Transsexuals who are seeking official gender reassignment need not go through expensive and painful reproductive organ surgery to be recognised as a male or female.

Australia's High Court ruled on Thursday that social recognition based on outward appearance and behaviour are more important than if the transsexual retained or changed his or her genitals through surgery.

"Social recognition of a person's gender does not require knowledge of a person's remnant sexual organs," The Australian quoted the court's decision.

The landmark ruling is an offshoot of a legal challenged to Western Australia's (WA) gender reassignment laws made by two female-born lesbian couple aged 28 and 31. Both were diagnosed with gender identity disorder, went through a double mastectomy and are undergoing testosterone therapy.

However, they did not want to go through a penis reconstruction surgery because of the high risk involved and low success rates of current procedures. They also ruled out hysterectomy.

The state's Gender Reassignment Board refused to give the two certificates that would recognise them as males because they kept their female reproductive organs. The State Administrative Tribunal (SAT) overturned the board's decision and ordered the release of certificate to the two transsexuals.

The WA government appealed the decision to Supreme Court which reversed the SAT's decision, prompting the pair to elevate the case further to the High Court, which ruled in their favour.

"A surgical procedure to alter the genitals or other gender characteristics is not required of an applicant for a recognition certificate," the High Court said.

"It is really exciting to finally get a positive decision and is exciting to think what positive impact this will make on other people's lives.... I have a few pieces of documentation outstanding that list me as a female, so I will finally be able to sort them out," one of the transsexuals was quoted by news.com.au.

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