CCM15250 - Undisclosed Partners: Gender Recognition - General
Prior to April 2005 a person’s gender (whether they are
male or female) was acquired at birth. This could not be changed
even if they had undergone a successful gender reassignment.
Therefore, if a person was male at birth the law did not allow him
to be regarded as a female even if he had undergone gender
reassignment and lived life as a female. Similarly, if a person was
female at birth she could only ever be regarded as a female.
From April 2005 a transsexual man or transsexual woman can
apply to a Gender Recognition Panel for a full Gender Recognition
Certificate. Such a certificate changes the person’s gender.
A transsexual man is a female to male transsexual person. A
transsexual woman is a male to female transsexual person.
If the transsexual is still married or in a civil partnership
they must end their marriage or their civil partnership to get a
full Gender Recognition Certificate.
Where a full gender recognition certificate is issued the
person can ask the Panel to notify DWP, HMRC etc of their acquired
gender or they can notify us directly. A full Gender Recognition
Certificate may affect a claimant’s entitlement to tax
credits and how you deal with the claim depends on the period
covered.
An Interim Gender Recognition Certificate does not alter a person’s gender and should be ignored for tax credit purposes.
