The State Department has relaxed its passport rules, a change which will now make it easier for transgendered people to obtain passports that accurately reflect their gender identity.

According to the Washington Post:

The State Department has revised its policy on changing passports for transgender people, announcing Wednesday night that a doctor’s note will now suffice in such cases.

Previously, the State Department had required that a person undergo sexual reassignment surgery before it would change the passport. The policy had outraged transgender advocates, who called for an updated approach.

Under the new policy, which takes effect Thursday, a doctor must attest that the person is undergoing clinical treatment for gender transition, State said. Limited-validity passports will also be available to applicants in the process of gender transition, the department added.

The previous policy, which only allowed a change in the sex recorded on a passport if a person had already completed sexual reassignment surgery, was accused of endangering travelers who may be heading to countries where transgender identification is dangerous.