Rise in overseas surrogates ‘increases risk of stateless babies’
Summary
The increase in using surrogates abroad is causing legal problems for some babies, including the risk of having no nationality. Efforts to create international rules on surrogacy have stopped because countries cannot agree on the ethics and laws around it. This leaves many children and parents in uncertain legal situations.Key Facts
- More people are using surrogates overseas due to infertility, older age, and wanting children in diverse family situations.
- Different countries have very different laws on surrogacy; some ban it, others only allow unpaid surrogacy, and some permit commercial surrogacy.
- The Hague Conference on Private International Law paused its 15-year project to create global rules on surrogacy because member countries disagreed strongly.
- Without clear international laws, some children risk statelessness, meaning they do not have legal citizenship in any country.
- “Limping parentage” happens when a child has different legal parents in different countries due to conflicting laws.
- In the UK, the number of babies born through surrogacy has doubled since 2015, with most born abroad in countries like the US, Ukraine, and Mexico.
- British parents using surrogates abroad must apply for legal parent status and citizenship for their children in UK courts.
- Experts say a lack of consistent rules harms children’s legal identity and their right to citizenship globally.
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