)
- Peru 2016
Legal, but requires surgery
Right to change legal gender is legal, but requires surgery in 41 regions.
- Asia (22)
- Bahrain 2014
- China 2018
- India 2019
- Indonesia 1973
- Iran 1987
- Japan 2022
- Jordan
- Kazakhstan 2022
- Kyrgyzstan
- Laos 2009
- Lebanon 2016
- Malaysia 2005
- Mongolia 2009
- Singapore 1996
- South Korea
- Sri Lanka 2010
- Syria 2004
- Taiwan 2013
- Tajikistan
- Turkmenistan 1972
- Uzbekistan 1972
- Vietnam 2017
- Europe (11)
- Armenia 1972
- Azerbaijan 1972
- Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Czech Republic
- Georgia 2008
- Kosovo 1989
- Latvia 2009
- Moldova
- Montenegro
- Romania 1996
- Turkey 2017
- South America (1)
- Suriname 2009
Illegal
Right to change legal gender is illegal in 67 regions.
- Asia (11)
- Afghanistan
- Brunei
- Myanmar
- North Korea
- Oman
- Philippines 2007
- Qatar 1915
- Saudi Arabia
- Thailand
- Timor-Leste
- United Arab Emirates 2019
- Europe (10)
- Albania
- Bulgaria 2023
- Hungary
- Liechtenstein 2016
- Monaco
- North Macedonia
- Russia 2023
- San Marino
- Slovakia 2022
- Vatican City
- North America (13)
- Antigua and Barbuda
- Bahamas
- Barbados
- Belize
- Dominican Republic
- El Salvador 2017
- Guatemala
- Jamaica
- Nicaragua
- Saint Kitts and Nevis
- Saint Lucia
- Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
- Trinidad and Tobago
- Africa (24)
- Algeria
- Cameroon
- Cape Verde
- Central African Republic
- Comoros
- Democratic Republic of the Congo
- Djibouti
- Equatorial Guinea
- Ethiopia
- Gabon
- Gambia
- Libya
- Madagascar
- Malawi
- Mauritania
- Mauritius
- Morocco
- Niger
- Nigeria
- Rwanda
- Seychelles
- Somalia
- South Sudan
- Tanzania
- Antarctica (1)
- Antarctica
No data, no laws, N/A, or ambiguous
Data on right to change legal gender is unclear, not applicable, or missing in 39 regions.
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