Nonbinary and transgender New Jersey residents are being advised to exercise extreme caution when traveling internationally because of the swift changes the federal government is making when it comes to gender identification.
Garden State Equality, New Jersey’s largest LGBTQ+ organization, issued a travel advisory on Tuesday for nonbinary and transgender residents, warning they “are at risk when reentering the United States, particularly when using a passport with an X gender marker.”
The travel advisory comes amid a flurry of directives from President Donald Trump’s administration, including an executive order titled “Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government,” which declared it will be the official policy of the U.S. government that there are only two genders - male and female.
“The state of federal identification documents, such as passports, visas, and Global Entry cards, has been changing rapidly since President Donald Trump took office,” according Garden State Equality.
If you have a passport with an amended gender marker, including an X gender marker, and plan to travel internationally, there’s a few things you need to know beforehand.
Is a passport with an amended gender marker still valid?
Yes. Passports with an amended gender marker, including an X gender marker, are currently valid, according to Garden State Equality.
However, that may soon change. Secretary of State Marco Rubio recently said that guidance on existing passports containing an X sex marker will come via other channels, according to a memo reviewed by NBC News.
As such, transgender and nonbinary New Jersey residents are urged to exercise caution when traveling internationally, especially when trying to reenter the U.S.
If I sent a passport application with a change in gender marker before the Jan. 20 order, will it still go through?
No, passport applications sent out prior to the executive order that included a change in gender marker are currently on hold. Garden State Equality said the U.S. State Department has not yet issued clear guidance to passport offices on what to do with these applications.
I changed my gender marker years ago. Can I still renew my passport?
No, all applications for passport renewals with amended gender markers will be put on hold until the U.S. State Department issues further guidance. In the travel advisory issued Tuesday, Garden State Equality said, “we do not recommend such applications.”
The hold also applies to people renewing a passport with an already changed gender marker, because passport offices have all previous applications on file.
While individuals can consider applying for a passport with only a name change and no gender marker change, Garden State Equality said this may also carry risk.
How should I apply for a new passport?
New passport applications where all the materials submitted have consistent male or female gender markers are likely to be processed without issue. Garden State Equality does not recommend applying for a new passport if any materials submitted contain a gender marker different from the passport you are applying for.

Stories by Jackie Roman
Thank you for relying on us to provide the journalism you can trust. Please consider supporting NJ.com with a subscription.
Jackie Roman may be reached at jroman@njadvancemedia.com.