"I'm transgender and a US citizen. Do I need to worry about my passport?"

* If you already have a passport, and it doesn't need renewal soon: Do nothing. Currently you are fine.

* If you don't have a passport, and have no immediate plans to leave the US: Consider doing nothing.

* If you've NEVER applied for a passport:
* If you have a passport and need to renew:
* If you mailed in a renewal/application in the last month and haven't heard back yet:

Now things get complicated/upsetting.

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If the State dept has any record of you ever having changed gender markers— *even if you were previously issued a correct-gender passport*— all reports say Rubio's State dept simply takes your application, your old passport, *and supporting documents like birth certificates*, and *won't give them back*. These have been "on hold" for weeks; there's no sign what they intend to do or when. The ACLU (who *is* suing) recommends trans ppl NOT renew passports right now.

https://bsky.app/profile/aclu.org/post/3lgixjvnwm223

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ACLU (@aclu.org)

All applications for gender marker change are on hold while the State Department changes this policy. Anyone who now submits an application for a change runs the risk of losing access to their passport and documents while their application is being processed.

Bluesky Social

There are some *limited* options you still have. If you're in one of:

Michigan
Minnesota
New York
Vermont
Washington

You can get a "Enhanced Drivers License"¹ (or in NY at least, a "Enhanced Non-Driver ID"). This is proof of US citizenship within the US. If you have an EDL *or* a tribal ID, this is sufficient to cross into Canada², or to re-enter the US from Canada, Mexico or the Caribbean. These only work by *land or sea* (not air).

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¹ https://www.dhs.gov/enhanced-drivers-licenses-what-are-they
² https://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/travel-voyage/td-dv-eng.html#:~:text=Electronic%20Travel%20Authorization.-,us%20citizens,-If%20you%20are

The EDL/EDID helps because it is issued by a state; even with the Federal govt run by fascists you can still get one (with a correct gender marker!). If you are trans and live in one of these states I recommend getting one asap.

Caveats/weirdness:

- It turns out US citizens can *enter* Canada by land or sea with only a birth certificate and an ID… but the US might not allow you back in³ ⁉️❓ ❗

- I am not a lawyer or citable source, data checked as of 2025-02-03

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³ https://www.help.cbp.gov/s/article/Article-1467?language=en_US

@mcc thanks for posting this info, nitpicking that today is February 3 not March 2 so editing the accuracy date would be good - who knows where we will be in a month :(
@anne CANADIAN DATA FORMATTING GOT ME ACTING STRANGE
@mcc @anne Everyone in the world except Americans would read this correctly.
@jmag @anne you do not understand the problem with Canada
@mcc @anne Surely Canada is not the problem here?
@jmag @anne YOU DO NOT UNDERSTAND THE PROBLEM WITH CANADA
@mcc @jmag regardless of the initial root cause or its location: thank you for editing the message from YYYY-DD-MM to YYYY-MM-DD so promptly earlier today!