US Supreme Court Backs Trump on Passport Sex Designations

A stack of blank passports at the Miami Passport Agency.Photographer: Joe Raedle/Getty Images

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By Greg Stohr and Zoe Tillman

November 6, 2025 at 8:19 PM UTC

Updated on

November 6, 2025 at 8:32 PM UTC

A divided US Supreme Court dealt a fresh blow to transgender rights, temporarily reviving a Trump administration policy that generally requires new passports to reflect the sex on the holder’s birth certificate.

Granting a request from President Donald Trump over three dissents, the justices put on hold a federal district court ruling that had blocked part of a Jan. 20 executive order as likely illegal. The Supreme Court decision will apply while litigation continues in the case.