We are committed to the civil rights, health, well-being and human dignity of all members of Maryland’s transgender and gender non-conforming communities. We dedicate ourselves to providing information services, educational materials, advocacy training, and lobbying for critical human rights.
MVA Gender Marker Change
Current Maryland MVA policy allow for a temporary conditional gender marker change for individuals in gender transition, for a period of one year, renewable for up to five years. The requirement to remove this conditional status is proof of permanent gender reassignment surgery. Failure to provide documentation may result in a revocation of one’s gender marker.
The Maryland Motor Vehicle Administration’s Driver Wellness and Safety Division is requesting that all individuals seeking modification to their gender marker on Maryland ID cards/driver’s licenses submit the following to the location listed below:
1. A letter from you formally requesting a change in gender status.
2. A letter from your physician administering your hormone therapy and assisting you with any plans you may have for surgery. This letter should indicate the length of time you have been in treatment as well as a statement clarifying the doctor’s impression of your treatment progress and your prognosis for a favorable outcome.
3. A letter from your psychotherapist stating the length of time you have been in treatment, the assertion that you are committed to the change in gender, and the length of time you have been living in your desired gender.
Maryland Motor Vehicle Administration
Driver Wellness and Safety Division
6601 Ritchie Highway
Glen Burnie, MD 21062
Phone: 410-768-7511
Fax number: 410-768-7627
Email: MVACS@mdot.state.md.us
Documentation may be faxed 410-768-7627. Please call 410-768-7176 a few days after the forms are submitted via either fax or mail and inform the customer agent answering the telephone that your case is ready for review. Please have your soundex [driver’s license number] available at the time of your call, to expedite the process.
Submission does not mean automatic approval. The Medical Advisory Board will review it, and render a recommendation to the Administration upon receipt of this information. If the request is approved, a confirming letter will be issues to the requestor. This letter may be taken to any full-service MVA office, where a license reflecting your desired gender will be issued.
TransMaryland believes the requirement for permanent gender marker change represents an extreme burden and hardship on many members of the Maryland transgender and gender non-conforming community.
The first concern is the exceptional costs associated with much of the supporting documentation via therapist and medical care are well outside the range of many in our community. The requirement of sterilization via gender reassignment surgery is typically available of only a select few, so fortunately situated financially.
Secondly, gender reassignment surgery is not the ultimate objective for many to live a full and authentic life. TransMarylanders desire the same full rights to reproductive choices as any citizen. Gender reassignment surgery takes that option away from some.
Those two concerns over the obstructions in transgender Marylanders lives are sufficient to warrant revisions. The federal government has recently enacted several important policy changes which affect one’s ability to change gender markers on passports and with one’s social security account. TransMaryland recommends the state of Maryland adopt policies consistent with federal guidelines for the Social Security Administration.
An explanation of those policy changes may be found here
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