In a direct rebuke to a Trump administration policy that sought to limit passport gender markers to only “male” or “female,” a federal judge in Boston has halted its enforcement nationwide, calling it discriminatory and constitutionally unsound.
U.S. District Judge Julia Kobick expanded an earlier injunction that initially covered just six individuals, now extending protection to all transgender, nonbinary, and intersex Americans affected by the policy. Her decision transforms the case into a class action, effectively blocking the State Department from denying passport requests that reflect gender identity—or that opt for an “X” marker—while the lawsuit proceeds.
At the heart of the legal battle is an executive order signed by Donald Trump earlier this year after returning to office. The directive instructed federal agencies to recognize only two biologically defined sexes and barred self-identification on official documents like passports. In response, the State Department revised its rules, requiring applicants to list their “biological sex at birth,” and eliminated the nonbinary “X” option that had been introduced under the Biden administration.
Kobick wasn’t convinced. She found that the policy likely violates the Fifth Amendment by unfairly targeting transgender people and stemming from “irrational prejudice.” Her ruling asserts that the government cannot impose a one-size-fits-all gender binary on documents as vital as passports.
“This is a critical victory against discrimination and for equal justice,” said an attorney from the ACLU, which is representing the plaintiffs. The ruling ensures that, for now, trans and nonbinary Americans won’t be forced to travel with documents that misrepresent who they are.
The Trump administration, meanwhile, slammed the decision. A White House spokesperson denounced it as “yet another attempt by a rogue judge to thwart President Trump’s agenda and push radical gender ideology that defies biological truth.”
This case is just one flashpoint in the larger legal war over Trump’s sweeping executive order on gender recognition. But for now, thanks to Kobick’s ruling, the government must put the brakes on its rigid passport policy—and allow people to be who they are, at least on paper.