Surrogacy

A surrogacy arrangement is one in which one woman (the surrogate mother) agrees to bear a child for another woman or couple (the intended parents) and surrender it at birth. With full surrogacy (IVF HOST Surrogacy) the surrogate mother has no genetic link with the child but gestates embryos, which are usually created from the eggs and sperm of the intended parents using the IVF technique.

Although some countries allow surrogate mothers to be paid, the HFEA do not allow this and a surrogate arrangement in the U.K. is possible only in the case of a private arrangement between a couple and an altruistic surrogate mother. The Ethics Committee of The LWC must approve all surrogacy cases.