Updating Passport, NHS & HMRC During Transition: A UK Guide

Changing your name via Deed Poll is a momentous first step in your transition. But once the ink is dry, the real administrative work begins. You now have the task of aligning your official government records with your true identity.

While some organisations are easy to update (like the DVLA), others have specific, often complex, requirements regarding your gender marker. The three most critical—and most confusing—are HM Passport Office, the NHS, and HMRC.

Here is your step-by-step guide to navigating these three major systems.

1. HM Passport Office: The "Likely to be Permanent" Rule

Your passport is your primary global ID. Updating it is essential for travel, but also for proving your identity to employers and landlords.

Changing Your Name Only

If you only want to change your name (and signature) but keep the existing gender marker (M or F), you simply need to send:

• Your old passport.
• Your original Deed Poll.
• Evidence that you are using the new name (e.g., a payslip, bank statement, or letter from your council).

Changing Your Gender Marker

If you want to change the sex marker from M to F (or F to M), you need extra evidence.
You do NOT need a Gender Recognition Certificate (GRC).

Instead, you need a letter from your doctor or gender specialist. This letter must:

1. Be written by a registered medical practitioner (GP or GIC specialist).
2. State explicitly that your "change of gender is likely to be permanent."

With this letter and your Deed Poll, the Passport Office will issue a new passport in your acquired gender.

2. The NHS: The "New Number" Protocol

Updating your medical records is vital to ensure you are addressed correctly in waiting rooms and on prescriptions. However, the NHS computer systems are old and rigid.

Changing Name and Title

You can change your name and title (e.g., to Mx) at your GP surgery simply by showing your Deed Poll. You do not need medical evidence for this.

Changing Your Gender Marker

The NHS patient database cannot easily "flip" a gender marker on an existing record. To change your marker from Male to Female (or vice versa), your GP must request a New NHS Number for you.

The Process:

1. You request a gender update at your GP surgery.
2. Your GP notifies Primary Care Support England (PCSE).
3. PCSE issues a brand new NHS Number and creates a new, empty medical record for you in your new gender.
4. Your medical history is transferred from your old record to the new one.
5. Your old record (under your deadname) is sealed and made inaccessible.

Important Health Warning (Screening):
Changing your gender marker affects automatic screening invites.

• If you are a trans man registered as Male, you will not be automatically invited for cervical screenings, even if you still have a cervix.
• If you are a trans woman registered as Female, you will be invited for breast screening (if over 50), but you may not be invited for abdominal aortic aneurysm screening (usually for men over 65).

You must remember to ask your GP for these screenings manually if they are relevant to your anatomy.

3. HMRC: Protecting Your Privacy (Special Section D)

Your tax and National Insurance records are often the most daunting to update because they link directly to your employer. You don't want a tax code update to accidentally "out" you to your payroll department.

The "Legal Gender" Restriction

HMRC records are legally tied to your birth sex unless you have a Gender Recognition Certificate (GRC).

• If you have a GRC: HMRC will update your gender fully.
• If you do NOT have a GRC: HMRC must technically keep your gender as your birth sex for pension purposes.

The Solution: Special Section D

Regardless of whether you have a GRC, you can protect your privacy by contacting Special Section D (Public Department 1).

This is a specialist team within HMRC that handles the records of trans and non-binary people. By registering with them:

• They restrict access to your records so only authorised staff can see them.
• They ensure your National Insurance and tax correspondence uses your correct name and title.
• They prevent your previous identity from being visible to employers.

How to contact them:
You should write to: HMRC, Special Section D, Room BP9207, Benton Park View, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE98 1ZZ. Include your National Insurance number and your Deed Poll.

Summary

Updating these three pillars of administration will make your daily life significantly smoother. And it all starts with your Deed Poll.

Ready to begin? Contact our team today to order your Deed Poll and start updating your records.