Gender reassignment in Uzbekistan: What the law allows

Recently, it was reported that, according to a decision by the Cabinet of Ministers, citizens who undergo gender reassignment can now also change their name and surname. This led to widespread claims on social media suggesting that “gender reassignment is allowed in Uzbekistan” and that “anyone who changes their gender can now also change their surname, first name, and patronymic.” In response, the Ministry of Justice issued a clarification regarding these messages and the official decision.

It was emphasized that, under current legislation, when registering the birth of a child, gender is recorded based on a medical certificate provided by a healthcare institution. However, each year, an average of 5–6 children are born with ambiguous gender characteristics. While initial examinations may determine the child to be either a boy or a girl, later—usually between the ages of 5 to 10, or in some cases, 10 to 16—it may be medically confirmed that the child’s biological gender differs from the initial classification.

In such cases, the recorded gender can be corrected based on the conclusion of a medical institution.

For context, the right to make such corrections has been legally recognized since September 1, 1998, as outlined in Article 229 of the Family Code. These provisions are not new but have long been part of Uzbek legislation.

Previously, there were legal gaps concerning such situations. For instance, a child born in 2008 was registered with a male name due to an undetermined gender at birth. Later, at the age of 16, medical evaluations revealed the child to be female. Although the gender information was updated accordingly, there were no legal mechanisms allowing for a corresponding change of the child's surname, first name, or patronymic.

To address such issues, the Cabinet of Ministers adopted Resolution No. 362 on June 12 of this year. The resolution stipulates that if gender information is corrected based on a medical institution’s conclusion, the individual's surname, first name, and patronymic must also be updated to align with the new gender.

“We urge the media not to misrepresent such cases,” the Ministry stated.

For public reference, the updated regulation outlines the circumstances under which a person’s name, surname, and patronymic (FIO) can be changed:

• Following Article 15 of the Law “On the State Language” of the Republic of Uzbekistan;
•  Based on a court decision;
•  If the name or surname is unpleasant or offensive;
• If the name or surname does not align with a person's nationality;
• At will — to return to a premarital surname (either during marriage or after divorce);
• When family members wish to adopt a shared surname (if one was not chosen at the time of marriage);
• When children are to take the surname of the father, mother, maternal grandfather, or legal guardian;
• When establishing paternity for a person aged 16 or older;
•  When correcting gender information based on medical conclusions.