Surrogacy is a beautiful option for couples looking to expand their families. Legally, surrogacy is an adoption agreement between a family and a surrogate to carry a baby to term. Once the child is born, the family then adopts them. One option for families considering surrogacy is worldwide surrogacy, where families can work with a surrogate mother in another country. If you are curious about international surrogacy, here is everything you need to know.
How Does International Surrogacy Work?
Surrogacy is an arrangement where a woman carries and delivers a child for another person or couple who will become the child’s parents after birth. Pregnancy happens through in vitro fertilization (IVF). During IVF, doctors plant embryos created from the intended parents’ or donors’ genetic material into the surrogate’s uterus. If the surrogate uses donor eggs, she has no genetic link to the baby. However, if she uses her eggs, she will be the genetic mother.
Worldwide surrogacy occurs when the surrogate mother resides in a different country from the intended parents. It can be legally complex between the two countries, requiring medical services in one country and legal services in both. Further, international surrogacy requires obtaining necessary travel documents and navigating immigration processes to bring the child to their new home country. In most cases, trusted agencies that specialize in these laws coordinate worldwide surrogacy.
What Are The Benefits Of Worldwide Surrogacy?
For families that are unable to conceive, worldwide surrogacy offers a number of benefits, including:
- More Favorable Surrogacy Laws: Some countries have more favorable legal environments for surrogacy, providing clear regulations that protect both the intended parents and the surrogate. Worldwide surrogacy helps families in countries where local laws either prohibit or do not explicitly recognize surrogacy arrangements.
- Access Better Prenatal Care For Less: In many cases, international surrogacy can be more cost-effective than domestic options. Countries like Georgia, Mexico, and Colombia offer lower medical costs, significantly reducing the overall cost of the surrogacy process.
- A Larger Number Of Available Surrogates: In some regions, there are more available surrogates, decreasing waiting times for intended parents. International surrogacy is an excellent option for families eager to grow.
- Advanced Medical Facilities: Many international destinations offer state-of-the-art medical facilities and reproductive technologies. They also have world-recognized specialists who specialize in handling complex fertility treatments and surrogacy pregnancies.
- Diverse Options For Intended Parents: Worldwide surrogacy offers more options to individuals such as same-sex couples, single parents, or older couples, who might otherwise face exclusion from traditional surrogacy programs in their home countries.
Worldwide surrogacy offers all families the chance to grow regardless of their circumstances.
What Is The International Surrogacy Process?
The process of international surrogacy is incredibly complicated, but when you work with a qualified agency, the process goes smoothly. Here is what to expect:
- Choose A Surrogacy Agency: Work with a reputable, experienced agency that specializes in international surrogacy. Look for one that offers services in multiple countries, a knowledgeable medical and legal team, and excellent references.
- Understand The Legal Considerations: Your surrogacy agency will walk you through all the legal considerations of the country of surrogacy. Once you understand your rights and their surrogate’s rights, you can begin to define the legal rights and responsibilities of each party.
- Find A Surrogate: The agency will match you with suitable surrogates. Surrogates undergo rigorous health and psychological screenings to ensure they are healthy and fully informed of their rights.
- The Medical Implantation Begins: The surrogate undergoes fertility treatments to prepare for embryo transfer. If the intended parents are using their genetic material, they will provide sperm and eggs through IVF to create embryos implanted in the surrogate’s uterus.
- Support Pregnancy And Prenatal Care: The surrogate receives prenatal medical care throughout the entire pregnancy, and the intended parents receive regular updates. In some cases, the intended parents visit the surrogate during this period or are involved remotely in prenatal appointments.
- Birth And Legal Parentage: The birth takes place in the surrogate’s country. Following the birth, legal steps are necessary to establish the intended parents’ legal parentage. Depending on local laws, there may be requirements for court orders or registration processes.
- Passports And Visas: After establishing parentage, the next step is securing a passport and possibly a visa for the newborn to travel back to the intended parents’ home country.
- Return Home: Finally, the intended parents can return home with their new child. Many agencies offer support even after the intended parents return home, helping with legal, medical, or adjustment issues.
The worldwide surrogacy process is complicated. However, when you work with a qualified international surrogacy agency, you can trust us to handle everything. If you’d like to learn more about the process of worldwide surrogacy, Surmom can help. Our knowledge team of medical and legal experts helps families around the world just like yours add a new member. Contact us today to learn more about your options and how we can support your growing family.