Transgender persons are legally recognised as the ‘third gender’/ ‘other’ gender in India.

In 2014, the Supreme Court officially declared ‘transgender’ as the ‘third gender’ in India (in the landmark judgment NALSA v Union of India).

In 2020, the Parliament passed the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019 (in short, ‘TPA’), which also officially recognizes ‘transgender’ as an official gender in India.

The TPA gives a very wide definition for transgender and covers all types of transgender persons:

• Persons whose gender identity does not match with the gender assigned to them at birth,
• Trans-man,
• Trans-woman,
• Inter-sex persons,
• Gender-queer persons, and
• Cultural identities like kinner, hijra, aravani and jogta.

Note: For a trans-individual, what matters is which gender identity you psychologically identify with. It does not matter whether or not you have undergone any kind of medical procedure to change your physical characters to match your chosen gender identity. (TPA, Section 2(k)- definition of transgender person).

Gender identity means the gender which the person chooses for themselves. You are assigned a gender (usually, either male or female) when you are born. If you don’t identify with the gender assigned to you at birth, you can choose to identify with any other gender.

Example 1- X was assigned the male gender at birth. X identifies as female. X can choose to gender identify as a female person.

Example 2- Y was assigned the female gender at birth. Y identifies as a transgender person. Y can choose to gender identify as a transgender person.

Yes, the law allows you to choose your gender identity.

The Supreme Court (in NALSA v Union of India, 2014) declared the right to choose one’s gender identity as part of a person’s fundamental right to freedom of speech and expression.

Further, the TPA also grants a transgender person the right to choose their gender identity.

No, you do not need to undergo any medical procedure/physical change to choose your gender identity. The law recognises your psychological right to choose your gender identity (i.e. choosing based on what you feel), and your physical characteristics do not affect your chosen gender identity.

The TPA prescribes the following procedure to officially record one’s gender identity as a transgender person:

1. Application for adults (above 18)- You need to make an application with the District Magistrate. The application consists of a form and some documents. You will need to obtain the exact details for your district, as the procedure may vary from district to district.

   It is suggested to apply to the District Magistrate who has jurisdiction over the place where you stay, as it will be convenient for you.

2. Application for minors (below 18)- Your parent or legal guardian will have to make the application for you. If you don’t have the support of your parents/legal guardian, unfortunately, you will have to wait till you turn 18, to apply.

3. After your application is successful, the District Magistrate will issue you an official Certificate of Identity as a Transgender Person.

   Note: The TPA only provides for recognizing gender identity as a ‘transgender’ person. If you want to change your gender identity to male or female, you will have to identify as a ‘trans-male’ or ‘trans-female’ to be able to officially change your gender identity.

When you officially record your gender identity (by following the procedure above):

1. You will get an official Certificate of Identity as a Transgender Person
2. Your gender will be recorded as ‘transgender’ on all your official documents
3. The certificate will serve as a proof of your identity as a transgender person

Whether or not you should officially record your gender identity is your choice. We have made a basic table of pros and cons for you, to help you choose:

Yes, there are several laws which protect the rights of transgender persons in India. We have listed them below:

1. Constitution of India:

   • Article 14- Prohibits the government from denying any person equality before the law on grounds of sex.
   • Article 15- Prohibits discrimination against any person on the grounds of sex.
   • Article 19- Grants every citizen the freedom of expression (which includes freedom to express your gender identity).
   • Article 21- Grants every person the right to live their life with dignity.

2. Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act: This law, which was passed in 2020, gives you various rights. We have listed them in the questions below.

3. ‘SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act’ and ‘Protection of Civil Rights Act’: If you fall under the Scheduled Caste or Scheduled Tribe category, then these laws protect you from any kind of discrimination based on your caste.

4. NALSA Judgment: In addition to the above laws, the landmark Supreme Court judgment of NALSA v Union of India also states that transgender persons have the right to choose their gender identity and live a life of dignity.

The TPA gives you a combination of rights. We have listed them below:

• Education- No educational institution can deny transgender persons admission or treat them unfairly based on their gender.
• Employment- No organization (government or private) can discriminate against transgender persons for recruitment, promotion or termination of employments.
• Family- You have the right to live in your family household without any discrimination.
• Healthcare- No healthcare institution can deny transgender persons admission or treat them unfairly based on their gender.
• Housing- You have the right to purchase, rent, or stay in any property without discrimination based on your gender.
• Public spaces- You have the right to access and use all public spaces without any discrimination based on your gender. Public spaces will include everything that is open for the public such as- public transport, roads, parks, shops, theatres, malls, etc.
• Stand for elections- No one can stop a transgender person from holding any public office (such as a government post or contesting elections) based on their gender.

Note- Unfortunately, though the law grants transgender persons abundant rights on paper, and prohibits discrimination against them in every sphere, in reality, the implementation of the law is very poor. Therefore, the practicality of the law may be very different.

The TPA makes any kind of psychological or emotional abuse against a transgender person illegal (Section 18). Therefore, if someone calls you names to insult you as a transgender person, this will fall under psychological/emotional abuse and will be illegal.

The TPA makes it illegal for a family to throw a transgender child out of the house or discriminate against the child. As a transgender person, you have the right to:

• Live in your family household
• Use all facilities in the household without any discrimination

If a family does not wish to have a transgender child in the house, they will have to apply to the court (mostly, a Magistrate court) to pass an order placing the child in a rehabilitation centre.

The TPA makes it illegal for anyone to separate a transgender person from their family or remove them from their house, community, or village. Anyone trying to do so can be punished with imprisonment of 6months-1 year.

1. TPA- The TPA protects all transgender persons against any kind of mental, physical, sexual, economic, verbal, or emotional abuse (Section 18). However, this law does not provide the mechanism for you to lodge a complaint against such abuse.
2. Domestic Violence Act- If you identify as a transgender woman (irrespective of whether you have a Certificate of Identity), you will be protected under the Domestic Violence Act. The Domestic Violence Act protects all women (including transgender women) against domestic violence by any family member (To understand your rights about domestic violence, please refer to our section on Domestic Violence).

Yes, transgender persons have the right to marry in India, just like any other person. However, according to law, you can only marry a person of the opposite gender. Therefore, you will be permitted to marry someone of an opposite gender from your gender identity. We have explained this below:

1. A transgender woman can marry someone who identifies as a man (transgender man or otherwise).
2. A transgender man can marry someone who identifies as a woman (transgender woman or otherwise).
3. Two transgender persons can also marry, as long as one of them identifies as a transgender man and the other as a transgender woman.
4. A transgender woman can marry a cis-man and a transgender man can marry a cis-woman.

If your partner is of the same gender as yours, you will have to stay in a live-in relationship with them, as Indian law does not recognise same-sex marriage.

Which law can you marry under?

You can either get married under your personal religious laws (for ex- Hindu Marriage Act) or under the Special Marriage Act, 1954. To understand further, see our section on Marriage and Divorce.

Yes, if your marriage is a legally valid marriage than you can get divorced. The same law under which you got married will also apply to your divorce.

If you are in a live-in relationship with your partner, you will not need to get divorced. You can end the relationship without any legal formality.

If you identify as a transgender woman, and your spouse or live-in partner is harassing you in any way (whether physical, psychological, sexual, or financial), you will be protected under the Domestic Violence Act. To understand further, please refer to our section on Domestic Violence.

Yes, you have the full right to access all public spaces which are available for people to use in general. The TPA makes it illegal for anyone to stop a transgender person from accessing/using any public space (including public transport).

Yes, you have the right to contest elections or take up any public post just like any other person, without any discrimination. As explained above, the TPA makes it illegal to discriminate against transgender persons for the same.

Yes, each and every person in India who is older than 18 years has the right to vote. You will have to register like any other person to vote. The registration form has the option of ‘other’ under the category of gender.

Yes, the following laws protect transgender persons against sexual harassment:

1. TPA- The TPA makes it illegal for anyone to abuse any transgender person sexually (Section 18).
2. Indian Penal Code- The Delhi High Court, in a judgment (Anamika v Union of India, 2018) said that the law for sexual harassment of a woman (Section 354A, Indian Penal Code) should cover ‘transgender woman.’ Therefore, using this judgment, transgender women can seek protection under all sections of the Indian Penal Code which protect women against sexual abuse. To understand further, refer to our section on Sexual Harassment).
3. Prevention of Sexual Harassment at Workplace Act- If you face sexual harassment in your college/university, this will be considered as ‘Sexual Harassment at the Workplace.’ All higher educational institutions are required to adopt gender-neutral policies for dealing with ‘sexual harassment at workplace’ in their institution. Therefore, as a transgender student, you can file a complaint with the Internal Complaints Committee of the University.

Note: For any sexual crime against a transgender person, you will have all the above remedies, and you can use them simultaneously. The maximum punishment prescribed in the Indian Penal Code is much higher than the maximum punishment prescribed in the TPA (only 2 years). This contradiction in the punishments prescribed by law makes an important part of the criticism by the transgender community against the TPA.