Romanian court rules country must recognise trans man as man in landmark case
Bucharest Pride (Getty Images)
A court in Romania has ruled that the country must recognise a trans man as a man after a years’ long battle, reports Romanian outlet Spot.
Arian Mirzarafie-Ahi, a trans man with Romanian and British citizenship, was born in Romania and moved to the UK in 2008. He began transitioning several years after relocating.
Despite obtaining legal documentation of his transition in the UK in 2020, Mirzarafie-Ahi’s gender identity was not recognised by the Romanian government. This meant he was recognised as a man in the UK but “as a woman” in Romania.
Posting to Facebook on 31 March, Romanian advocacy group ACCEPT said of Mirzarafie-Ahi’s case: “This put him in the position of having two sets of documents with two different identities.”
Mirzarafie-Ahi attempted to sue to have his correct gender identity recognised, and his case reached the Court of Justice of the European Union in 2024. At the time, the court ruled that Romania’s refusal to acknowledge his gender identity impeded Mirzarafie-Ahi’s freedom of movement among member states which made it a fundamental form of discrimination.
The court then ruled that all EU member states were obligated to recognise the gender identity documents of trans people who had obtained legal gender recognition in other EU states, which included the UK in 2020.
Following the pushback from Romania, Mirzarafie-Ahi took the country to court and won, meaning the
In a statement posted by ACCEPT, Mirzarafie-Ahi shared his joy at the landmark victory. “Today, March 31, we celebrate Trans Visibility Day, and I am happy to use this opportunity to turn to the people in my community with good news,” he said.
“I have finally won in the courts of Romania! It is not only my victory, but also ours — of those who are still waiting to be seen, heard and recognised.”
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