The thought occurs to me... how many people never bother having gender reassignment surgery but still manage to get all their paperwork changed to a new gender?
After a five year transition, a "sex swap on the NHS", countless dollars and pounds (still accounting, but it's not my strong point), and a mental spreadsheet keeping tabs of sex, name and marital status in various countries, I'm finally going about changing my Australian birth certificate and doing it by the book. Seems like I could have saved myself the trouble though and bluffed through it years ago...
Australian citizens born in Canberra currently require two medical practitioners (who must be registered in Australia) to declare that reassignment has taken place. Last week I went to the Fox Valley Medical Centre near my parents' place in Sydney. Two GPs were happy to sign my form (for the $45 consultation fee). Neither of them (one male, one female) asked to look at me. We just had a little chit-chat about life in London. Apparently this is normal practice for GPs in most circumstances these days but let's just say I was a little surprised.