In a move that intends to make federal documents more inclusive for transgender, intersex, nonbinary, and gender-nonconforming people, the State Department announced Thursday that, as of April 11, Americans will be able to identify with the gender designation “X” when applying for a US passport.
The option to select the marker for other forms of documentation will become available next year.
State Secretary Antony Blinken said in a statement that the State Department also conducted qualitative research on the definition of the “X” gender marker in cooperation with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) National Center for Health Statistics.
Blinken stressed that the definition of the “X” gender marker as “unspecified or another gender identity,” as it will be noted on State Department public forms, is respectful of individuals’ privacy while advancing inclusion.
This comes after the State Department’s announcement last June it would begin allowing passport applicants to self-select their gender as “M” or “F” without requiring – as it was practice up to now- for medical certification if an applicant’s choice did not match the gender on their other documentation.
The State Department also announced at the time that is considering adding the X gender marker for persons who apply for a US passport or a Consular Report of Birth Abroad, adding that consulted with partner countries who already recognize gender diversity on their passports.
More than countries, including Canada, Germany, Australia, and India, already offer a third gender on documents of identification.
The United States has issued its first gender-neutral passport in October to the 66-year-old US Navy veteran and intersex activist Dana Zzyym, who sued the State Department over the issue in 2015.
Identifying as non-binary, Zzyym was previously denied a passport after failing to mark male or female in an application.
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