Surrogacy rules for UK, abroad

[mauraa]

I am looking for past experiences for people who did surrogacy abroad and live in UK.

I read there needs to be one generic link. Does it matter if one parent does not have a UK passport but a spouse visa?

In the UK you cannot "pay" a surrogate mother. If using a foreign service, can you openly pay under law and bring the child here with the transfer order please?

Thank you

Hi! My husband and I doing surrogacy in Georgia (Eastern Europe). In Georgia commercial surrogacy is legal and you can hire a GC through an agency. Bringing your baby back is quite easy too

Whether it’s legal or not, going abroad and buying a baby is immoral.
Please don’t be part of this disgusting trade.

Thanks for the reply. What kind of docs did the visa centre or embassy ask for please?

Surrogacy is hardly "buying a baby" please stop!

It literally is. How would you describe it? It's going to a (usually third world) country and paying someone to take risks with their health to produce a child for you. A child that is probably going to have attachment issues due to being taken from their mother at birth.

It's grim on multiple levels.

It is buying a baby. It may not be what pro-surrogacy folks want to hear but that doesn't change the fact that it is buying a baby and ethically messy.

My friend did this and it's so sad. The birth mother is in Ukraine and the baby must've yearned for her for absolutely ages. She was all he ever knew for 9 months.

My husband was adopted at birth (no addiction issues or anything with his birth parents, they were just very young). He's got a lovely family but SO many issues, major attachment issues in particular.

Why you would deliberately put a child through that is beyond me.

Is the pregnancy underway already @AudreyAustin ?
Because Georgia is about to ban foreign/commercial surrogacy so unless the pregnancy is established you would be sensible to change your plans.

Even misogynistic states with poor human rights records are waking up to the problems of reproductive tourism which amounts to people trafficking, buying babies and exploiting women. So Georgia adds itself to the list of countries that are banning surrogacy or at least commercial surrogacy for foreigners.

eurasianet.org/georgia-to-ban-surrogacy-for-foreigners

More about it on this twitter thread.

twitter.com/wombsnotforrent/status/1668972983480733696?s=46

And here is what a surrogate birth looks like in Georgia. With accompanying obstetric violence - don't look if you're of a sensitive nature.

twitter.com/anatrejopulido/status/1667227989463932928?s=46

Yes you can bring them back to the UK.
You can apply for the parental order (genetic link) or adoption order yourself, or you can use a lawyer.
https://www.sra.org.uk/validation?083082065+069110103108105115104067111108111117114+068101102097117108116046112110103+104116116112115058047047115117114114111103097099121108097119121101114115046099111046117107047&UGxEQk3X8u9S15gERusacpaFzc5rpBR4K%2fW1JRqEeKE%3d

https://surrogacylawyers.co.uk/
This lawyer speiclises in surrogacy family law.

what about USA, mexico, canada? are they ok and safe for surrogates?

It depends what you mean by 'safe for surrogates'?

Firstly what do you mean by 'safe'? Legally? Medically? Emotionally?

Then who do you mean safe for? The baby? The surrogate/ birth mother? The intended parents?

A very wide variety of answers would be given depending on what the actual question is.

This UK court judgment may be interesting to those involved with surrogacy - lesbian couple, donor from US said would not be involved. Then he seems to have wanted involved as he moved to UK and had immigration issues (and contact with a child I suppose might give him more rights to stay due to our human rights law). I read the judgment today as it just came out . The donor has 170 children around the world

https://assets.caselaw.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ewfc/2023/333/ewfc_2023_333.pdf
Summary at https://www.lawgazette.co.uk/news/family-court-judge-names-sperm-donor-to-protect-women/5122330.article?utm_source=gazette_newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Family+court+transparency+ruling+%7c+Assisted+dying%3a+u-turn+on+judges+%7c+Meta%27s+%27hateful+conduct%27+policy_02%2f12%2f2025

This can be avoided if the couple went through the formal route:
https://www.hfea.gov.uk/

The legislation on donor, IVF or surrogacy, is there to protect the parents, child and the donor.