Trans* people in Germany are subjected to a long, expensive assessment process to change their legal gender. Efforts to introduce a new self-determination law have been delayed — but activists say it is badly needed.
Felicia Rolletschke is one of many activists who is fighting for a reform to the so-called Transsexual Law, which determines the legal process for trans* people to change their gender and name in Germany.
The law has been in place for exactly 40 years, as of 2021. During this time many countries around the world have seen great upheaval in their legislation around trans* rights. The top German constitutional court has also recommended a change in the law several times, most recently in 2011.
The German government confirmed in February 2021 they had drafted a bill of a new "self-determination law" (Selbstbestimmungsgesetz), after it was leaked on an ultraconservative website.
"It really is such a hassle and inconvenience to change your legal name and gender," Rolletschke explained. She should know — she went through the process herself, between 2015 and 2018.
Rolletschke is a 26-year-old workshop leader and public speaker based in Berlin. After growing up in a "very Catholic" Bavarian village of 4,000 people, she moved to the German capital at the age of 17 to attend university.
After coming to terms with her identity and coming out to friends and family, Rolletschke began the process of legally changing her name and gender in the German courts.
"In late 2015, before I even came out properly, I found a really good therapist," Rolletschke said. "Then we agreed I should begin the paperwork for the court in order to change my name, even before I began hormone therapy and surgery. But in order to get that process started, I needed to pay €1,600 ($1,955)."
This payment is often a barrier for trans* people, especially those who are younger and lack independent resources. Rolletschke was also hampered by being under 25, meaning any state financial support she could receive was assessed based on her parents' income.
According to Kalle Hümpfner from the German Trans* Association (BVT), this amount is typical. "We often see costs of several thousand euros," they said. "These hurdles are far too high."
After an initial hearing with a judge, the money is needed for applicants to pay for two "expert opinions" — in almost all cases, licensed psychotherapists — who both need to independently assess the trans* person in question.
"You are assigned the psychotherapists [by the court]," Rolletschke explained. "You can request which ones you get and in Berlin normally you are assigned who you want — but that is not necessarily common in the rest of Germany."
"My two assessments each took two hours, four hours in total. They are psychological assessments where they talk about your entire life story. They ask about sexual experiences, sexual orientation, fetishes, family structures. They covered many topics that were not relevant to gender," she said.
As someone trying to change her legal gender to female, Rolletschke believed she was particularly judged based on her adherence to a stereotypical female appearance.
"They judged how well my makeup was applied. They also noted that I crossed my legs when I sat down," she said. "And they judged my sexual orientation. For example, if you are a trans* woman and you are interested in men exclusively, that means bonus points."
The assessors then submit their findings to the relevant judge. According to Hümpfner, 99% of the expert opinions ultimately come to the same conclusion as what the trans* person has said about themselves.
Rolletschke had to wait another two months after her assessments before, in early 2018, she received the letter that her change of gender and name had been approved. All in all, the process had lasted over two years and cost thousands of euros, hours of her time and a great deal of stress.
It is this process that the self-determination law hopes to simplify, by replacing the 40-year-old Transsexual Law. Two separate bills, proposed by opposition parties the Greens and the pro-business FDP in 2020, call for a system that would allow self-determination for those aged 14 and above.
"Freedom of religion is a fundamental right. The recognition of one's own gender identity is also protected by fundamental rights such as the protection of human dignity or the right to the free development of personality."
The proposed change to the law would allow individuals to change their legal gender. This does not affect the process to receive hormone treatment or surgery, which is carried out separately in consultation with a medical doctor.
"The thing is — legally changing your name is not that irreversible a step," said Rolletschke. "And even if people do regret that step, that is the one thing that is easy to reverse."
There is precedence for reforms for trans* rights in Germany — the Transsexual Law was amended in previous decades to remove a requirement for infertility and evidence of surgery before applicants could change their gender.
Activists had hoped that the bill would make further progress before the general election planned in September 2021, but developments appear to have stalled.
我是覺得這篇報導說法規已經使用40年好像都沒有改過一樣蠻奇怪的，他們的確在10年前移除了手術要件，現在跨權派的目標是移除精神科診斷，這篇文章訪問了一位換證的當事人，大肆批評精神科醫師都是守舊又刻板印象的人。
最近身體不舒服，如果我明天比較有精神就翻完整一點。
丁大，保重身體
〈德國的跨性別法律被視為「過時的」、「羞辱的」〉
德國最高憲法法庭也已經好幾次建議要更改法律，最近一次是2011年。
在柏林她以跨女的身份首次出櫃，在21歲的時候。
*註：2015年約等於台幣五萬五。
適用於十四歲以上的自我決定？
兩部不同的法案，由反對黨綠黨與支持商業的FDP在2020年提案．呼籲一個自我決定的法案給那些年滿十四歲及以上的人。
德國落後了