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Big changes proposed for Queensland birth certificates
From news.com.au
Read full article here: https://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/real-life/news-life/big-changes-proposed-for-queensland-birth-certificates/news-story/d1bab022d1e078673208b8a4251040eb
Queenslanders may soon be able to make a big change to their birth certificate, with new legislation being introduced into parliament this week.
Under the legislation being proposed by the Palaszczuk government, residents will be able to change the sex on their birth certificate without having undergone gender reassignment surgery.
Currently, if transgender and gender diverse Queenslanders want to change the sex on their birth certificate, they have to provide statutory declarations from two medical practitioners verifying they have undergone “sexual reassignment” surgery.
Attorney-General Shannon Fentiman said the current law “unnecessarily
medicalises the recognition of a person’s lived identity”, according to The Courier Mail.She noted that gender affirming surgery can also be “inaccessible and unaffordable” to many people as it is not covered by Medicare.
If the legislation is passed, it will also allow for two mothers or two fathers to be listed on a birth certificate.
The development of the legislation came after a petition addressed to Ms Fentiman last year called for the Queensland State Government to better recognise LGBTQI+ people within the BDMR Act.
“Queensland residents draw to the attention of the House that the current legislation is the weakest in the country for recognition of trans and gender diverse people, and should be updated,” the petition, which gathered more than 10,800 signatures, reads.
“To include people of a third or non-binary gender, birth certificates should at least have an additional ‘X’ option.
“The limit of one name change per year can also be a roadblock for trans people, and should be increased or given exceptions for name changes with reason of gender affirmation.”
Currently, NSW is the only other state that requires a person to have undergone surgery in order to officially change their gender on their birth certificate.
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2 Replies
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Do we know when the legislation will be enacted
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News.com.au reported last week that:
Gender reassignment surgery no longer required for transgender recognition in Queensland
February 25, 2023 – 3:23PM
Queensland’s government will allow a person to change gender without reassignment surgery.
The laws will permit children aged as young as 12 to change their sex on their birth certificate.