Appeals Court Blocks Pentagon From Removing Transgender Troops

A federal appeals court on June 1, 2026, barred the Pentagon from removing transgender troops already serving while permitting enforcement of a ban on new recruits. The decision keeps a lower-court injunction active as the case continues. The court said the administration had not demonstrated that maintaining the temporary order would harm national security.

Judges noted that the situations of current servicemembers and applicants differ.

The opinion stated that applicants denied entry can still obtain full relief after a final ruling. For those already in uniform, the court found that separation creates greater hardship than a delayed start. "While Plaintiff-Appellees who seek admission to the military have been deprived of constitutional freedoms, the harms and equities of their situations are not identical to those of persons already serving," the judges wrote.

"But even if they can be reinstated after being separated, it appears to us to be a much greater hardship to end a military career than to delay the start of one," the court added.

The War Department has moved to exclude transgender personnel as part of broader efforts to remove certain policies from the military. The decision remains in effect while litigation proceeds through the courts.