The Uzbek government now permits individuals with medically verified gender corrections—particularly in cases involving indetermined gender at birth—to legally update their first names, surnames, and patronymics in official documents.

According to recent amendments to the Cabinet of Ministers’ Resolution on the systematization of regulatory legal acts in the field of registration of marriage, family and civil status acts, people aged 18 and older with no underage children may now apply to change their personal identification details through the Unified Interactive State Services Portal.

The updated regulation outlines multiple grounds on which Uzbek citizens may apply for changes to their names, including:

• A court decision that has entered into legal force,
• Unpleasant-sounding names,
• Names that do not correspond with the person’s ethnicity or nationality,
• Reverting to a maiden name upon request,
• Harmonizing surnames within a family unit,
• Gender change, supported by medical documentation,
• Paternity establishment for individuals aged 16 or older.

The Ministry of Justice  emphasized that the recent Cabinet of Ministers Resolution No. 362, adopted on June 12, 2025, addresses specific legal inconsistencies in cases involving children born with indeterminate gender — not gender reassignment among adults.

According to current legislation, when a child is born, their gender is recorded based on a medical certificate. However, each year, 5 to 6 children are born with ambiguous gender characteristics. In such cases, initial registration may incorrectly identify the child as a "boy" or "girl." Medical reevaluation often leads to correction of the child's gender between the ages of 5 and 16.

Article 229 of the Family Code, effective since September 1, 1998, allows for gender corrections in these medically confirmed cases. However, until recently, there were no specific provisions allowing for corresponding changes to surnames, first names, and patronymics — leading to legal complications.

For example, a child born in 2008 was originally registered as a boy due to initial uncertainty. At age 16, medical specialists confirmed that the child was biologically female, and while the gender data was corrected, the law did not permit changes to the name and patronymic, resulting in an inconsistency.

To address such legal gaps, Resolution No. 362 now mandates that when a child’s gender data is corrected on the basis of a medical institution’s conclusion, their surname, first name, and patronymic must also be updated to match the corrected gender identity.

“These amendments are not newly introduced concepts regarding gender reassignment. They are clarifications and legal updates to protect the rights of children with medically diagnosed gender differences,” the Ministry stressed.

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