In Israel, Children of Same-Sex Couples Set to Receive Gay-Friendly ID Cards

The Israeli government will begin issuing gay-friendly state ID for children of same-sex parents by the end of November, Ynet reports. Currently, non-biological parents can be listed on the card, but one parent must be registered in the wrong gender category as either mother or father. On the new cards, “mother’s name” or “father’s name” will be listed twice, allowing both parents—and their nature of their relationship—to be acknowledged by the state.

The decision was made after the children of four same-sex couples filed a petition with PIBA, Israel’s Population, Immigration and Border Authority. “After we lodged the request, the authority said it would accede,” representing lawyer Michal Eden told Ynet. “As far as we are concerned this is groundbreaking, and ends an ongoing injustice towards the children of gay couples attempting to use governmental services.”

One of those children was 20-year-old Noa Evron, the daughter of lesbian parents. BBC reports that Noa’s mother Aviva had to be listed as “father” on her ID card, prompting the army to enquire if one of her parents was transgender. Aviva said the new cards would make things easier for their daughter, with less explaining required in bureaucratic situations. “This is simply a correction of a distortion in a series of distortions relating to same-sex parenthood,” she said.