A federal judge on Friday, April 18, 2025, blocked the Trump administration from implementing a policy that would have removed the “X” gender marker option from U.S. passports, affecting transgender, intersex, and nonbinary individuals.
The plaintiffs argued that the administration’s proposed policy, which would have restricted passport gender options to “male” and “female” only, discriminated against individuals who do not identify strictly as either.
The proposed policy, introduced earlier this year, was part of a broader effort by the Trump administration to revise federal recognition of gender.
Administration officials described the initiative as a return to identifying gender based solely on biological sex at birth.
In court filings, the administration defended the policy, citing a need for uniformity and clarity in federal documents.
However, advocacy groups, including the American Civil Liberties Union, argued the change would deny legal recognition to nonbinary and transgender Americans.
The judge’s ruling temporarily halts the implementation of the policy while the case proceeds in federal court. The U.S. Department of State, which oversees passport issuance, has not yet commented on whether it will appeal the decision.
LGBTQ+ rights organizations welcomed the court’s decision and said it preserves the ability of individuals to have identification documents that reflect their gender identity. The “X” marker has been available on U.S. passports since 2021.
