5. Is surrogacy prohibited in your country?
a. any form of surrogacy Yes
b. only specific forms of surrogacy (e.g. commercial) (please specify) NA
11. If surrogacy is forbidden, is the conduct of the following persons criminalised by the law?
a. surrogate mother No
b. intended parent(s) No
c. gamete donor No
d. facilitator Yes
12. Subject to the applicable law, are you aware of the following unlawful practices in your country? The Federal Government is not aware of any of the unlawful practices referred to in a. to e. in Germany. However, since oocyte transfer is prohibited too, German artificial reproduction clinics cannot engage in any form of surrogacy.
a. remuneration of the surrogate No
b. remuneration of the gamete donor No
c. advertising for surrogacy services No
d. remuneration of facilitators No
e. any other unlawful practices (please specify) No
1. Is surrogacy regulated by a specific law in your country? No specific law, but specific provisions in more general laws
2. Is surrogacy regulated in another way? (please specify) No. It is considered illegal in Sweden because by Swedish law (lagen (2006:351) om genetisk integritet) a woman may only be inseminated or implanted if it is done with either her egg cells or her partner’s semen. In the case of single women it needs to be her own egg cells. A breach against this regulation for economical gain is sanctioned.
3. Has surrogacy been the subject of jurisprudence/court cases in your country? No. Not surrogacy as such, but the consequences for a child conceived by surrogacy are not accommodated to the situation, and therefore there are court rulings in adoption cases/ custodianship of children. As late as March 18th 2016 the Court of Appeal admitted a genetic mother to adopt twins conceived by surrogacy abroad (Svea Hovrätt, ÖÄ 945-16). In January 20th 2015 The Court of Appeal concluded that an American court decision declaring two men as the legal parents of a child born after a surrogacy arrangement in the United States should be accepted in Sweden. One of the men was the genetic father of the child (Svea Hovrätt Ö9822-14), (The Court of Appeal gave a similar ruling on 7th October 2014 in Svea Hovrätt Ö6952-14.) In an early case in the Supreme Court on 7th July 2006 the genetic mother was denied adoption because the genetic father and the surrogate mother (who was the sister of the genetic father) withdrew their consents after the couple had separated.
4. Is there a legal definition of the term “surrogacy”? (please specify) No
9. Is it lawful to advertise surrogacy services? It is proposed that advertisements seeking a person to act as a surrogate or offering to act as a surrogate will be prohibited.
10. Is it lawful to remunerate a facilitator/surrogacy agency It is proposed that it will be an offence to receive renumeration for arranging a domestic surrogacy agreement. Under the proposed provisions regarding international surrogacy agreements, the utilisation of intermediaries abroad may be permitted if certain conditions are met.
13. Who is recognised as the legal parent(s) of a child born following surrogacy? As surrogacy is not recognised by law in Türkiye, there is not any answer to this question.
a. surrogate mother
b. oocyte donor
c. sperm donor
d. intended mother
e. intended father
14. Do mechanisms exist to transfer parentage from the surrogate mother to the intended parent(s) (e.g. adoption procedures)?No
15. Is the existence of a genetic link required for establishing paternity/maternity? Yes. This can be done in case of any forensic medicine queries, not for surrogacy context which is unlawful in Türkiye
16. Are the other parties involved mentioned in the birth certificate or other official document connected to the birth? No
a. surrogate mother
b. oocyte donor
c. sperm donor
d. intended mother
e. intended father
17. Are foreign birth certificates in surrogacy cases registered in your country No
8. Can the surrogate also be the oocyte donor? NA
9. Is it lawful to advertise surrogacy services? No, surrogacy advertising is banned
10. Is it lawful to remunerate a facilitator/surrogacy agency No, remuneration of a facilitator/surrogacy agency is banned
13. Who is recognised as the legal parent(s) of a child born following surrogacy? The legal parent is the biological parent, that is the father. Under Italian law, the mother is the one who gave birth to the child. The partner of the father (the biological parent), can only establish filiation with the child through adoption: the intended mother through L.44/1983, art.44; the same can be applied to the second father, due to ruling No. 38162 of Dec. 30, 2022, Supreme Court of Cassation 's United Civil Section.
a. surrogate mother
b. oocyte donor
c. sperm donor
d. intended mother
e. intended father
14. Do mechanisms exist to transfer parentage from the surrogate mother to the intended parent(s) (e.g. adoption procedures)? Surrogate pregnancy is prohibited in Italy: there is no ad hoc mechanism enabling transfer of a filiation link from the surrogate mother to the intended parent. The only possible exemption enabling the woman who has not given birth to be identified as the mother is therefore adoption through L.44/1983, art.44.
15. Is the existence of a genetic link required for establishing paternity/maternity? Yes: The genetic link allows the paternal filiation. NO: see answer n.13
16. Are the other parties involved mentioned in the birth certificate or other official document connected to the birth? No, only the biological parents can be mentioned in the birth certificate
a. surrogate mother
b. oocyte donor
c. sperm donor
d. intended mother
e. intended father
17. Are foreign birth certificates in surrogacy cases registered in your country No, see answer n.16
5. Is surrogacy prohibited in your country?
a. any form of surrogacy Yes
b. only specific forms of surrogacy (e.g. commercial) (please specify) No
8. Can the surrogate also be the oocyte donor? Yes
5. Is surrogacy prohibited in your country?
a. any form of surrogacy No
b. only specific forms of surrogacy (e.g. commercial) (please specify) Commercial
1. Is surrogacy regulated by a specific law in your country? No
2. Is surrogacy regulated in another way? (please specify) Yes
a. family code art 2 and 123
b. Ministry of Health of Ukraine, orders N 52/5 jan18x2000
3. Has surrogacy been the subject of jurisprudence/court cases in your country? Yes. Very rare, when conflict during the surrogacy process appeared.
4. Is there a legal definition of the term “surrogacy”? (please specify) Yes. Order N787 from 9/09/2013 on medically assisted procreation and reproductive technologies.
11. If surrogacy is forbidden, is the conduct of the following persons criminalised by the law? NA
a. surrogate mother
b. intended parent(s)
c. gamete donor
d. facilitator
12. Subject to the applicable law, are you aware of the following unlawful practices in your country? No
a. remuneration of the surrogate
b. remuneration of the gamete donor
c. advertising for surrogacy services
d. remuneration of facilitators
e. any other unlawful practices (please specify)
18. Is there:
a. any public discussion about the topic Yes
b. planning of new regulation at national level Yes
19. Please specify any additional relevant aspects which were not mentioned.
Draft proposal on surrogacy from Iceland
Background
Main elements of the proposed Icelandic legislation on Altruistic Surrogacy
13. Who is recognised as the legal parent(s) of a child born following surrogacy?
a. surrogate mother Yes, birth mother is the legal mother - see note on the MR and Anor – v- An tArd Chlaraitheoir & Ors [2014] case
If the surrogate mother is married, then under the Status of Children Act 1987, the surrogate mother's husband is presumed by law to be the father of the child. The husband will also, along with the surrogate mother, be the joint guardian of the child.
If the commissioning father is the genetic father of the child, it is possible to overcome the presumption of paternity in favour of the surrogate mother's husband, so as to allow the commissioning father to be recognised as the legal parent of the child. The commissioning father will need to provide evidence of paternity in support of this application.
If the surrogate mother is not married, and the commissioning father is the genetic father of the child, then the Irish authorities may recognise his paternity of the child on receipt of reliable DNA evidence.
As provided for under the Children and Family Relationships Act 2015, gamete/embryo donors are not regarded to be the parent(s) of donor-conceived children.
b. oocyte donor No
c. sperm donor No
d. intended mother No
e. intended father Yes
14. Do mechanisms exist to transfer parentage from the surrogate mother to the intended parent(s) (e.g. adoption procedures)?
See previous note. In addition, it is proposed that the legislation on assisted human reproduction will establish a court-based mechanism for transfer of parentage from the surrogate (and her husband) to the intending parents. At least one of the intending parents will have to be genetically related to the child.
15. Is the existence of a genetic link required for establishing paternity/maternity? As previously stated, the birth mother is automatically regarded as the legal mother under the Irish Constitution. See notes under Q 13 re paternity and Q 14 re transfer of parentage in cases of surrogacy.
16. Are the other parties involved mentioned in the birth certificate or other official document connected to the birth?
a. surrogate mother Yes, birth mother is always the legal mother
b. oocyte donor No
c. sperm donor No
d. intended mother No
e. intended father Yes, so long as he is the genetic father
The proposed legislation will establish a national surrogacy register where the contact details of any person involved in a surrogacy, e.g. sperm or oocyte donor, intending parent and surrogate, will be recorded. Once a person born to a surrogate reaches the age of 18, he or she may access the full information contained in the national surrogacy register, unless there are exceptional circumstances.
17. Are foreign birth certificates in surrogacy cases registered in your country No
18. Is there:
a. any public discussion about the topic Yes
b. planning of new regulation at national level Yes
19. Please specify any additional relevant aspects which were not mentioned. N/A
7. If surrogacy is allowed, is it lawful for the surrogate mother to receive:
a. refund of medical expenses N/A
b. refund of other expenses N/A
c. compensation for loss of income N/A
d. other compensation including non-pecuniary N/A
e. remuneration or comparable advantage N/A
6. Is access to surrogacy subject to specific criteria?
a. medical criteria (e.g. infertility of the intended parent(s))
It is proposed that access to surrogacy will be made available on the basis of medical need.
b. other criteria (please specify)
The proposed legislation sets out additional criteria which must be met by the intending parents in order for the surrogacy to be approved by the Regulatory Authority, the establishment of which the draft legislation also provides for. Under the draft legislation, for example, each intending parent must be 21 years of age or over and at least one intending parent in each surrogacy must be habitually resident in Ireland.
9. Is it lawful to advertise surrogacy services? No
10. Is it lawful to remunerate a facilitator/surrogacy agency NA
13. Who is recognised as the legal parent(s) of a child born following surrogacy?
a. surrogate mother Yes
b. oocyte donor No
c. sperm donor No
d. intended mother Yes/No
The intended mother is recognised as the legal mother of the child born through surrogate motherhood if she is an egg donor and if there is a foreign surrogacy judgment, recognisable in Switzerland, which establishes the legal parent-child relationship between the genetic intended mother and the child born through surrogate motherhood.
e. intended father Yes/No
The intended father is recognised as the legal father of the child born as a result of surrogate motherhood if he is a sperm donor and if there is a foreign surrogacy judgment, recognisable in Switzerland, establishing the legal parent-child relationship between the genetic father of intent and the child born as a result of surrogate motherhood.
Note: if this condition is not met, the parent-child relationship between the intended parents and the child born as a result of surrogate motherhood can only be established through adoption.
14. Do mechanisms exist to transfer parentage from the surrogate mother to the intended parent(s) (e.g. adoption procedures)? Yes, in most cases the parent-child relationship between the intended parents and the child born as a result of surrogate motherhood can be established through adoption.
15. Is the existence of a genetic link required for establishing paternity/maternity? Yes.
No genetic relationship between the intended parents and the child born of surrogate motherhood is required for adoption. However, the parent-child relationship between the intended parents and the child can only be directly recognised on the basis of a foreign surrogacy judgment (e.g. in the United States) if the intended parents are also the genetic parents of the child.
See also the answer to question 13 above.
16. Are the other parties involved mentioned in the birth certificate or other official document connected to the birth?
a. surrogate mother No
b. oocyte donor No
c. sperm donor No
a, b, c - The details of the surrogate mother, egg donor and sperm donor are recorded in the civil register, in the event that the child born after surrogacy wishes to know about them at a later date. However, they do not appear on any official document (birth certificate, etc.). This also applies after the child has been adopted by the intended parents.
d. intended mother Yes
e. intended father Yes
d, e - Yes, if the parent-child relationship between the intended parents and the child born through surrogate motherhood can be recognised in Switzerland (see also question 13), the intended parents will be entered in the civil status register as the child's legal parents and will appear on civil status documents (birth certificate, etc.). This also applies if the child is adopted by the intended parents.
17. Are foreign birth certificates in surrogacy cases registered in your country No, foreign birth certificates are never recognised directly in surrogacy cases. It is only when there is a foreign judgment that can be recognised in Switzerland (art. 70 LDIP), which establishes the parent-child relationship with the intended (genetic) parents, that the foreign birth certificate drawn up on the basis of the judgment can also be recognised (case law of the Federal Court).
13. Who is recognised as the legal parent(s) of a child born following surrogacy?
a. surrogate mother
Yes, under Belgian law, the woman who gives birth is the legal parent, even if this is not the genetic mother of the child.
b. oocyte donor
No, in the context of medically assisted procreation, no action concerning filiation or its economic effects is open to gamete donors.
c. sperm donor
No, idem, cf. B
d. intended mother
No, she can become a legal mother only through adoption
e. intended father
Yes conditional. Under the Civil Code, if the mother is not married, in casu the surrogate mother, the intended father may introduce a demand of paternity recognition
14. Do mechanisms exist to transfer parentage from the surrogate mother to the intended parent(s) (e.g. adoption procedures)? Yes. The breaking of parentage can only occur with the adoption by the intended mother and this, following the waiving of the rights by the surrogate mother. But if the surrogate mother is married, the husband of the latter is considered the legal father and must therefore contest his paternity. Once the paternity is contested, the intended father can recognize the child.
15. Is the existence of a genetic link required for establishing paternity/maternity? No.
The legal mother is the woman who gives birth even if she is not the genetic mother.
If the surrogate mother is not married, the intended father can recognize the child at birth.
16. Are the other parties involved mentioned in the birth certificate or other official document connected to the birth?
a. surrogate mother Yes, she is the legal mother
b. oocyte donor No
c. sperm donor No
d. intended mother No
e. intended father Yes, if he recognizes the child at birth
17. Are foreign birth certificates in surrogacy cases registered in your country Yes. Despite the illegality of a surrogacy contract that results in a birth certificate drawn up abroad, parentage can be recognized in the best interests of the child.
9. Is it lawful to advertise surrogacy services? No
10. Is it lawful to remunerate a facilitator/surrogacy agency No
11. If surrogacy is forbidden, is the conduct of the following persons criminalised by the law? N/A
a. surrogate mother
b. intended parent(s)
c. gamete donor
d. facilitator
12. Subject to the applicable law, are you aware of the following unlawful practices in your country? No. Please note that since the Law is new, there was not enough time to observe any irregularities in the implementation of the law.
7. If surrogacy is allowed, is it lawful for the surrogate mother to receive:
a. refund of medical expenses Yes
b. refund of other expenses No
c. compensation for loss of income No
d. other compensation including non-pecuniary No
e. remuneration or comparable advantage No
8. Can the surrogate also be the oocyte donor? No general prohibition but it depends on the conditions set by the fertilization centers
8. Can the surrogate also be the oocyte donor? No
18. Is there:
a. any public discussion about the topic Yes
b. planning of new regulation at national level Yes
19. Please specify any additional relevant aspects which were not mentioned. An amendment to the recent Law is prepared by the Board of Medically Assisted Reproduction which will be presented for approval to the Council of Ministers and the House of Representatives of the Republic of Cyprus in 2016.
11. If surrogacy is forbidden, is the conduct of the following persons criminalised by the law?
a. surrogate mother No, unless she is considered guilty of unlawful arrangement of adoption (Chapter 25, Section 3c of the Criminal Code, see excerpt below).
b. intended parent(s) No, unless they have paid or promised to pay remuneration for the gametes or embryos to be used in violation of Section 21 of the Act of Assisted Fertility Treatments, or they are considered guilty of unlawful obtaining of consent to adoption or unlawful arrangement of adoption (Chapter 25, Sections 3b and 3c of the Criminal Code, see excerpts below).
c. gamete donor. No, unless he or she is considered guilty of unlawful obtaining of consent to adoption or unlawful arrangement of adoption (Chapter 25, Sections 3b and 3c of the Criminal Code, see excerpts below
d. facilitator. According to Section 35 of the Act on Assisted Fertility Treatments (1237/2006), a person who intentionally provides assisted fertility treatment although there is reason to presume that the child will be up for adoption, shall be sentenced to a fine for assisted fertility treatment offence. The facilitator is also more likely to be considered to violate the ban on remuneration (Section 35, paragraph 2 of the Act on Assisted Fertility Treatments) and to be considered guilty of unlawful obtaining of consent to adoption and unlawful arrangement of adoption (Chapter 25, Sections 3b and 3c of the Criminal Code).
12. Subject to the applicable law, are you aware of the following unlawful practices in your country? No
a. remuneration of the surrogate
b. remuneration of the gamete donor
c. advertising for surrogacy services
d. remuneration of facilitators
e. any other unlawful practices (please specify)
5. Is surrogacy prohibited in your country?
a. any form of surrogacy N/A
b. only specific forms of surrogacy (e.g. commercial) (please specify) N/A
In Bosnia and Herzegovina there is no specific legislation related to surrogacy
6. Is access to surrogacy subject to specific criteria?
a. medical criteria (e.g. infertility of the intended parent(s)) N/A
b. other criteria (please specify) N/A
13. Who is recognised as the legal parent(s) of a child born following surrogacy? N/A
a. surrogate mother
b. oocyte donor
c. sperm donor
d. intended mother
e. intended father
14. Do mechanisms exist to transfer parentage from the surrogate mother to the intended parent(s) (e.g. adoption procedures)? No
15. Is the existence of a genetic link required for establishing paternity/maternity? No
16. Are the other parties involved mentioned in the birth certificate or other official document connected to the birth? N/A
a. surrogate mother
b. oocyte donor
c. sperm donor
d. intended mother
e. intended father
17. Are foreign birth certificates in surrogacy cases registered in your country No
13. Who is recognised as the legal parent(s) of a child born following surrogacy? N/A
a. surrogate mother
b. oocyte donor
c. sperm donor
d. intended mother
e. intended father
14. Do mechanisms exist to transfer parentage from the surrogate mother to the intended parent(s) (e.g. adoption procedures)? No
15. Is the existence of a genetic link required for establishing paternity/maternity? No
16. Are the other parties involved mentioned in the birth certificate or other official document connected to the birth? N/A
a. surrogate mother
b. oocyte donor
c. sperm donor
d. intended mother
e. intended father
17. Are foreign birth certificates in surrogacy cases registered in your country No
5. Is surrogacy prohibited in your country?
a. any form of surrogacy Yes.
Surrogacy arrangements that involve performing of assisted fertility treatments are prohibited by law in Finland. As all surrogacy arrangements facilitated by fertility treatments are prohibited, it is not in these cases relevant whether the arrangement is commercial or not.
If the surrogate mother becomes pregnant for the purposes of surrogacy without assistance from the fertility clinics (e.g. by sexual intercourse), surrogacy arrangements are not prohibited. However, there is no information whether such arrangements take place in practice.
Although only surrogacy arrangements performed by assisted fertilization are prohibited by the Act on Assisted Fertility Treatments, Section 5 of the Act (as amended by the Act 22/2012) prohibits granting adoption “if any remuneration for the adoption has been given or promised or if someone other than the prospective adopter has, with a view to the adoption being granted, made or undertaken to make remunerative payments for the maintenance of the child. Any contract or commitment concerning the payment of remuneration referred to in subsection 1 shall be null and void"
b. only specific forms of surrogacy (e.g. commercial) (please specify) YES, please see answer to question 5 a above
6. Is access to surrogacy subject to specific criteria?
a. medical criteria (e.g. infertility of the intended parent(s)) NA
b. other criteria (please specify) NA
8. Can the surrogate also be the oocyte donor? NA
7. If surrogacy is allowed, is it lawful for the surrogate mother to receive:
a. refund of medical expenses N/A
b. refund of other expenses N/A
c. compensation for loss of income N/A
d. other compensation including non-pecuniary N/A
e. remuneration or comparable advantage N/A
1. Is surrogacy regulated by a specific law in your country? No
2. Is surrogacy regulated in another way? (please specify) No
3. Has surrogacy been the subject of jurisprudence/court cases in your country? No
4. Is there a legal definition of the term “surrogacy”? (please specify) No
9. Is it lawful to advertise surrogacy services? No
10. Is it lawful to remunerate a facilitator/surrogacy agency No
8. Can the surrogate also be the oocyte donor? Not applicable, as medically assisted surrogacy is prohibited.
8. Can the surrogate also be the oocyte donor? N/A
18. Is there:
a. any public discussion about the topic. It used to be, see no. 3
b. planning of new regulation at national level No
19. Please specify any additional relevant aspects which were not mentioned. NA
13. Who is recognised as the legal parent(s) of a child born following surrogacy?
a. surrogate mother Yes
b. oocyte donor No
c. sperm donor No
d. intended mother No
e. intended father No
14. Do mechanisms exist to transfer parentage from the surrogate mother to the intended parent(s) (e.g. adoption procedures)? Yes. Adoption procedures
15. Is the existence of a genetic link required for establishing paternity/maternity? No
16. Are the other parties involved mentioned in the birth certificate or other official document connected to the birth?
a. surrogate mother Yes
b. oocyte donor No
c. sperm donor No
d. intended mother No
e. intended father No
17. Are foreign birth certificates in surrogacy cases registered in your country No
11. If surrogacy is forbidden, is the conduct of the following persons criminalised by the law?
a. surrogate mother Yes
b. intended parent(s)
c. gamete donor
d. facilitator
12. Subject to the applicable law, are you aware of the following unlawful practices in your country?
a. remuneration of the surrogate No
b. remuneration of the gamete donor No
c. advertising for surrogacy services No
d. remuneration of facilitators No
e. any other unlawful practices (please specify) Yes
13. Who is recognised as the legal parent(s) of a child born following surrogacy? Not applicable. According to § 4:115 (1) of the Civil Code (Act V of 2013) the mother of the child is the woman who has delivered the child. According to section (4) thereof, if the child was born in an assisted reproduction event, the oocyte donor cannot legally apply for the mother status.
a. surrogate mother
b. oocyte donor
c. sperm donor
d. intended mother
e. intended father
14. Do mechanisms exist to transfer parentage from the surrogate mother to the intended parent(s) (e.g. adoption procedures)?
Yes. A birth after surrogacy can happen abroad, in a country where it is lawful. Depending on the specification of the legal mother in the original birth certificate, an adoption procedure may follow in Hungary.
According to the Civil Code, the legal mother cannot be forced to agree to the intended adoption, and the legal decision on the adoption can be withdrawn if a commercial motivation of the adoption comes to light.
15. Is the existence of a genetic link required for establishing paternity/maternity? No. In the case of assisted reproduction the genetic link cannot be complained by the parents, according to the Civil Code, § 4:108 a) for the father, and § 4:115 (4) for the mother.
16. Are the other parties involved mentioned in the birth certificate or other official document connected to the birth? NA
a. surrogate mother
b. oocyte donor
c. sperm donor
d. intended mother
e. intended father
17. Are foreign birth certificates in surrogacy cases registered in your country
11. If surrogacy is forbidden, is the conduct of the following persons criminalised by the law? For A., B. and D. § 175 on prohibited use of human body of the Criminal Code (Act C of 2012) is relevant. In addition, for a. to d., § 213 on violation of family status are also valid.
a. surrogate mother Yes
b. intended parent(s) Yes
c. gamete donor NA
d. facilitator Yes
12. Subject to the applicable law, are you aware of the following unlawful practices in your country?
a. remuneration of the surrogate No
b. remuneration of the gamete donor No
c. advertising for surrogacy services No
d. remuneration of facilitators No
e. any other unlawful practices (please specify) No
6. Is access to surrogacy subject to specific criteria? See answer to question 2.
a. medical criteria (e.g. infertility of the intended parent(s))
b. other criteria (please specify)
9. Is it lawful to advertise surrogacy services? Not regulated by law
10. Is it lawful to remunerate a facilitator/surrogacy agency Not regulated by law
7. If surrogacy is allowed, is it lawful for the surrogate mother to receive:
a. refund of medical expenses Yes
b. refund of other expenses Yes
c. compensation for loss of income Yes
d. other compensation including non-pecuniary Yes
e. remuneration or comparable advantage No
1. Is surrogacy regulated by a specific law in your country? Yes. The law of Georgia on Health Care (LHC) - Chapter XXIII Family Planning.
2. Is surrogacy regulated in another way? (please specify) No
3. Has surrogacy been the subject of jurisprudence/court cases in your country? No
4. Is there a legal definition of the term “surrogacy”? (please specify) No
9. Is it lawful to advertise surrogacy services? No
10. Is it lawful to remunerate a facilitator/surrogacy agency No