‘It was the first time I felt the State saw me as I see myself – I finally existed': 10 years of the Gender Recognition Act

Irish Independent

14-07-2025

On a bright September morning in 2015, just weeks after the Gender Recognition Act was passed on July 15, history was made in Ireland, not with the fanfare of a referendum or the flash of cameras outside Leinster House, but with something far more quietly radical. For the first time, transgender people in Ireland could legally self-declare their gender identity, without the need for medical intervention, psychiatric diagnosis, or court proceedings. This marked a transformative moment, both legally and culturally, for a community long marginalised and misunderstood. The road to that moment was neither short nor easy. It was paved by decades of advocacy, persistence, and personal sacrifice. At the heart of the campaign was Lydia Foy, a retired dentist from Athy, Co Kildare, who fought the Irish State for nearly two decades in an effort to have her gender legally recognised. In 1997, she first brought her case to the High Court after being denied a birth certificate reflecting her gender identity. What followed was a legal saga spanning 18 years, during which Ireland was repeatedly found to be in breach of its human rights obligations by the European Court of Human Rights and its own courts. Dr Foy's tenacity, coupled with tireless campaigning by organisations like Transgender Equality Network Ireland (TENI), BeLonG To, and Amnesty International Ireland, forced lawmakers to confront an uncomfortable truth: Ireland had failed its trans citizens. When the act was finally signed into law in July 2015, just two months after the country became the first in the world to pass same-sex marriage by popular vote, it was seen by many as a further sign of an Ireland on the cusp of meaningful social transformation. Since 2015, over 1,100 gender recognition certificates have been issued in Ireland. For many, the law has meant access to correct documentation — a passport, a driver's licence, a birth certificate — that affirms rather than misgenders. Yet for others, especially non-binary people and trans youth, the act has remained a symbol of progress unfinished. It wasn't until 2023 that the Irish Government began formally recognising non-binary identities in state documentation, and young trans people under 16 still face significant barriers to legal recognition. Campaigners continue to call for amendments that reflect the full spectrum of gender diversity, and for broader societal changes that extend beyond legal frameworks — in healthcare access, education, employment, and public life. The last decade has also seen a sharp increase in anti-trans rhetoric, fuelled in part by social media and global culture wars. In that climate, the 2015 act stands as both a milestone and a mirror, reflecting the best of what Ireland can be when it leads with compassion, and the distance that still lies ahead. Ten years on, how has that legislation held up against the lived realities of those it was meant to empower?