Limits of transgender?

appreciate it judas, although given your historical betrayal of jesus... maybe less awesome name? =D

First paragraph: It would depend on the state. In some states undergoing SRS is not necessary to having your gender marker changed. Though the states that hold that position generally allow same-sex marriage, so they really wouldn't have to worry about "dodging" state marriage laws. Though in some states there is a loophole that allows someone in a seemingly heterosexual relationship to get married, then go through their transition and their homosexual marriage will continue to be recognized by the state that does not allow homosexual marriages. This is not a common route for those who plan on transitioning since it would require them to register as their birth sex.

Second paragraph (and partly first): When people use the term sex change, the mainstream thought is Sexual Reassignment Surgery. Though SRS is not something that you just talk to a surgeon and be like "hey I want this surgery done." The recognized standard is that the person has lived full-time as their desired sex for at least a year and obtains recommendations from a couple of licensed psychologists (and/or psychiatrists). The person may only need a recommendation from their primary psychologist/psychiatrist but I'm not completely sure. It's something that I'll have to look into more. Though even with this recommendation the surgeon can still decide not to perform the surgery if they feel it wouldn't be beneficial to the patient. Example: There are surgeons who won't perform SRS if the person requesting it has been diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (even if they're high-functioning).

Though SRS is the mainstream idea of what constitutes a "sex change", there is some room for debate. As Smokescreened mentioned: people are transgender show brain scans more similar to the sex they identify with as opposed to the sex that their genitalia implies. Then there are those who have been going through hormone replacement therapy and have hormone levels consistent with those seen in the sex that they're transitioning towards.

I kinda eluded to it when answering the first paragraph, but what is needed to change the gender marker on legal documents varies from state-to-state. On driver's licenses, birth certificates, etc: some states require the person to have had SRS; some won't require SRS, but will require the person to be undergoing hormone replacement therapy (overseen by a physician, psychiatrist, psychologist, etc.); and some just require the person to person to have a letter of recommendation from their primary psychologist/psychiatrist. My state in particular requires me to undergo SRS before I'm able to have my gender marker changed. So to sum it up: in some states you don't need the "proper equipment", but in others you do. You probably know this, but someone who undergoes SRS is not able to reproduce as their "new genitalia" does for people who were born with them. Advancements are being made in MtF (male to female) SRS that may make this possible in the future. I don't know about the status of FtM SRS, but it's likely not nearly as close to reaching that stage.

100 for real about transgender wow well sounds like a liberal hollywood problem

@-Toshy-: thanks for the reply :)