This guide is intended as an update on the BDMRR Bill, and covers the important opportunity in August/September to make final submissions on the Bill.
In August we expect the Select Committee will call for submissions on the most recent changes to the Bill. These changes will be explained in a Supplementary Order Paper. We know from the documents that the Minister released in July what those changes will cover and have explained them below. Submissions are likely to be open for about 6 weeks from early August 2021.
GMA has a primer which covers the background of the Bill, and many of the issues and arguments surrounding it. We recommend that you first read the primer, available here.
Below is a summary of the Cabinet Paper and other briefings to the Minister, including the Regulatory Impact Statement. These were released in July 2021 (though they are dated 14 June on the Department of Internal Affairs’ website). These documents show strong support within the Government in favor of passing the Bill. The full documents are available below. The parliamentary papers can also be found under the heading “Ministers’ Papers – Internal Affairs”, dated June 14th 2021, here.
Submissions can be made in writing and sent by post, or submitted online via the Parliament website, here. It is also possible to present your written submission orally (face to face, by phone, or by video conference), which can make a stronger impression. If possible, it is usually a good idea to both send your written submission and present your submission orally. We strongly urge you to see our guide to writing a submission below.
The select committee process is an opportunity for the public to have a say in the final wording of the Bill, and attempt to ensure that the best possible version of the Bill makes it through the process. Once the Bill is finalised, it will have a third reading, where Members of Parliament will vote on whether it gets passed into law.
Both your views and recommendations, along with personal stories, are important. It is personal stories which capture the hearts and minds of those you speak with. While it may be tempting to refute the harmful and false claims being made by anti-trans campaign groups, the strongest position is to speak from the heart to personal experiences, and the positive impact that passing the Bill will have on yourself or someone you care about.
Who to talk with
Both the Labour Party and the Green Party are currently in favour of the Bill, which provides a strong basis for passing the Bill into law.
The National Party does not yet have an official position on the Bill. They will debate the Bill internally, within their caucus. It is very important that National Party Members of Parliament hear the views of transgender people and our allies, prior to and during the select committee process.
GMA recommends talking with or writing to National Party Members of Parliament Nicola Willis and Chris Bishop, who may be the most likely to support the Bill within the National caucus. We also recommend talking with Simon O’Connor (MP for Tāmaki, National Party associate spokesperson for social housing and social development), and Nicola Grigg (MP for Selwyn and National Party spokesperson for women).
We recommend sharing your stories with each of these Members of Parliament, your local MP, and members of the Select Committee.
Select Committee members will include: Barbara Kuriger – Chair, National Party MP for Taranaki-King Country. Tangi Utukere – Co-chair, Labour Party MP for Palmerston North. Rachel Boyack – Labour Party MP for Nelson. Naisi Chen – Labour Party list MP. Nicola Grigg – National Party MP for Selwyn.
In particular, Nicola Grigg and Barbara Kuriger are important MPs to reach. They represent rural communities, and will likely respond best to messaging about common sense values, evidence based policy, supporting women, opportunities for youth to move into leadership, cutting bureaucratic red tape, stronger community networks, and supporting families. They will also respond more strongly if people within their electorates make appointments with their electorate offices to meet them in person.
Areas of Focus
Please note that you do not need to speak about every focus area. Organise with friends and cover one area each. A sound argument for one point is likely to be more effective than touching on all of them. Your entire submission should ideally be no longer than 2 pages.
The BDMRR Primer (linked above) contains other points which you may be interested in submitting on. The focus areas below are high priority for us.
Young people aged 15 or younger
The government proposes that youth aged 16 or 17 would be able to make the application themself, and need either the support of a guardian or support from a qualified third person.
However, under the current wording, applicants aged 15 and younger need to have a guardian make the application on their behalf, and also require a letter of support from a qualified third person.
This discriminates against youth aged 15 or younger who may have unsupportive or transphobic guardians. It would make it impossible for them to change their sex marker in situations where their legal guardian/s refuse to make the application.
The Bill should give transgender people aged 15 and younger an alternative option, allowing them to demonstrate their ability to make an informed decision, with support from either a qualified third person, or a guardian.
Trans people without NZ birth certificates
It is important that submissions do not conflate the experiences of all people born overseas; for example, by making generalised statements about “trans migrants, refugees and asylum seekers”. There are differences between the experiences and legal barriers faced by each of these groups; for example, based on their immigration status and whether they are able to achieve any form of legal gender recognition in their country of nationality.
GMA has worked together with Rainbow Path to make it as easy as possible to understand these differences, as outlined in the following 3 sections below.
Groups such as Rainbow Path provide important opportunities to listen to the diverse experiences of those who are directly affected by gaps in current laws and policies, and their recommendations. Some recommendations are within the scope of this Bill, while others require further changes to immigration laws and policies. If you are not sure what the solutions are, it is still valuable to mention the legal gender recognition gaps that need to be addressed.
1. Removing existing rights for permanent residents born overseas
The Bill replaces the current Family Court process with a simple statutory declaration. For most people that is a very positive step. However, the Government has taken a backward step for permanent residents who were born overseas.
In 2008, after a recommendation in the Human Rights Commission’s Transgender Inquiry report, the law changed so that at least the first step in the Family Court process (obtaining a Declaration as to Sex) became available to permanent residents. With trans people no longer needing to go to the Family Court, that sole option for permanent residents has been removed. As currently worded, the Bill is restricted to people whose birth was registered in New Zealand (including children adopted from overseas).
A solution must be found to ensure that transgender and intersex New Zealand permanent residents born overseas do not lose the right to an official document that accurately recognises their affirmed sex. This includes quota refugees who are granted permanent residence as soon as they arrive in New Zealand. This solution should be an administrative process based on self-determination (self-identification), to be consistent with the changes the Bill is making for other trans people in Aotearoa.
2. No options for migrants on temporary visas
The existing Family Court process and the Bill as currently drafted both exclude migrants living in New Zealand who are on temporary visas. Some may have lived in New Zealand for a long time. Trans people born overseas, particularly trans people of colour, are regularly asked to show their passport to prove their immigration status, including their ability to work or study here. They face significant challenges when they have no New Zealand documentation with a name and sex marker that matches their affirmed gender.
3. Asylum seekers and Convention refugees on temporary visas
Rainbow Path is an advocacy and peer support group for the rights of Rainbow refugees and asylum seekers living in Aotearoa New Zealand. They have been lobbying since 2018 on the need for asylum seekers and Convention refugees to be able to obtain official documentation with their correct name and gender marker. Without such documents, they face immense barriers trying to access basic fundamental services, and potential danger every time they use outdated ID from their country of nationality.
Currently, only permanent residents can amend their name in New Zealand. They are also excluded from the current Family Court process to get a Declaration as to Sex because they are not permanent residents. It may take asylum seekers many years to find out if they are accepted as Convention refugees. Even then, they have no way to change their name until they can eventually afford to apply for, and are granted, permanent residence. This process can take multiple years. Once an asylum seeker is accepted as a Convention refugee they have the right to live in Aotearoa indefinitely and cannot be deported. New Zealand is their home, and yet they cannot obtain an official document with their correct name and gender.
Rainbow Path has emphasised that official documents must not include the transgender person’s original name or sex marker or in any other way disclose that they are transgender. Doing so would pose significant safety risks for those fleeing persecution for being transgender, including for partners or family members overseas. This is why a document like a name change certificate is not a suitable option for transgender refugees and asylum seekers to use on its own to verify their identity.
Rainbow Path is lobbying for trans asylum seekers and Convention refugees to be able to get their correct name and gender on the certificates of identity and refugee travel documents issued by the Department of Internal Affairs and Immigration NZ.
Tips for writing a submission to a Parliamentary Select Committee. Structure your submission as follows.
Submission on the …….. Policy (or Bill) To the ……….. committee Date.
Personal Details. a) This is a submission from ……..(name of person, group, or organisation, address, and post code). b) Details about yourself, or your organisation, it’s purpose, membership, structure, other relevant details as to your/your group’s experience in this area, and people involved in writing the submission. c) We can be contacted at (contact details).
Submission a) We support/oppose the intent of this bill because …… b) Community experience – this is your chance to capture hearts, so don’t just give facts, include personal stories. c) Recommendations – list the specific recommendations which you, your group, or your organisation wants the committee to take into consideration.
We wish/do not wish to make an oral submission before the committee.
Committees may have dozens or even hundreds of submissions to get through – they may prefer to read just a couple of pages (around 800 words). Again, if you keep it short and to the point you will make more of an impact. In saying that, longer submissions are also read, and if you have a lot to say that’s completely acceptable as long as you stay on topic.
You could think about what your headlines would be, and then write under them. This can help to keep things structured and on point.
It is important to note that if you intend to give an oral submission, you are only allowed to talk about the things you have mentioned in your submission – so for example you might want to mention healthcare access rather than surgery access, which gives you more scope for elaboration.
Submissions are either entered online, or 2 hard copies are required if submitted by post. These must be received by the committee secretariat before the closing date.
Find out more about how a Bill becomes a law below.
In 2021 BDMRR posters again went up across Aotearoa. We’d like to say a huge thank you to Phantom Billstickers for their support.
A great place to display these is in the window of your home, or ask local shop owners if they would like to help support trans people by putting one in their window.
Download the PDFs
You can download the PDF for each poster on our posters page.
We also published a pamphlet, which was distributed by trans people and allies across Aotearoa. You can dow3nload this by clicking the button below, or scroll down to read the text on this page.
Understanding the BDMRR Bill – self determination for transgender people
BDMRR stands for Births, Deaths, Marriages, and Relationships Registration. This is an Act in New Zealand law which sets out the legal requirements for, amongst other things, changing the name or sex marker on ones birth certificate, due to marriage, civil union, or being transgender, for example.
The BDMRR Bill is suggesting changes to this law, which will likely be decided in 2021.
Some of those changes relate to updating the sex marker on a person’s birth certificate.
What’s the problem with the current situation?
Trans women are already legally recognised as women by New Zealand Law, and changing a sex marker on a passport is a simple statutory declaration process. However, in order to change the sex marker on a birth certificate, the law requires medical evidence and a Family Court process. This can be difficult, expensive, and is at odds with NZ policies for passports and other identification documents, as well as with international best practice for human rights.
This impacts most on those who do not undertake medical steps as part of their transition due to health, poverty, disability, religious beliefs, or other reasons, and for people waiting for medical treatments which can take many years to obtain. Some do not want medical treatments (eg. sterilisation), but may be pressured to have them in order to obtain accurate identification documents with their correct gender marker.
It also impacts strongly on those who don’t know how to make a formal legal application to the Family Court, and can’t afford a lawyer to apply on their behalf – which can cost up to $3,000.
Why is it so important?
A birth certificate is the only document that someone born here can never have taken away from them. In some significant life events, it is the sole document that will be accepted as proof of identity, rather than a passport or other identification. For example, the gender marker on a person’s birth certificate is used on their marriage or civil union certificate, on their child’s birth certificate, and on their death certificate.
What are the benefits?
1. Meet international human rights standards.
New Zealand’s policy for amending sex markers on passports, introduced in 2012, is often cited as one of the best in the world. In contrast, the current BDMRR Act provisions for amending sex markers on birth certificates, developed over 25 years ago, are outdated. They have not kept pace with international human rights standards, which set out each person’s right to legal recognition, regardless of age. The current BDMRR Act does not meet the requirements set out in international case law or recommendations by United Nations bodies that monitor treaties that New Zealand has ratified.
2. Reduce costs and free up time.
Moving from a Family Court process to a statutory declaration will reduce cost barriers for irawhiti takatāpui, trans, and non-binary people and their whānau, and free up the court’s time, and it would reduce the administrative burden on the health professionals who are asked to supply medical evidence for each application.
3. Support kids to be in school.
This would have a significant impact on children who live in an area with an unsupportive school, and are currently forced to wear a uniform they are uncomfortable with and use bathrooms that they are likely to be harassed in, as well as facing misrecognition or even harassment from authority figures. These children currently experience extreme distress and often simply leave school regardless of their age. Trans kids have exceptionally high likelihood of being bullied, self harming, and attempted suicide (40-61%).
4. Support adults to be in employment.
It would significantly impact adults who currently have to disclose being transgender to potential employers, and are often then discriminated against and denied employment, or outed to colleagues; resulting in curiosity, continual uncomfortable personal questions, and in many cases workplace bullying to the extent that the trans person can no longer work.
5. Basic privacy and quality of life.
Passing the Bill would make an important practical difference for irawhiti takatāpui, trans, and non-binary people’s daily lives. It would support the basic human right to privacy in situations where showing a birth certificate is mandatory.
Would passing the Bill affect everyone else?
Passing the Bill would have very little impact on non-transgender people. Since 2013, NZ has used a simple statutory declaration for changing one’s gender marker to M, F, or X, on their passport. A passport is used proof of identity in most circumstances. Several other countries have passed similar legislation over the past decade, without any negative impact on women’s rights. These include Belgium, Portugal, Argentina, Norway, Malta, and Ireland.
Is an anti-trans campaign group trying to recruit you?
An anti-transgender campaign group will often try to disguise it’s motivations, by saying it is a women’s rights group, or a feminist group. However, it does not usually engage in any women’s rights issues, unless the issue can be used to fight against the human rights and legal protections of transgender people, or sometimes women in sex work. Far from a group FOR women, it is a group AGAINST transgender women.
Anti-trans campaigners say:
Women will have less rights
But the evidence says:
The Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women ( a United Nations treaty), firmly affirms that transgender women are protected as a sex class. This right to be protected from discrimination on the basis of sex does not detract from any other person’s right to non-discrimination on the basis of sex. This is already the case in NZ, and the Bill will not change this. All women will continue to have the same right to not be discriminated against on the basis of their sex.
Anti-trans campaigners say:
Male privilege
But the evidence says:
Both international and local research consistently and constantly shows that transgender women experience higher rates than non-transgender women of discrimination in education, housing, healthcare, employment, access to justice, legal documentation, higher rates of violence including sexual violence, higher rates of street harassment, and other indicators of a lack of privilege. No studies show the opposite. This is not what male privilege looks like.
Anti-trans campaigners say:
Male pattern violence
But the evidence says:
There is no evidence that trans women perpetrate violence toward other women at a higher rate than other women do. Anti-trans groups may cite a study in which it was found that older trans women face high levels of imprisonment and arrest, however, one of the women who conducted this study, Cecilia Dhejne, explained that this study does not show “male pattern violence,” and that to say it does is a gross misrepresentation.
Anti-trans campaigners say:
Women’s prisons
But the evidence says:
There are systems in place to minimise violence, including sexual violence, between prisoners housed together. Department of Corrections confirmed that it is prepared to make adjustments if the Bill should pass.
Other countries with similar legislation have not reported any negative effect on women prisoners.
Anti-trans campaigners say:
Women’s bathrooms/ refuges/spaces
But the evidence says:
These do not require birth certificates to enter. Women’s refuges already allow transgender women and have for many years. They have evidence based processes and protections in place to ensure all women who enter are kept safe. They already protect women who are fleeing violent relationships with other women, where those abusive partners may seek to access the refuge by deception. No woman can enter a women’s refuge without legitimate need. Other countries with similar legislation have not reported any rise in sexual violence in women’s spaces as a result of the legislation.
Anti-trans campaigners say:
Men will pretend to be trans women and enter women’s spaces
But the evidence says:
There are no reported cases of men in NZ using the statutory declaration process to change the sex marker on their passport in order to ”game the system” and sexually assault women. Trans women are already legally recognised as women and there have been no ill effects.
Anti-trans campaigners say:
Single sex schools
But the evidence says:
In Aotearoa, we have many co-ed or mixed gender schools, and students are considered safe attending these. There are currently single sex schools which accept transgender students.
Anti-trans campaigners say:
Data will be skewed
But the evidence says:
Transgender people make up just 1% of the overall population, therefore this is unlikely to have much bearing on data about women overall.
Anti-trans campaigners say:
No public consultation
But the evidence says:
The Bill has been through the same public consultation process as any other Bill, including public submissions, analysis of submissions, expert advice, and changes as necessary. Many of the anti-trans campaigners made submissions, which can be viewed on the government’s website.
BDMRR stands for Births, Deaths, Marriages, and Relationships Registration. This is an Act in New Zealand law which sets out the legal aspects and requirements about the registration of Births, Deaths, Marriages, and Relationships. This includes the legal requirements for birth certificates, including changing the name or sex marker on a person’s birth certificate, due to marriage, civil union, or being transgender, for example.
There are a number of problems with the BDMRR law as it currently stands, which make it very hard for trans people to update the sex marker on their birth certificate – over 80% of trans people in Aotearoa NZ have the wrong sex marker on their birth certificate.
In 2018 a Bill to change this law was developed, and has now been through a rigorous process including two Select Committee reports, robust examination of advice from officials, and public submissions. In 2021, the new Minister has sought further advice and has committed to pass it into law by late 2021 or early 2022. She is soon to release an updated Bill.
In April 2021 Minister Tinetti said she is yet to decide whether the Bill will go back to the Select Committee for further submissions or straight to Parliament, where MPs will debate it’s contents.
Our professional opinion is that the Bill will probably go back to the Select Committee for further submissions. We should know this by June or July, and would probably have 4-6 weeks to make submissions.
The Government has committed to pass this law and has enough votes to do so. Our concern is whether the 2021 version of the Bill will be stronger than it was before.
The BDMRR 101 Primer is essentially an example of a submission, though you could pick any of the points from the primer to talk about, or there may be other issues you would like to raise. You can also see previous submissions on this Bill below – both for and against the Bill.
You can see more information on how a Bill becomes an Act below, along with the contact details of MPs who you may wish to contact.
Right now is the best time to learn about the issues, draft a submission, and be ready to make changes to it depending on what is in the 2021 Bill when it’s released.
It’s also a good time to put leaflets in your neighbors’ letter boxes, hand them out in the street, talk to people about why you support the BDMRR changes and self-determination for trans people, write letters to newspaper editors.
Once the Bill is released, we need transgender people and supporters to make submissions supporting legal gender recognition provisions that are based on self-determination. You can read our BDMRR 101 primer above – it has a lot of useful information to help you understand the issues, and be prepared to make a submission.
You can also see the rainbow community statement below, which was written just before the last version of the Bill was released in August 2018. It set out the types of legal changes that were needed and why. This statement was written by takatāpui, trans and non-binary people and organisations in Aotearoa New Zealand, and endorsed by a number of organisations and individuals, including former Human Rights Commissioners. It was written and published in a short timeframe, so it was not circulated broadly for people to sign on.
Many rightwing conservatives, fundamentalist faith based groups, and anti-trans campaign groups want to keep the current BDMRR Act, which requires trans people to have medical interventions and go to the Family Court before they can amend their birth certificate. These campaigns against the Bill are based on mis-information and harmful stereotypes of trans people, especially trans women.
It is critical that transgender people and supporters make submissions supporting the BDMRR Bill – so that trans people can change their birth certificates to match other ID documents.
A birth certificate is the only ID document that anyone born in Aotearoa can access which cannot ever be taken away from them. The more support for the Bill, the more likely that MPs will resist pressure to make the Bill weaker because of the campaign against it.
2. Suggest ways to improve the Bill
When the BDMRR Bill was released in August 2018, we saw that it needed significant improvements. The new Minister has said she is making changes to the 2018 version. When the 2021 version is released, GMA will provide its analysis about what is still missing – let us know your thoughts as well.
This initial response to the 2018 Bill (below) was sent to the previous Minister from a group of rainbow community organisations, explaining some of the changes needed. It’s been almost three years since that letter was written and our communities do not want to keep waiting for the next review of the law for any of these changes.
Trans individuals, and groups such as Rainbow Path, have been lobbying for options for trans asylum seekers and Convention refugees who aren’t permanent residents to have official documentation with their correct name and sex marker.
The 2018 Bill only applies to people with a NZ birth certificate. Even the existing BDMRR Act allows permanent residents and citizens born overseas to use the current Family Court process to get a Declaration as to Sex with their correct name and sex / gender marker. The 2021 Bill should include an option for trans migrants that is a simple, administrative process, similar to that being introduced for trans people born in Aotearoa or being considered for asylum seekers and Convention refugees who are not permanent residents.
The current law does not include a non-binary option for birth certificates.
It is important that sex markers can be updated by youth, regardless of age, and that sex markers can be updated more than once, as a person’s gender may change over time.
2017 – 2018: The Bill went to the Select Committee in 2017, containing no changes to the current Family Court process. Yet, the Select Committee had just released a separate report saying the process for changing sex details on a birth certificate needed to change to be based on self-identification, in response to a petition started by Allyson Hamblett (below). The Government’s response to that Select Committee report also reinforced that the focus of the Select Committee’s review of the current BDMRR Act now included issues raised in the petition.
Many people then made submissions to the Select Committee. Community submissions explained why changing the Family Court process was necessary, and how it should be done. After hearing all the submissions, in August 2018, the Select Committee produced a new version of the Bill, introducing a simpler process for changing the sex marker on birth certificates without going to the Family Court. It was a huge improvement, though it still fell short of meeting trans and intersex people’s needs. A number of community groups wrote a joint letter to the then Minister Tracey Martin, offering suggestions to improve some of the terms in the Bill, making it the same process as changing the sex marker in passports, and noted some gaps that needed to be addressed; such as legal gender recognition for asylum seekers and refugees. You can read that letter in section 2, above.
2019 – 2020: The Minister at the time then “deferred” the Bill and instead formed a Working Group to recommend how the Family Court process could be fixed without changing the law.
2021: The Working Group’s report was released on 29 April 2021, along with the Government’s response, below. The Working Group identified a vast array of problems with the current process and ways some of these could be improved – and made it clear that a law change was also needed. In her media release shortly after, Minister Jan Tinetti agreed, saying she intends to progress this Bill, with the hope of passing it in 2021 – “The Bill will enable people to self-identify their sex on their birth certificate without going to the Family Court. They will instead be able to apply online as they currently do for other identity documents, like driver’s licenses and passports.”
Nau mai haere mai, Raw Sugar free monthly transgender sober social events are back for 2021!
Note: under Covid-19 alert level 2, 3, and 4 all our face-to-face events are cancelled. If we are in alert level 1, Raw Sugar will operate as usual.
Who & what
Join us for social chats, games, cups of tea, and potluck snacks with lovely people! All transgender and intersex people welcome. Bring yourself, whānau, friends, and finger food kai to share if you want to.
2pm to 4pm: snacks and chats and games (including things like Connect 4, Articulate!, Jackbox TV games, and Unstable Unicorns). The first 2 hours is suitable for folks of any age.
4pm to 6pm: film screening (sometimes rated R16 or R18). This part of the event is more suitable for people aged 16 or over.
Raw Sugar Wellington is held on the second weekend each month, from 2 till 6pm (usually on the Saturday). We have moved Raw Sugar from our drop in centre at 130 Riddiford street Newtown, into the new venue of the Newtown Community and Cultural Centre – which is now directly across the street upstarirs in the old ANZ building at 2A Green street (down the side street, and on the right).
The venue is fully mobility accessible, with an elevator to the top floor. There are all-genders accessible toilets. We’re aiming for a low allergen space, so no sprays or air-freshers, and please don’t wear perfume or cologne. Disability assist animals are welcome, however due to allergies and phobias please do not bring any other animals. Sometimes we have around 40 people attending, and there is a quieter room available to hang out if it’s a bit noisy.
We will be running a rainbow community event at Vinegar Hill in December, on a day TBC between December 27th and December 31st. Check out the Vinegar Hill Gay Camp website for more info.
GMA raises funds by selling trans-positive merchandise. We use art which we have commissioned from local trans artists and is only available from GMA. We also use art which has been created and donated to us and may be available elsewhere (as the artist own the original image and just gives us a copy, which then belongs to us).
Donating your art to GMA is a really great way to help us raise funds, and also helps to spread trans-positive messages!
An image can then be customized by us and used on many different types of item, like in the example below. The items we sell range from low cost stickers to higher cost clothing and household items. Whether a person buys a $1 sticker, or $800 worth of home ware, we receive a fixed percentage of the money raised, and the rest goes into manufacturing and printing, etc. It’s a really great way for GMA to raise funds without taking a lot of time away from the work we do, as the ordering, manufacturing, and shipping is organised by the sales platform we use.
If you would like to donate your art to GMA, simply write us an email confirming that the image belongs to you and isn’t infringing on anyone else’s copyright, and that you are giving us a copy to own and use as we please. Attach your art image/s to the email, and send it to us at the email address listed here. Done! We will reply to say thanks and let you know we received your art. Thank you in advance!! x GMA team.
