Surrogacy and assisted reproduction

In the UK 

Surrogacy is legal, but surrogacy agreements cannot be enforced and it is illegal to pay a surrogate, save for their reasonable expenses. In most cases the surrogate will be the legal mother until you get a parental order from the family court, and this is the case even if you are using your own eggs and/or sperm. If the surrogate is married or in a civil partnership, then her spouse or civil partner will automatically be the second legal parent until the parental order is granted (unless that spouse/partner did not consent to the surrogacy). It is possible to nominate a second legal parent (which could be the intended mother/s or father/s) but this needs to be done before the pregnancy, so it is important to think ahead.

We are proud to be a lawyer supporter of the Donor Conception Network to provide answers to any legal questions that individuals or families face when thinking about or embarking on their surrogacy journey.

Overseas

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has published guidance for those considering surrogacy treatment abroad. Even if you are named as legal parent/s on any foreign birth certificate, you will still need to apply for a UK parental order because any overseas surrogacy orders will not automatically be recognised here. If you hold a nationality in another country, then it will be important to find out the status of any children born following surrogacy in that country. This is especially the case for same sex couples (and especially parents without genetic connections with their child) in jurisdictions where same sex relationships are not recognised. Our colleagues in the US, Hong Kong and Singapore are experts on the surrogacy law and provisions in those jurisdictions.

Whatever your circumstances and the outcome you're looking for, we are able to adapt to each family's unique situation to provide expert advice, tailored to your needs.