Abstract
This paper estimates the changes in labor market and health outcomes before and after legal gender transitioning. Using individual-level administrative panel data from the Netherlands over the period 2014-2022, we identify nearly 6,500 legal gender transitions, defined as the change of gender marker on one's birth certificate. Data on employment and health care utilization are drawn from administrative records. Using an event study approach with a sample of the general population serving as controls, we find changes in economic outcomes after transitioning, and important differences between those transitioning female-to-male (FTM) versus male-to-female (MTF). For both groups, employment and earned income decrease in the years preceding their legal gender transition. They differ, however, in dynamics after transitioning. For those transitioning FTM, there are increases in employment and income 5 or more years after transitioning; in contrast, for those transitioning MTF, employment and income remain significantly lower 3-4 years after transitioning, and are not significantly higher 5 or more years post-transition. The results provide information about dynamics in economic outcomes around legal gender transitions, and demonstrate that there can be meaningful differences for those transitioning FTM versus MTF.