A leaked document suggests the UK government is considering backtracking on a position it took under Theresa May two years ago.
In 2018 a consultation was launched about a proposal that people could change their legal gender by “self-identifying” as male or female, without the need for a medical diagnose of gender dysmorphia.
The Sunday Times said it had seen a leaked white paper which suggested Boris Johnson is set to do a U-turn.
Out of an estimated 200,000 trans people in the UK, only 4,910 had successfully applied for a changed birth certificate since the legislation was introduced under the last Labour government.
Nancy Kelley, Chief Executive of the LGBT pressure group Stonewall said if the newspaper report turned out to be accurate it was "extremely disappointing."
She said: "Trans people face a huge amount of abuse in their daily lives, just for being themselves. Across issues like access to healthcare, fair treatment in the justice system and the ability to have their voices and stories heard in public life, trans people experience profound inequalities."
The Sunday Times said the revised legislation, which would be put before Parliament later this year, would include a ban on “gay cure” therapies, which is said to be a sop to LGBT campaigners.
The government will also set out safeguards to stop female public lavatories and changing rooms being used by those with male genitals.
The row over whether transgender woman with male genitals are women echoes last week’s row between Harry Potter creator J K Rowling and actors Daniel Radcliffe and Heather Watson over the author’s allegedly transphobic remarks.
Shadow home secretary Nick Thomas-Symonds told Sky TV: “I’m not sure the government scrapping plans and then leaking it out in a newspaper is the way to deal with this.”
Equalities minister Liz Truss is set to bring the new white paper before Parliament next month.