January 8, 2011 1:12 PM GMT
The very same was almost implimented here. For gender recognition surgery was to be a pre-requisite, however the point was raised that some people are unable to have the surgery and it was therefore discriminatory against them. Hence in the UK we can obtain gender recognition without having to undergo genital surgery, however they do want to know why you haven't had surgery before they will issue the GRC. What isn't clear from this article is whether they are refering to the recognition of the new gender or merely recognising that a person is transgendered.