Spain’s lower house of parliament has passed a new bill allowing anyone aged 14 and older to change their legal gender without a medical diagnosis.
MPeople march during a demonstration focused on the trans community on June 28, 2021 in Madrid, Spain.(Photo By A. Perez Meca/Europa Press via Getty Images)
Individuals wilI only have to self-identify their gender by filling out a form at the registry office and confirming it three months later.
A reveler posing during the LGBTQ Pride 2018 parade in Madrid, Spain. (Photo by Marcos del Mazo/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Under the bill, those who are aged 12 and over will be allowed to change their gender.
Two girls kissing, dressed in rainbow flags at the Pride Parade on July 9, 2022 in Madrid, Spain. (Photo by David Benito/Getty Images)
However, teenagers aged between 12 and 14 will require court approval, and those between 14 to 16 will require parental consent.
A protester holds a placard reading ‘don’t touch our rights’ as people gathered at Puerta del Sol during a protest to defend the rights of the LGBTQ people.(Photo by Marcos del Mazo/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Under the bill, the requirements for hormone therapy and a psychological diagnosis will no longer be mandatory for people to switch gender in official documents.
Transgender activists demonstrate during the WorldPride 2017 in Madrid, Spain, where an estimate of more than two million people participated. (Photo by Marcos del Mazo/LightRocket via Getty Images)
A participant during the celebration of the Pride of Madrid 2022 LGBTQ parade in the Paseo del Prado in Madrid, Spain.(Photo by Atilano Garcia/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
“During this Pride, we make history with a law that takes a giant step forward in LGBT rights and in particular in trans people rights,” Equality Minister, Irene Montero, said in a press conference at the time.
If it becomes law, the bill would also ban LGBTQ conversion therapy.
Two people carrying a placard reading “Loving freely is not a crime” during the 2022 LGBTQ Pride in Madrid, Spain. (Photo by Marcos del Mazo/LightRocket via Getty Images)
It will allow lesbian couples to register their children under both parents.
Participants with rainbow flags and umbrellas during the celebration of the Pride of Madrid 2022 LGBTQ parade in the Paseo del Prado in Madrid, Spain. (Photo by Atilano Garcia/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
It also includes measures for including transgender people in the workforce, housing and education.
A womansmiles at the camera during the Pride march held in Madrid in 2022. (Photo by Luis Soto/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
“We are making progress on rights as a country,” Equality Minister Irene Montero said in the debate leading up to the vote, Reuters reported. “We want all LGBTI people to be able to be themselves, without closets.”
A demonstrator holds a sign reading “It’s a law now” as activists gather to celebrate after a vote in favor of a transgender rights bill in front of the Spanish Congress of Deputies in Madrid, on December 22, 2022. (Photo by JAVIER SORIANO / AFP) (Photo by JAVIER SORIANO/AFP via Getty Images)
The bill will now move on to the upper house of the senate to be approved before it becomes law.
A protester is seen shouting and raising fist during a protest against delays in the bill. (Photo by Marcos del Mazo/LightRocket via Getty Images)
