Map Showing Where You Can Legally Change Your Gender In Official Documents In 2024

This map shows the legal status of changing one’s gender marker in official national documents around the world as of 2024.

The map is color-coded to indicate the different legal requirements and statuses in various countries:

• Blue: Legal, no restrictions – Countries where individuals can change their gender marker without any specific requirements.
• Green: Legal, medical diagnosis required – Countries where a medical diagnosis is needed to change the gender marker.
• Yellow-Green: Legal, surgery required – Countries where individuals must undergo surgery to change their gender marker.
• Light Orange: Varies by region – Countries where the ability to change the gender marker varies depending on the region within the country.
• Dark Orange: Ambiguous – Countries where the legal status of changing one’s gender marker is unclear or not explicitly defined.
• Red: Illegal – Countries where changing one’s gender marker is not legally permitted.

Data comes from:

Equaldex

Full data by country:

Country	Right to change legal gender
Afghanistan	Illegal
Albania	Illegal
Algeria	Illegal
Andorra	Legal, no restrictions
Angola	Legal, medical diagnosis required
Argentina	Legal, no restrictions
Armenia	Legal, surgery required
Australia	Varies by region
Austria	Legal, medical diagnosis required
Azerbaijan	Legal, surgery required
Bahamas	Illegal
Bahrain	Illegal
Bangladesh	Legal, no restrictions
Barbados	Illegal
Belarus	Legal, medical diagnosis required
Belgium	Legal, no restrictions
Belize	Illegal
Benin	Illegal
Bhutan	Legal, medical diagnosis required
Bolivia	Legal, no restrictions
Bosnia and Herzegovina	Legal, surgery required
Botswana	Legal, no restrictions
Brazil	Legal, no restrictions
Brunei	Illegal
Bulgaria	Illegal
Burkina Faso	Illegal
Burundi	Illegal
Cambodia	Illegal
Cameroon	Illegal
Canada	Legal, no restrictions
Cape Verde	Illegal
Central African Republic	Illegal
Chad	Illegal
Chile	Legal, no restrictions
China	Legal, surgery required
Colombia	Legal, no restrictions
Comoros	Illegal
Congo	Illegal
Costa Rica	Legal, no restrictions
Cote d'Ivoire	Illegal
Croatia	Legal, no restrictions
Cuba	Legal, surgery required
Cyprus	Legal, no restrictions
Czechia	Legal, surgery required
Democratic Republic of Congo	Illegal
Denmark	Legal, no restrictions
Djibouti	Illegal
Dominica	Illegal
Dominican Republic	Illegal
East Timor	Illegal
Ecuador	Legal, no restrictions
Egypt	Legal, surgery required
El Salvador	Illegal
Equatorial Guinea	Illegal
Eritrea	Illegal
Estonia	Legal, medical diagnosis required
Eswatini	Illegal
Ethiopia	Illegal
Fiji	Illegal
Finland	Legal, no restrictions
France	Legal, no restrictions
Gabon	Illegal
Gambia	Illegal
Georgia	Legal, surgery required
Germany	Legal, medical diagnosis required
Ghana	Illegal
Greece	Legal, no restrictions
Grenada	Illegal
Guatemala	Illegal
Guinea	Illegal
Guinea-Bissau	Illegal
Guyana	Illegal
Haiti	Illegal
Honduras	Illegal
Hungary	Illegal
Iceland	Legal, no restrictions
India	Legal, surgery required
Indonesia	Legal, surgery required
Iran	Legal, surgery required
Iraq	Illegal
Ireland	Legal, no restrictions
Israel	Legal, medical diagnosis required
Italy	Legal, medical diagnosis required
Jamaica	Illegal
Japan	Legal, surgery required
Jordan	Legal, surgery required
Kazakhstan	Legal, surgery required
Kenya	Ambiguous
Kiribati	Illegal
Kuwait	Illegal
Kyrgyzstan	Legal, surgery required
Laos	Legal, surgery required
Latvia	Legal, surgery required
Lebanon	Legal, surgery required
Lesotho	Ambiguous
Liberia	Illegal
Libya	Illegal
Liechtenstein	Ambiguous
Lithuania	Legal, medical diagnosis required
Luxembourg	Legal, no restrictions
Madagascar	Illegal
Malawi	Illegal
Malaysia	Illegal
Maldives	Illegal
Mali	Illegal
Malta	Legal, no restrictions
Marshall Islands	Illegal
Mauritania	Illegal
Mauritius	Illegal
Mexico	Legal, no restrictions
Micronesia (country)	Illegal
Moldova	Legal, medical diagnosis required
Monaco	Illegal
Mongolia	Legal, surgery required
Montenegro	Legal, surgery required
Morocco	Illegal
Mozambique	Legal, no restrictions
Myanmar	Illegal
Namibia	Legal, surgery required
Nauru	Illegal
Nepal	Ambiguous
Netherlands	Legal, medical diagnosis required
New Zealand	Legal, no restrictions
Nicaragua	Illegal
Niger	Illegal
Nigeria	Illegal
North Korea	Illegal
North Macedonia	Legal, surgery required
Norway	Legal, no restrictions
Oman	Illegal
Pakistan	Legal, no restrictions
Palau	Illegal
Panama	Legal, surgery required
Papua New Guinea	Illegal
Paraguay	Illegal
Peru	Legal, medical diagnosis required
Philippines	Illegal
Poland	Legal, medical diagnosis required
Portugal	Legal, no restrictions
Qatar	Illegal
Romania	Legal, surgery required
Russia	Illegal
Rwanda	Illegal
Saint Kitts and Nevis	Illegal
Saint Lucia	Illegal
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	Illegal
Samoa	Ambiguous
San Marino	Illegal
Sao Tome and Principe	Illegal
Saudi Arabia	Illegal
Senegal	Illegal
Serbia	Legal, medical diagnosis required
Seychelles	Illegal
Sierra Leone	Illegal
Singapore	Legal, surgery required
Slovakia	Legal, medical diagnosis required
Slovenia	Legal, medical diagnosis required
Solomon Islands	Illegal
Somalia	Illegal
South Africa	Legal, medical diagnosis required
South Korea	Legal, surgery required
South Sudan	Illegal
Spain	Legal, no restrictions
Sri Lanka	Legal, medical diagnosis required
Sudan	Illegal
Suriname	Illegal
Sweden	Legal, medical diagnosis required
Switzerland	Legal, no restrictions
Syria	Legal, surgery required
Taiwan	Legal, no restrictions
Tajikistan	Legal, surgery required
Tanzania	Illegal
Thailand	Illegal
Togo	Illegal
Tonga	Illegal
Trinidad and Tobago	Illegal
Tunisia	Legal, surgery required
Turkey	Legal, surgery required
Turkmenistan	Legal, surgery required
Tuvalu	Illegal
Uganda	Ambiguous
Ukraine	Legal, medical diagnosis required
United Arab Emirates	Illegal
United Kingdom	Legal, medical diagnosis required
United States	Varies by region
Uruguay	Legal, no restrictions
Uzbekistan	Legal, medical diagnosis required
Vanuatu	Illegal
Venezuela	Illegal
Vietnam	Legal, surgery required
Yemen	Illegal
Zambia	Ambiguous
Zimbabwe	Legal, surgery required

Why is changing your gender in official documents viewed as controversial in some countries?

The controversy surrounding changing one’s gender in official documents stems from various social, cultural, political, and legal factors.

Here are some key reasons why this issue can be contentious:

1. Cultural and Religious Beliefs: In many cultures and religions, traditional views on gender are deeply ingrained. These beliefs often see gender as a binary concept determined by biological sex at birth, making the idea of changing one’s gender difficult to accept.
2. Legal and Bureaucratic Challenges: Changing gender markers in official documents requires significant changes in legal and bureaucratic systems. This includes updating records across various institutions (e.g., government databases, healthcare systems, and educational institutions), which can be complex and costly.
3. Identity and Authenticity Concerns: Some people argue that allowing gender changes on official documents could lead to issues regarding identity verification and authenticity. They worry about potential fraud or misuse of the system.
4. Political Opposition: In some regions, there is strong political opposition to recognizing transgender rights. This opposition can be driven by conservative or traditionalist political groups that resist changes to the status quo.
5. Human Rights and Equality: Advocates for transgender rights argue that the ability to change one’s gender marker is a matter of human rights and equality. They emphasize that not allowing such changes can lead to discrimination, stigma, and mental health issues for transgender individuals. Opponents may disagree on what constitutes a right or how such changes impact societal norms.
6. Impact on Women’s Spaces and Services: Some feminist groups express concern that allowing individuals to change their gender markers could impact women-only spaces and services, such as shelters, sports, and prisons. They argue that it might compromise the safety and fairness for biological women in these spaces.
7. Public Opinion and Misunderstanding: Public opinion on transgender issues varies widely, and there can be a lack of understanding or misinformation about what it means to be transgender. This can lead to fear, prejudice, and resistance to changes in policy.
8. Healthcare and Medical Perspectives: There are differing opinions within the medical community about the processes and implications of gender transition, including the necessity and appropriateness of medical interventions. This can influence legal and policy decisions.
9. International Variations: Different countries have varying legal standards and cultural attitudes towards gender identity, leading to a patchwork of laws and policies that can complicate international travel, residency, and recognition of gender changes.

Map Source:
Bastian Herre, Pablo Arriagada and Max Roser (2023) – “LGBT+ Rights” Published online at OurWorldInData.org. Retrieved from: ‘https://ourworldindata.org/lgbt-rights‘ [Online Resource]

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