A long-overdue update is coming to United States passports and IDs.
The Biden administration announced Wednesday that it plans to issue passports and IDs with “X” gender markers, which can be selected without medical documentation.
The 19th – a nonprofit that covers gender, politics, and policy – reports that Americans will soon have the option of choosing between “M,” “F,” and “X” on these federal documents. Transgender, non-binary, and intersex individuals will be able to identify as gender-neutral or as a different gender than the one listed on their birth certificate due to the addition. Transgender people will self-identify freely if they no longer have to show proof of their gender transition to a medical professional.
BREAKING: The Biden administration is announcing today plans to issue passports with an “X” gender marker without requiring medical documentation.
This is a victory for trans, non-binary and intersex people who have long sought accurate federal IDs.
— ACLU (@ACLU) June 30, 2021
In his campaign, Joe Biden promised to “affirm one’s gender marker and expand access to accurate identification documents” to LGBTQ voters.
“Transgender and non-binary people without accurate identification documents are often subjected to harassment and violence and denied employment, housing, critical public benefits, and even the right to vote,” the president’s campaign website JoeBiden.com explains.
As president, Biden promised to push for gender-neutral IDs, and this is an outstanding result of that promise.
Although the exact timeframe for when people will be able to view “X” gender markers on documents remains unclear, the State Department is “evaluating the best approach to accomplish this.”