Change the registered sex on your birth certificate
To change the sex marker on your birth certificate, you must complete a statutory declaration and apply to Births, Deaths and Marriages.
New self-identification process
On 15 June 2023, a new self-identification process replaced the Family Court process. Under the new process, applications are received directly by Births, Deaths, and Marriages.
The Family Court process has been discontinued. If your application was already under consideration when the change happened, you can finish the process through the Family Court.
You can update the sex marker on your birth certificate if your birth was registered in New Zealand.
You can apply if:
you’re aged 18 or older, or
aged 16 or 17 and have your guardian’s consent or a letter of support from a third party.
If you're a parent or guardian of a child aged 15 or under who wants to update the sex marker on their birth certificate, you can apply on their behalf.
If you were born overseas
Births, Deaths and Marriages can only make changes to New Zealand birth certificates.
If your birth was registered outside New Zealand and you want to make changes to your overseas birth certificate, you need to seek advice from your country of birth.
There are separate processes to change the gender on your New Zealand citizenship record and other identity documents.
If your birth was registered in New Zealand and you currently live overseas, you can still apply using this process. You must complete a statutory declaration with an authorised person in your country, and send the completed application to your nearest Department of Internal Affairs office.
See the application form for a list of people who can authorise your statutory declaration.
Sex marker options
In your application you can select either:
female
male
non-binary.
Indeterminate
The law allows the sex on a birth certificate to be recorded as 'indeterminate'.
'Indeterminate' can be used when a medical professional cannot determine a child’s sex to be male or female when they are born.
You can change the sex recorded on your birth certificate to 'indeterminate' if your sex was incorrectly registered as male or female when you were born.
This may be the case for some people who are intersex. Intersex is a term used to describe people born with a variation of sex characteristics – such as sexual anatomy, reproductive organs, hormonal and/or chromosome patterns.
Intersex conditions are sometimes known as differences in sex development (DSD).
If you're intersex and want to change the sex recorded on your birth certificate to 'indeterminate', use the process for correcting errors in birth registration.
make a statutory declaration – a written statement signed in front of an authorised person and declared to be true
provide a certified copy of an acceptable photo identification (ID).
If you do not have an acceptable photo ID, you must complete an identity referee declaration form.
You must show your photo ID or completed identity referee declaration to the same person who is authorising your statutory declaration. Sign the identity referee declaration in front of them. They can certify this document at the same time.
If you also want to change your name
You can update your sex marker and change your name on the same form.
If you already have a name change application in progress, do not apply to update your sex marker until this has been registered by Births, Deaths and Marriages.
Forms and supporting documents
Forms
Adults aged 18 and over
If you're aged 18 or over and only want to update your sex marker:
You must sign a statutory declaration before a person authorised under the Oaths and Declarations Act. You need to do this in person and show them either your photo ID or an identity referee declaration. They'll also sign your application form.
Identity referee declaration – if you do not have photo ID
If you do not have an acceptable photo ID, you must also complete a identity referee declaration. You must choose a referee we can contact to confirm your identity.
You must provide a certified copy of your photo ID or a identity referee declaration form to confirm your identity.
If you're a guardian applying on behalf of a child
You must provide a certified copy of your own photo ID or an identity referee declaration form to confirm your identity.
If you're applying alone or you're an additional guardian appointed by the Family Court, you may also need to provide evidence of your guardianship status. There's more information about this on the application form.
To update a sex marker and change a name
If you want to update a sex marker and also change a name, you must provide proof of your identity in the community.
You must include copies of 2 different documents that show your current name. These do not need to be certified or authorised.
Accepted documents include:
bank statement
utility bill (for example, gas, electricity, mobile phone)
lease or tenancy agreement
motor vehicle registration
rates notice
IRD tax statement
SuperGold Card
student or tertiary identity card
educational certificate or school report
trade certificate
electoral roll record
certificate of approval or licence issued by the Private Security Personnel Licensing Authority
Steps to Freedom grant confirmation letter.
If you're a guardian applying on behalf of a child
You must provide a certified copy of your own photo ID or an identity referee declaration form to confirm your identity.
If you're applying alone or an additional guardian appointed by the Family Court, you may also need to provide evidence of your guardianship status. There's more information about this on the application form.
Your new birth certificate details
Your previous name and registered sex will not be displayed on the new birth certificate. Your certificate will have a new registration number, but this number will still contain your original year of registration as the first 4 digits.
Access to information about your previous registered sex and name can only be provided under specific circumstances under section 107 of the Births, Deaths, Marriages, and Relationships Registration Act 2021 (BDMRRA), and approved by the Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages.
If you change your name again in the future, your new name and the name you provided in the process of changing registered sex will both be displayed on the birth certificate.
Timeframes
Application processing times vary. Check this page for regularly updated timeframes:
The Births, Deaths, Marriages, and Relationships Registration Act 2021 (BDMRRA) is the legislation that lets the Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages oversee changes to birth registrations and certificates.
