Trump's most recent victory on the high court's emergency docket was the ruling by the conservative majority.
It implies that while a lawsuit is pending, his administration can implement the regulation. It reverses a lower court ruling mandating that the government continue to allow individuals to select male, female, or X on their passports in order to match their gender identity on newly issued or renewed passports.
After Republican President Trump issued an executive order in January stating that the US would "recognize two sexes, male and female," based on birth certificates and "biological classification," the State Department modified its passport regulations.
In February, transgender performer Hunter Schafer announced that a male gender marker had been added to her new passport.
The plaintiffs argue that passports limited to the sex listed on a birth certificate can spark harassment or even violence for transgender people.
“By classifying people based on sex assigned at birth and exclusively issuing sex markers on passports based on that sex classification, the State Department deprives plaintiffs of a usable identification document and the ability to travel safely,”
attorneys wrote in court documents.
The plaintiffs stated in court documents that sex markers first appeared on passports in the middle of the 1970s and that the federal government began permitting them to be altered with medical certification in the early 1990s. After years of litigation, a 2021 reform under Democratic President Joe Biden eliminated documentation requirements and permitted nonbinary people to use an X gender marker.
Following a lawsuit by nonbinary and transgender individuals, some of whom claimed they were scared to apply, a court in June suspended the Trump administration policy.
Then, citing the Supreme Court's recent decision to sustain a prohibition on transition-related medical care for transgender kids, Solicitor General D. John Sauer turned to the court. Additionally, he claimed that Congress granted the president authority over passports.
How will this ruling affect international travel for trans people?
Transgender travellers will be needed to use passports that reflect the coitus assigned at birth, not their affirmed gender, which can beget disagreement between their appearance and documents, adding the threat of importunity, demarcation, and invasive questioning at security checkpoints and border controls.
The policy may lead to heightened scrutiny from immigration and customs officers during visa operations or trips, especially in countries where gender identity is less fairly honored. Some ambisexual travellers may face difficulties or detainments carrying visas due to inconsistencies in gender labels and attestation.
Advocacy groups recommend trans people carry fresh identification like birth instruments and are conservative, as mismatched attestation can spark profiling or denial of services abroad.