Hongkongers can apply to change the gender markers on their identity cards from Wednesday without undergoing full sex reassignment surgical procedures, as part of revised criteria introduced in response to a landmark court ruling last year.
The government said on Wednesday that the change to requirements was made after “prudently considering the objective of the policy, relevant legal and medical advice, as well as drawing reference from the relevant practices overseas”.
The revised criteria no longer considers the procedure necessary when a resident applies to the commissioner of registration to update their Hong Kong ID cards.
Under the new policy, applicants must have completed select surgical procedures to modify their sexual characteristics, along with presenting the relevant medical proof and supporting documents.
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Applicants must make a statutory declaration to confirm they have gender dysphoria, which refers to the psychological distress that a person may experience because of a mismatch between their biological sex and gender identity.
They are also required to show proof they have undergone hormonal treatment throughout the two years before applying.
Applications must include a declaration that the candidate will continue to undergo hormonal treatments, as well as submit blood test reports for randomised checks.
The Immigration Department said it would take the initiative to follow up with all applications it received.
The journey towards the landmark victory started back in 2017, when activist Henry Edward Tse made a case against the department over its rejection of his application to change his card’s gender marker.
Tse and Q, a separate appellant, said they had undergone medical and surgical treatments later certified to be sufficient to ensure their social integration and psychological well-being, arguing additional invasive procedures were unnecessary.
Their applications to change their identity cards were previously rejected on the grounds they had not undergone full sex reassignment surgical treatments as required under the old policy.
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Transgender activists call for approval of Hong Kong ID card sex change requests
They also separately argued their cards’ female gender markers had resulted in both facing discrimination and humiliation when confirming their identities with third parties.
The Court of First Instance and the Court of Appeal dismissed both cases, before the city’s top court heard the appeals together and unanimously ruled the old policy had breached their right to privacy under Article 14 of the Hong Kong Bill of Rights, declaring the requirement unconstitutional.
