Germany eases gender change rules

The German Parliament has passed a law making it easier for citizens and residents to legally change their gender.

It also provides for heavy fines – in specific circumstances – for disclosing a person’s name or previous registered gender without their consent.

Previously, changing your registered gender required a medical certificate and approval from a family court.

Now, those over 18 can become male, female or diverse, a third gender option that already exists under German law.

Three months after a request for modification, applicants must then appear personally at the civil registry office.

You can also request that no information about your gender be recorded.

Intentional and harmful disclosure of a person’s previous name or legal gender can be punishable by a fine of up to €10,000.

However, there are exceptions, for example if it is a legal obligation due to legal proceedings or a police investigation.

The first names must represent the new legal gender. Thus, a male application requires a recognized male first name, while a female application requires a recognized female first name.

Young people aged 14 to 18 will need the consent of their parents or legal guardians, while those under 14 will need their parents or legal guardians to make the declaration.

No further modification or reversion may be made within 12 months of an application being granted.

The law allows these operational spaces – such as gyms and women’s locker rooms – to decide who has access to them.

Male-to-female or miscellaneous applications filed less than two months before a national defense emergency will be suspended.

The new rules will come into force on November 1, as promised in the coalition agreement on traffic lights.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz said: “We show respect to trans, intersex and non-binary people – without taking anything away from others. This is how we continue to promote the modernization of our country. This involves recognizing the realities of life and making them possible in law.”

The Greens’ Nyke Slawik – who is transgender – said it was a “first step” towards a society that allows self-determination for trans people.

Conservatives and the far-right AfD were among those to speak out against the plan, warning that the legislation could be misused.

Concerns have also been raised about the impact on young people. “Miners, without proper consultation, could choose a path that they might later regret,” said Mareike Wulf of the CDU.

The law on self-determination was adopted by 374 votes in favor, 251 against and 11 abstentions.