Hong Kong transgender activist Henry Edward Tse set for new ID card after 7-year legal battle, breathes ‘sigh of relief’

Henry Edward Tse first launched legal action in 2017 after authorities blocked an application to change his gender from female to male on his Hong Kong ID card

But after years of legal wrangling and a landmark win in city’s top court, the transgender man will finally collect his new card on Monday

Reading Time:2 minutes

Henry Edward Tse after his landmark win at the Court of Final Appeal. Photo: Edmond So

Published: 11:00am, 28 Apr 2024Updated: 3:12pm, 29 Apr 2024

A Hong Kong transgender activist who fought for seven years to change the gender on his identity card said he could “finally breathe a sigh of relief”, as he prepared to collect the new document on Monday.

Henry Edward Tse, a 33-year-old transgender man, first launched legal action in 2017 after the commissioner of registration, a role filled by the director of immigration, rejected an application to change his gender from female to male on his Hong Kong ID card.

“After seven years, I can finally change my ID. I can finally breathe a sigh of relief,” he told the Post on Saturday.

“The government finally changed its policy and I can solve the urgent matters in my life related to my identity as a trans man.”

Tse said he planned to throw a party to celebrate the milestone with other transgender men who managed to change their IDs.

The Court of Final Appeal in February last year ruled in favour of Tse and another litigant, saying that authorities’ refusal to allow the two transgender people to use their preferred gender on their identity cards without undergoing full reassignment surgery had breached their rights.