Adoption & Surrogacy

If you are having a child using a surrogate (also known as being an intended parent), you have no legal rights over the child until you obtain a parental order from the court. The surrogate mother is the legal parent until you are granted the order, as is their spouse or civil partner.

If the sperm of the intended father is used, and the embryo is created in England or Wales, he may have an automatic right as the child's legal parent.

These rules also apply similarly to overseas surrogates - if the intended parents and child will live in the UK, a parental order is needed. Parental orders may be given to intended parents if they meet a range of criteria, including:

• The conception must have taken place by embryo transfer or artificial insemination
• The child must have been carried by a surrogate
• One or both of the intended parents must be the child's biological parent
• The intended parents must be married, civil partners or living together as partners in an enduring family relationship
• The intended parents must submit the application for parental orders to the court within six months after the child is born (although in some cases this deadline may be extended)
• The surrogate (and her spouse or civil partner, if she has one) must freely consent to the order.

The surrogate can’t give valid consent until the baby is six weeks old.

It’s also important to think about money, as a surrogate may not be paid except for ‘reasonable expenses’. It’s invaluable to have a lawyer guiding you from ‘intended parent’ status to legal parenthood.