Only two sexes: USCIS removes ‘X’ gender option from forms under new Trump directive

In a major rollback of a Biden-era policy, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced it will no longer offer a third gender option on its forms. The move, officials said, aligns with the Trump administration’s position that “there are only two sexes — male and female.”

The agency said it is updating the USCIS Policy Manual “to clarify that it only recognizes two biological sexes.” This change follows an executive order signed by President Donald Trump on his first day back in office, titled “Defending Women From Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government.”

“President Trump promised the American people a revolution of common sense, and that includes making sure that the policy of the U.S. government agrees with simple biological reality,” Homeland Security Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement.

McLaughlin further added, “Proper management of our immigration system is a matter of national security, not a place to promote and coddle an ideology that permanently harms children and robs real women of their dignity, safety, and well-being.”

Until last year, individuals applying for naturalization were allowed to select a third gender option, marked as “X.” This was introduced by the Biden administration to accommodate applicants who do not identify strictly as male or female.

aAt the time, USCIS had said: “Historically, USCIS forms and associated documents have only offered two gender options: ‘Male (M)’ and ‘Female (F).’ This has created significant barriers for requestors who do not identify with either of those options. Limiting benefit requestors to two gender options also creates administrative challenges for USCIS when we receive birth certificates or other official government-issued documents with a gender other than M or F.”

The updated guidance now directs that “USCIS considers a person’s sex as that which is generally evidenced on the birth certificate issued at or nearest to the time of birth.” In cases where birth certificates indicate a sex other than male or female, USCIS says it will base the determination on “secondary evidence.”

The change marks a stark policy shift that aligns immigration rules with the Trump administration’s broader stance on gender identity in federal governance.