These pages summarise general legal information relating to the rights of transgender and/or non-binary individuals under the law in England and Wales. It is not intended to give specific legal advice on which you should rely. If you require legal advice, or further details on any matter referred to, please consult an independent legal professional.
What is it?
The Gender Recognition Act (GRA) is the law which sets out how trans people in the UK may legally change their sex and obtain a Gender Recognition Certificate (GRC).
What do I need a Gender Recognition Certificate for?
A Gender Recognition Certificate (GRC) is needed for trans people to change their birth certificate and their sex marker with HMRC. Trans people also need a GRC if they want their marriage or civil partnership certificate to reflect their true identity. Many private pension providers and some insurance providers require trans people to have obtained a GRC before they will change the sex on a trans person’s records.
Only trans men and trans women over the age of 18 are able to seek legal gender recognition in the UK. There is no legal recognition offered to trans children and young people. Non-binary people in the UK are unable to obtain legal recognition of the fact that they are non-binary.
Which documents can I change without a Gender Recognition Certificate?
In the UK you can change your “legal name” without a GRC. Read our name changes page for more info.
Once you have changed your “legal name”, you can change your name on all other records (including medical records, HMRC and pensions) apart from your birth certificate. It is important to note that changing your name on a document does not automatically change your sex on the document, where that is recorded.
To change the sex marker on your medical records, you should ask your GP surgery for the form that allows you to change your details. It is generally most sensible to do this at the same time as changing your title and name with the GP. Only over 18s can change their sex marker on their NHS record. Read more about this on our Updating your medical records page.
Changing the sex marker on your passport requires a letter from a doctor confirming that you’re trans and that the change is likely to be permanent. Again, it is generally most sensible to do this at the same time as changing the name and photo on your passport. You can apply for a new passport online via the gov.uk website.
UK driving licences are coded with a sex marker and this can be changed at the same time as changing your name and title. To do this you need to send your original deed poll along with your old licence and a D1 form. All of the forms can be found on the gov.uk website.
In the UK there is currently no provision for recognising non-binary people as non-binary on any legal documentation or on medical records.
How do I apply for a Gender Recognition Certificate?
Under current UK law, trans people applying for a Gender Recognition Certificate should provide:
- the completed form
- their original birth certificate
- their deed poll
- “Proof” that you’ve “lived in your acquired gender” for 2 years (this takes the form of your passport, driving licence, bills, payslips, other correspondence)
- 2 medical reports, one of which has to be a medical practitioner from the “approved list”. Please note that you may have to pay a fee for each medical report.
- A fee of £5
Any trans person that has been married or in a civil partnership should provide either their marriage/civil partnership certificate alongside written permission from their spouse, or their decree absolute if divorced.
Once you have applied for a GRC, the gender recognition panel will review your application and either approve or decline your application. You will not at any point meet the panel.
You’ll find the forms and more information on the gov.uk website.
How does the Gender Recognition Act relate to the Equality Act?
A trans’ persons legal “sex” stated on their GRC is not the “sex” they will be considered to possess under the Equality Act 2010. So, if a trans man has a GRC recognising him as male, he would still be considered “female” for the purposes of the Equality Act 2010.
What’s wrong with the UK’s Gender Recognition Act?
The UK’s Gender Recognition Act (GRA) is in need of reform to bring it into line with international best practice. The current process:
- does not comply with United Nations Human Rights Commission guidance
- is overly complicated and bureaucratic
- requires a wait of at least 2 years
- requires medical reports and pathologises trans identities
- depends on a panel of strangers deciding a trans person’s identity for them
- doesn’t offer legal recognition to trans people under 18
- ignores non-binary people
- requires married trans people to get permission from their spouse
- leaves people in a legal grey area
What is international best practice in gender recognition?
In 2018, the UN stated that gender recognition “processes should:
(i) Be based on self-determination by the applicant;
(ii) Be a simple administrative process;
(iii) Be confidential;
(iv) Be based solely on the free and informed consent of the applicant without requirements such as medical and/or psychological or other certifications that could be unreasonable or pathologizing;
(v) Acknowledge and recognize non-binary identities, such as gender identities that are neither “man” nor “woman” and offer a multiplicity of gender marker options;
(vi) Be accessible and, to the extent possible, cost-free;
(e) Examine seemingly neutral requirements that are prerequisites for change of name, legal sex or gender for potential or actual disproportionate effects in the light of the realities of the trans populations in each given context.”
The following countries offer trans people self-determination for the purposes of achieving legal gender recognition:
- Argentina
- Belgium
- Colombia
- Denmark
- Ireland
- India
- Malta
- Norway
- Pakistan
- Portugal
- Uruguay
Some areas of Canada and Spain also allow this.
The following countries offer legal recognition to people who don’t identify as male or female (this includes non-binary people, but may also include people that identify in a different way):
- Austria
- Iceland
- India
- Pakistan
- Uruguay
Non-binary people are also offered legal recognition in some parts of Australia and Canada .
How could the Gender Recognition Act be improved?
The UK’s Gender Recognition Act (GRA) needs to be reformed to:
- make the process straight forward and easy to understand
- allow for a statutory declaration without a need for medical reports
- offer legal recognition for under 18s
- offer legal recognition for non-binary people
- make the process quicker – 2 years is too long
What have the government said about GRA reform?
There have been consultations in both Scotland and in England about reforming the Gender Recognition Act. A second consultation is currently open in Scotland.
The UK government made an announcement on GRA reform for England and Wales on 22nd September 2020. This announcement followed on from a 2018 public consultation. Read the results of the consultation.
The reforms made were:
- a cheaper fee
- slightly less bureaucracy – an online form is now available.
Read TransActual’s full statement on the government announcement on GRA reform.
What did the EHRC say about GRA reform?
Read the EHRC response to GRA reform, which unequivocally dispels a number of myths around potential reforms.
Read more:
Gender Recognition Certificates: https://www.gov.uk/apply-gender-recognition-certificate
Deed polls: https://www.gov.uk/change-name-deed-poll
Medical records: https://pcse.england.nhs.uk/help/registrations/adoption-and-gender-re-assignment-processes/
Passports: https://www.gov.uk/changing-passport-information/gender
Driving licences: https://www.gov.uk/change-name-driving-licence
UN: https://www.ohchr.org/Documents/Publications/LivingFreeAndEqual.pdf
Irish GRA annual report: https://www.welfare.ie/en/downloads/GRAAnnualReport2016.pdf
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