Legal and Gender Recognition in China : A Legal and Policy Review

Liu Minhui

Describes the current legal framework and all laws and policies relevant to Legal and Gender Recognition in China. There is no Chinese law that uses the word ?transgender.? In fact, the use of this word is currently limited to one policy only ? the Sex reassignment surgery regulatory guidelines (National Health and Family Planning Commission Document No. 7 (2017)) - which is not a positive one as it places various restrictions on transgender people pursuing gender-affirming surgery (GAS). These include that a transgender person may not apply for the gender marker on their identity documents to be changed until they undergo full genital reconstruction surgery, and that transgender people pursuing GAS must "provide relevant proof that they have informed their close relatives of their intention to have sexual reassignment surgery" (basically parental approval), "be over the age of 20 years," and ?be in an unmarried state."