Transgender Europe has published a map of the gender legal recognition for Europe and Central Asian countries. 

Unfortunately, gender legal recognition remains a major problem in both Armenia and a number of other countries.

Months ago, a transgender man applied to the Right Side Human Rights Defender NGO whose gender marker in the passport was refused to be changed from a female to a male without a gender reassignment surgery certificate by the Civil Acts Registration Office. Please, be informed that the Civil Acts Registration Office, under the current legislation, forces a person to apply for sex reassignment surgery, and only after that considers it possible to register a gender marker change which contradicts a number of judgments of the European Court of Human Rights.

On this occasion, the Right Side NGO is conducting a strategic litigation (K. A. against the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Armenia on the obligation to adopt a favorable administrative act), that is register a sex change without submitting a medical document for sex reassignment surgery . The case is currently in the proceedings of the RA Administrative Court of Appeal.

We are proud to be a member of TGEU – Transgender Europe and will continue to fight for equal rights for trans people in Armenia and for legal gender recognition.

May 22, 2020 Armenia, Yerevan