Countries where assisted maternity is permitted
United States
Some states of this nation have been the first in the world to recognise the practice of gestation for others.
There are specialised agencies that can follow the whole course. They plan and monitor the clinical procedure. They find the woman who is willing to make the prospective parents’ wish come true, who will accept being implanted with one or more fertilised eggs and carry the pregnancy forward with an expense refund. They use specialised centres for any sperm or egg donors, who will be different from the surrogate mother.
The agencies are also extremely thorough in the transcription of the contracts binding the prospective parents to themselves (mandate contract), to the bearer and any donors.
In these states the surrogate mother is entitled to relinquish, even before birth, her own rights in favour of the prospective parents’. On the basis of this relinquishing a birth certificate is released wherein the parents appear as the biological parents (or one of the two). This is then translated and completed with apostille – a certification that verifies the authenticity of a public document for International use – so that it can be transcribed into Italy’s register office.
The legal procedure, which must be followed by a local lawyer, is particularly reliable in the United States where some trial sentences have already recognised the prevalence of the biological parents over the bearer’s.
In some states it is also possible for homosexual couples to obtain a birth certificate where both partners appear as parents. The document, however, is only valid in the state that allows for this possibility.
Canada
Surrogate maternity has been practiced for a long time in Canada.
Here too, as in the United States, there are specialised agencies that can follow the whole course. They plan and monitor the entire clinical procedure. They find the woman who is willing to make the aspiring parents’ wish come true, who will accept being implanted with one or more fertilised eggs and carry the pregnancy forward with an expense refund. They use specialised centres for any sperm or egg donors, who will be different from the surrogate mother.
The agencies are also extremely thorough in the transcription of the contracts binding the aspiring parents to themselves (mandate contract), to the bearer and any donors.
The length of time separating the birth from the obtainment of the certificate is fairly long: it is therefore necessary to remain in Canada for a certain amount of time after the birth.
The birth certificate’s conformity for the Registry is the responsibility of the consulate of the biological parents.
An appropriate law disciplines the matter and no trials have been started by a surrogate to claim rights over the newborn.
Russia and Ukraine
Russia and Ukraine are now starting to allow surrogate and assisted maternity. Agencies ensure a safe clinical course. They plan and monitor the entire clinical procedure. They find the woman who is willing to make the aspiring parents’ wish come true, who will accept being implanted one or more fertilised eggs and carry the pregnancy forward with an expense refund. They use specialised centres for any sperm or egg donors, which will be different from the surrogate mother.
The relinquishing of mother’s rights by the bearer can only take place after the birth, but it can be established with a contract to be underwritten before the pregnancy.
The birth certificate’s conformity for the Registry is the responsibility of the consulate of the biological parents.
Both these restrictions can create some further difficulty in the recognition of full genetic parenthood.
India
The practice of surrogate maternity in India is very recent; this leaves margins of uncertainty, especially legally, upon the achievement of the result. The procedure is similar to that of the other countries, but a good number of experiences and knowledge of events are needed for a correct assessment.
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