Qld Health Minister Amends Directive On Gender Affirming Care For Trans Youth

Queensland Health Minister Tim Nicholls has quietly made changes to his controversial ban on gender affirming care for trans youth under 18.

The move follows the announcement that the ban would extend until 2031.

However one small change has been made to the directive, effectively keeping the latest challenge out of court.

A change in directive for trans youth health care ban

In December 2025 Queensland Health Minister Tim Nicholls confirmed that, following an independent review, the state would continue their ban on gender-affirming care for new trans patients under 18 in the public system.

He announced that the ban will remain in place until the results of the PATHWAYS trial in the UK are known in 2031, where an indefinite ban has been in place since December 2024.

The news was met with outrage from trans rights activists and members of the LGBTQIA+ community, triggering further legal challenges against the ban.

Following the first announcement a successful legal challenge was lodged by the mother of a young trans person which saw Queensland Supreme Court Justice Peter Callaghan hand down a written judgment setting aside the ban in October.

However Nicholls reissued the ministerial direction just hours after the judgment.

Now the latest legal challenge continues around the definition between new and existing patients in the directive.

“Existing patients will continue to receive treatment from Children’s Health Queensland, and all children with gender dysphoria will continue to have access to non-medical interventions, including mental health and wellbeing support” Nicholls said in December, with the same mother now challenging this definition.

The mother, who is being supported by the LGBTI Legal Service challenged whether or not her child was a “new patient” in the system as they were receiving gender affirming care privately earlier in 2025.

“We are asking the Supreme Court to make orders that “new patient” doesn’t include anyone under 18 who received gender affirming care before 28 October 2025, including our client” the LGBTI Legal Service said in a statement.

“If the Supreme Court does this, it will pave the way not only for her to receive gender affirming health care from the Queensland Children’s Gender Clinic, but for numerous other trans young people in similar circumstances.”

However on January 15, with just a few days prior to the next court hearing there has been an official change to the directive.

The official directive on the Queensland Health website now reads that the definition of a new patient is “A person under the age of 18 who had not received Stage 1 Treatment or Stage 2 Treatment prior to 28 January 2025.”

The definition of a current patient now reads “A person under the age of 18 who had commenced receiving Stage 1 Treatment or Stage 2 Treatment prior to 28 January 2025.”

The change in directive now effectively shuts down the court challenge with the dates now addressing the core issue being challenged, it also defines the child of the mother as a current patient, allowing them to continue to access gender affirming care in the state system in Queensland.

While the current legal challenge may no longer be able to proceed, the LGBTI Legal Service has still lodged a judicial review in the supreme court, this time representing another young person challenging the ban.