The State Department is Adding another Gender Option on Passports. Here's What You Need to Know.

The State Department this week announced that it will add another gender option on passports for applicants who are nonbinary, intersex and gender nonconforming. 

The department also announced that passport applicants can now select their own gender marker between "male" and "female." That means transgender travelers will no longer have to provide medical certification if their gender identity doesn’t match the marker on their birth certificate or other documents. 

Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement on Wednesday that the announcements are a step “toward ensuring the fair treatment of LGBTQI+ U.S. citizens, regardless of their gender or sex.” 

“The Department of State is committed to promoting the freedom, dignity and equality of all people – including LGBTQI+ persons,” Blinken said. 

The changes were immediately celebrated by LGBTQ groups and other organizations across the country.  

Human Rights Campaign President Alphonso David said Wednesday that the move “will decrease the risk of discrimination, harassment and violence for an already vulnerable group." 

“This is an important step toward achieving meaningful progress for LGBTQ equality in America, and will empower and enable millions of citizens to travel domestically and internationally with greater confidence that the United States recognizes their gender identity,” David said. 

GLAAD Rapid Response Manager Mary Emily O’Hara  told USA TODAY that safety concerns for transgender, nonbinary and intersex people while traveling "are more pressing when we don’t have access to accurate and appropriate identification."  

“When you’re traveling with a gender marker on an ID that does not match your current gender presentation, that puts you a lot more at risk for harassment and discrimination than having an 'X' marker on the gender of your passport.”

O’Hara also called the process of transgender people providing medical documentation to receive a passport that matches their gender “arduous.”  

This week's change "makes it more of an equitable and accessible process for trans people who, for whatever reason, can’t get all of that documentation" O’Hara said. 

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