The Canadian government has issued a caution to individuals who select “X” as their gender on their passports, noting potential challenges when traveling to the U.S. and other nations. Recently, the Department of Global Affairs updated its guidance for 2SLGBTQ+ Canadian passport holders on the United States travel advice page.
“While the Government of Canada issues passports with an ‘X’ gender identifier, it cannot guarantee entry or transit through other countries,” the advisory stated. “There may be entry restrictions in countries that do not acknowledge the ‘X’ gender identifier.”
Travelers are advised that they may still be required to provide their sex/gender information as male or female when journeying. This update follows U.S. President Donald Trump’s executive order from earlier, which mandates the recognition of only two sexes: male and female, and the use of “sex” rather than “gender” on all U.S. government documents.
The executive order is currently under legal scrutiny, with the administration seeking to overturn a court order preventing the enforcement of the policy restricting U.S. passport issuance to only male and female genders.
In January, the Canadian government reported that an estimated 3,600 citizens had selected “X” as their gender on their passports since 2019. Alexandre Fournier, a spokesperson for the Department of Global Affairs, clarified that while some destinations had similar advisories starting in February 2022, the department recently expanded and standardized information on the “X” identifier across all travel advisories.
Fournier mentioned issues with time stamps on the travel.gc.ca website, causing the U.S. advisory update to display an incorrect date of Sept. 29. The department also updated its U.S. travel advisory to include details about certain U.S. systems now requesting sex assigned at birth information and to remind visa holders and permanent residents of potential status reviews and terminations.
Global Affairs has not yet responded to inquiries about the reasons behind the advisory change, any related incidents, or the current number of Canadians with an “X” gender marker on their passports.
Jennifer Young from the U.S. Embassy in Canada cited the current government shutdown as the reason for the embassy’s inability to comment on the alteration.
This update is part of Global Affairs’ efforts to enhance warnings about travel to the United States, building on previous advisories regarding discriminatory laws against the 2SLGBTQ+ community in certain U.S. states. Earlier this year, the travel advisory was revised to highlight the possibility of increased scrutiny upon entering the U.S.
In August, the Canada Border Services Agency announced that individuals applying for new Nexus cards or renewing existing ones would no longer have the option to list “X” as their gender.
