A question about changing my US Social Security card gender marker

[Ny]

I have a quick question for those in the US in case anyone happens to have the answer. My Change of Name form finally went through (yay!) and I would like to now change my name and gender marker on my Social Security card. According to the SSA website, to change your gender marker, you need one of the following:

- Full-validity, 10-year U.S. passport showing the new gender;
- State-issued amended birth certificate showing the new gender;
- Court order directing legal recognition of change of gender; or
- Medical certification of appropriate clinical treatment for gender transition in the form of an original letter from a licensed physician.

My Change of Name certificate from the court uses female pronouns to refer to me (you have NO IDEA how happy that made me!), but doesn't otherwise refer to gender. Does anyone know if this document is enough, or if I would need a certificate from the court specifically recognizing a change of gender?

Alternatively, does anyone know if any licensed physician can write the letter mentioned above, or if it has to be a specialist handling the "appropriate clinical treatment for gender transition" (endocrinologist, surgeon, etc)? I'm asking this because, even though I'm on hormones, I'm currently between endocrinologists (the last one's nurses were openly hostile to me for being trans =\), and I'm my Primary Care Physician's first transgender patient so she really doesn't have an answer to this question.


Any first or second hand knowledge would be greatly appreciated!

[FTMax]

Unfortunately no, that doesn't count. My doctor who administers my HRT wrote my letter. The clinic I go to sees a lot of trans patients, so they just have a form letter that they fill in the blanks on. I will type it out here for you.

Copy/paste into a word document, email it to yourself and print a copy to take to your primary care physician. Show it to her and ask if she would be comfortable filling it in for you, tell her you can email her a copy. Anything capitalized and bolded is something that you would need to update:

---
DATE
U.S. Social Security Administration

Re: Gender Marker Change, Pursuant to POMS RM 10212.200 (Changing Numident Data for Reasons Other than Name Change)

Dear Sir/Madam,

I, DOCTOR'S FULL NAME, CREDENTIALS, have a doctor/patient relationship with YOUR CURRENT LEGAL FULL NAME (formerly known as YOUR BIRTH NAME, DOB 01/01/1900) and can attest that I have provided HIM/HER with appropriate clinical treatment for HIS/HER gender transition from FEMALE/MALE to FEMALE/MALE. I support HIS/HER efforts to change HIS/HER gender marker on HIS/HER identity documentation to FEMALE/MALE.

I declare under penalty of perjury under the laws of the United States that the forgoing is true and correct.

Sincerely,

DOCTOR'S SIGNATURE

DOCTOR'S FULL NAME, CREDENTIALS
MEDICAL LICENSE #
DEA REGISTRATION #
ADDRESS
PHONE NUMBER
---

If any of that is unclear let me know. I pulled mine out of my records and typed it as it is written.

[Dex]

Agree with Max. You will need a letter from a provider directly involved in your medical care to sign off on it.

My HRT doc did mine as well but as long as the provider has a patient/Doctor relationship with you and is involved in your care should suffice.

After you get signature, the easiest way is to bring it in to your social security office and they can change it for you. Be prepared with the regulations in case the person you work with isn't familiar. It can make it go a lot smoother.

This site is from the SSA and references the specific policies that refer to gender marker changes. It does also give the specific criteria that you need but max did a great job providing a sample letter above.
https://secure.ssa.gov/poms.nsf/lnx/0110212200

[Ny]

Thank you both ^_^ Here's hoping my PCP is okay writing that letter... I don't know if she'll be comfortable saying that I've had "appropriate clinical treatment for gender transition" when she isn't quite sure what appropriate treatment is, but here's hoping!

[FTMax]

Thank you both ^_^ Here's hoping my PCP is okay writing that letter... I don't know if she'll be comfortable saying that I've had "appropriate clinical treatment for gender transition" when she isn't quite sure what appropriate treatment is, but here's hoping!

If you need a point of reference for her, my doctor was fine writing this letter for me after 3 months on HRT.

[tgchar21]

If your name had been legally changed for some other reason pre-transition (e.g. adoption, marriage, non-trans-related personal reasons, etc.) where it says "your birth name" which name should be put there - the one given at birth or the one you had going into your transition (before you changed it for that reason)? If the latter, perhaps it would be better to phrase it "Your name prior to transitioning" or something like that. (While for the majority of us "birth name" and "name prior to transitioning" are synonymous, there are some that it's not.)

[FTMax]

If your name had been legally changed for some other reason pre-transition (e.g. adoption, marriage, non-trans-related personal reasons, etc.) where it says "your birth name" which name should be put there - the one given at birth or the one you had going into your transition (before you changed it for that reason)? If the latter, perhaps it would be better to phrase it "Your name prior to transitioning" or something like that. (While for the majority of us "birth name" and "name prior to transitioning" are synonymous, there are some that it's not.)

It should be whatever the SSA currently knows you as/whatever is listed on your Social Security card at the moment.

[Hikari]

Technically, the doctor who is my PCP is a PA, not an actual doctor, so we just typed up a letter with the information requested in the subsection of the law, and we had the supervising doctor sign off on it, saying that she supervised my PCP and agreed with her diagnosis. the SSA, looked at it, and just checked off the info and said okay, ad changed it.

I assume this is reasonably normal, as the people at the SSA didn't even question it.

[Jessica Merriman]

With the letter on the first comment only took me 12 minutes to do it. Very easy.

[Tysilio]

Jeez, Jessica -- did that include the wait at the SS office?  Or did you mail it, or...?

It took me half a day, almost all of which was spent sitting on a hideously uncomfortable federal chair.

But I had no hassle at all once my name was called.

[iKate]

I did mine yesterday. Very easy. You carry in a filled out SS-5 form (application for a social security number and card), photo ID, court order with raised seal and the letter.

This is my letter with info redacted. I see a NP but her supervising doc signed off on it as well as her. 

This letter is better than the model SS letter because it covers wording required for changing other things.

The letter does NOT have to be notarized. It DOES have to list license numbers and be on office letterhead.

[Ny]

The sample letter on the SSA website:

C. Exhibit – Sample Letter from Licensed Physician Certifying to the Individual's Gender Change

(Physician's Address and Telephone Number)
I, (physician's full name), (physician's medical license or certificate number), (issuing U.S. State/Foreign Country of medical license/certificate), am the physician of (name of patient), with whom I have a doctor/patient relationship and whom I have treated (or with whom I have a doctor/patient relationship and whose medical history I have reviewed and evaluated).
(Name of patient) has had appropriate clinical treatment for gender transition to the new gender (specify new gender, male or female).
I declare under penalty of perjury under the laws of the United States that the forgoing is true and correct.
Signature of Physician
Typed Name of Physician
Date