The Self Made Men™

Virginia embraces a SIMPLE mechanism for changing one’s gender marker on a driver’s license !

As of April 25, 2012, the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) implemented a new, and much simpler, policy for changing one’s gender marker on a VA driver’s license. Individuals can now use the Gender Change Request form, known as DL-17, which requires only a signature from a licensed provider, including a doctor, psychiatrist, nurse practitioner, social worker, or counselor attesting to the fact that the applicant is a patient of the provider and that the applicant’s “gender identity” is either female or male and “can reasonably be expected to continue as such for the foreseeable future.” The form does not require proof of surgery or even proof that the applicant is engaged in hormone therapy. Link to form: http://www.dmv.state.va.us/webdoc/pdf/dl17.pdf

Until now, the VA DMV policy required proof of sexual reassignment surgery (SRS) evidenced by a letter from a surgeon or a court order recognizing a gender change. In most states, such a court order depends on proof of SRS. This requirement made it very difficult for many individuals to obtain a VA identification card accurately reflecting their gender.