The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday granted the Trump administration’s request to enforce a policy requiring passport applicants to list their biological sex at birth male or female effectively halting the use of “X” gender markers while legal challenges continue.
In an unsigned emergency order, the court allowed the State Department to implement President Donald Trump’s January executive order, which recognizes only two genders and eliminates the nonbinary “X” option introduced under the Biden administration in 2021.
The ruling overturns a lower court injunction that had forced the government to resume issuing “X” passports to transgender, nonbinary, and intersex applicants.
The majority wrote: “Displaying passport holders’ sex at birth no more offends equal protection principles than displaying their country of birth in both cases, the Government is merely attesting to a historical fact without subjecting anyone to differential treatment.”
The court’s three liberal justices dissented without comment.The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), which brought the challenge, called the decision a “heartbreaking setback.
”Senior ACLU counsel Jon Davidson said: “This is fuel on the fire the Trump administration is stoking against transgender people and their constitutional rights. We will continue to fight this policy and work for a future where no one is denied self-determination over their identity.”
The “X” marker was first issued in October 2021 for nonbinary, intersex, and gender non-conforming individuals.
The Trump policy mandates “M” or “F” based on birth certificates.This marks the second major transgender rights rollback upheld by the Supreme Court this year.
In June, the court allowed Trump’s ban on transgender military service to take effect during ongoing litigation.The passport case now returns to lower courts for a full hearing on the merits.
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