Update Applicable to:	Effective Date
All Employers	Immediately

What happened?

On April 2, 2025, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) updated its Policy Manual to clarify that it only recognizes two biological sexes: male and female.

Overview:

USCIS Policy Update: Recognizing Male and Female Sexes: This update aligns with the January 20, 2025, executive order titled “Defending Women From Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government.”

Key Updates:

• Sex Determination: USCIS defines a person’s sex based on their birth certificate issued at or near the time of birth. If the birth certificate lists a sex other than male or female, secondary evidence such as medical records or other government-issued documents will be considered.

• Form Changes: USCIS will no longer offer a third gender option on its forms, reversing a policy introduced under the Biden administration. Applicants who do not identify strictly as male or female may face challenges when filling out USCIS forms, potentially delaying the processing of their application.

• Document Issuance: USCIS documents will reflect the sex indicated on the birth certificate, except when secondary evidence is more appropriate. Documents will not have a blank sex field.

• Conflict Resolution: If there is a conflict between the sex indicated on the benefit request and the birth certificate, the birth certificate is controlling, except when secondary evidence is more appropriate.
• Effective Date: This updated guidance is effective immediately and applies to all benefit requests pending or filed on or after April 2, 2025.

Summary of Changes:

• Removal of the appendix for healthcare certification language.

• Revision of sections related to personal information, secure identity documents, validity of marriage, definition of child, and contents of certificates of citizenship and naturalization.

• Remove the request to change the gender marker subsection.

Additional Details:

Policy Highlights:

• USCIS recognizes only two biological sexes, male and female, for adjudicating benefit requests and issuing documents.

• The term “gender” is replaced with “sex” throughout the Policy Manual, and related terms are removed.

For more information or to provide feedback on this update, please contact USCIS at policyfeedback@uscis.dhs.gov.

Source References

• USCIS Press Release – USCIS Updates Policy to Recognize Two Biological Sexes
• USCIS Policy Alert – Press Release

Resources

• USCIS Policy Manual

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