surrogate maternity

Surrogate maternity : Legal regulation of the issue in the

European countries

The Contents

oWhat is surrogacy?o Types of surrogacyo Surrogacy in Europeo Surrogacy in UkraineoConclusions

What is Surrogacy

Surrogacy is a kind of Assisted Reproductive Treatment according to which a Surrogate mother carries a child on behalf of another couple – intended parents.

What is Surrogacy

o A surrogacy arrangement is one where a woman offers to carry a baby through a pregnancy on behalf of another woman (the intended parent).

o At first consideration it may appear a simple solution to this problem as the medical procedures are relatively straight forward. However, surrogacy involves complex psychological, physical and legal issues for both sides.

Types of Surrogacy

Commercial surrogacy

Altruistic surrogacy

Legal Regulation of Surrogacy in Europe

Both gainful and altruistic forms are legal Only altruistic is legal Banned Unregulated/uncertain situation

Surrogacy is forbidden in

Austria Germany France Norway

Sweden Estonia

Spain Italy

ITALY Italian legislation is one of the most conservative among the

European countries.

According to the Law №40 “About the Norms of Assisted Reproductive Technologies”, not just surrogacy in Italy is completely prohibited but other kinds of reproductive technologies are strictly limited.

Such negative attitude and strict limits are caused by aggressively-oriented Catholic Church which is completely against surrogacy in Italy viewing it as intolerable kind of infertility treatment.

ITALY

o deprivation of liberty for up to 2 years

o fine at the rate of 600000 – 1000000€

It is Prohibit to provide, organize and advertise surrogacy in Italy.

FRANCEo Since 1994 any surrogacy arrangement that is

commercial or altruistic is illegal or unlawful and is not sanctioned by the law (art 16-7 of the Code Civil).

o The doctors are involved to responsibility, but not the parents or surrogate mothers.

Only altruistic surrogacy is allowed in

United Kingdom Denmark the Netherlands Hungary

Surrogacy is not regulated by legislation in

Belgium Greece Finland

Due to the lack of regulation of surrogate motherhood, the agreement between the parents and the surrogate mother has no legal force.

UKRAINE

o Ukraine is one of the most surrogacy-friendly countries in the world.

o All the legal aspects are regulated by legislation (Art. 123 of Family Code of Ukraine)

o Surrogacy is legal in Ukraine for married couples, but NOT for single or same-sex couples.

o Unlike another countries, the intended parents don’t have to “adopt” the child. The child is registered at birth as the baby of the intended parents and never the surrogate’s.

Rights and Duties of Surrogate Mother

o There is no differences between the rights of a simple pregnant woman and a surrogate mother.

o Despite the fact that a surrogate mother gives birth to a child, she is neither biologically nor genetically connected with a baby.

o Since the beginning of the surrogacy journey a surrogate mother must be registered at the clinic. She should act as a responsible and serious person.

Conclusions

o Surrogacy is gaining popularity every year, because every 7th couple suffers from infertility.

o Surrogacy is one of the most effective methods of infertility treatment and it is the only one chance for infertile couples to have children. In spite of this, there are a lot of controversy about surrogacy, namely legal, psychological and ethical. Every country has its own laws and ethical rules which regulate surrogacy.

Thank you for your attention