Active discussions

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Feminism: Sex and gender discussions

Feminism: chat

Original poster

Gender recognition certificate cost cut to £5

79 replies

Justhadathought · 04/05/2021 09:33

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-56972195

"The fee to apply for a gender recognition certificate has been cut to £5, the government has announced.Ministers pledged in September to slash the cost of legally changing gender from £140 after deciding against wider reforms.

Women and Equalities Minister Liz Truss said the reduction removed a "barrier" for transgender people. While cost has been cited as an obstacle to applying, some LGBT groups say more work is needed.
The announcement comes nearly a month after the BBC revealed that the figure would be reduced.

A consultation was set up in 2018 to explore potential reforms to the way transgender people can apply for a gender recognition certificate (GRC) in England and Wales. This allows someone's acquired gender to be recorded on their birth and marriage certificates"

OP posts:
thepuredrop · 04/05/2021 10:29

I’m referring to my sister, forgot to state.

thepuredrop · 04/05/2021 10:27

Additionally, she pays a contribution towards her care, from the care component of her PIP. She also accrues costs associated with her disability that are not ‘written off’ in her financial assessment. These are ongoing costs, so it does add up.

thepuredrop · 04/05/2021 10:24

Thinking I might contact my MP to suggest the blue badge scheme costs are reduced. It’s £10, and not a one-off fee. She cannot work because of her disability, so this payment is made from her disability benefit. As she has a mobility car on the motability scheme, the mobility component of her PIP goes to the car, so the blue badge payment comes out of her care component.

Original poster
Justhadathought · 04/05/2021 09:35

The existing process - which requires two medical reports - had been criticised as costly and bureaucratic.The government estimates there are between 200,000 and 500,000 transgender people in the UK, although the actual figure is not known.

A total of 5,871 full GRCs have been granted since 2005, according to the latest official figures.In September 2020, following a highly charged debate about the potential impact of changing the law, the government announced it would not fundamentally reform the process.At the time, Ms Truss said there were "proper checks and balances in the system" - but pledged to make applying "kinder and more straightforward", including reducing the fee.In a statement after the reduction came into force, Ms Truss said: "As we build back better, we want transgender people to be free to live and to prosper in modern Britain."

"In the National LGBT Survey, 34% of transgender people told us that the cost of applying for a certificate was holding them back from doing so," Ms Truss said.Today we have removed that barrier, and I am proud that we have made the process of getting a certificate fairer, simpler and much more affordable."

The government has also said it is working "at speed" to move the application process online"

OP posts:
Swipe left for the next trending thread