If you are not able to have a baby, surrogacy is an option to have a baby that still has a biological connection. However, it is not a straightforward process because the process involves legal, medical, financial, etc. issues.
Those issues can vary depending on whether you choose surrogacy here in the United States or abroad.
Surrogacy in the United States
Currently, there is no one federal law that governs surrogacy. Every state has its own laws, and as a result, some states even make surrogacy illegal or leave it in a gray legal area.
Surrogacy-friendly states include our own, California, Nevada, Marland, Illinois, Maryland and New Hampshire. Unfriendly states include New York, Arizona, Michigan and Indiana. Gray states are Utah, Louisiana, Nebraska and Kentucky.
Surrogacy laws abroad
Surrogacy-friendly countries include most of Australia, Canada, Georgia, Colombia, Greece and Ukraine. (The latter is no longer viable because of the Russian invasion.)
These countries allow altruistic surrogacy, which means that surrogates can receive compensation for reasonable compensation related to both pregnancy and birth. Base compensation or profit compensation is not allowed.
There are some restrictions on who can access surrogacy services, like limiting services to heterosexual married couples.
Unclear guidance and laws
Moreover, other countries just do not have any clear guidance or laws on surrogacy. This can create legal risks, should you choose to use service providers in those countries. And, you could find that even getting travel documents or citizenship for your child after birth is difficult, bordering on impossible.
The takeaway is that you need to research all the surrogacy laws in the country you want to pursue surrogacy. This is in addition to utilizing a reputable international surrogacy agency.
