How surrogacy is regulated in Russia

In Russia surrogacy is regulated by Federal Laws, orders of the Ministry of Health and Family Code of the Russian Federation.

According to the World Health Organization, a surrogate mother is a woman who becomes pregnant as a result of the transfer of an embryo obtained through in vitro fertilization into the uterine cavity.  To create an embryo, the sex cells of the genetic parents of the unborn child - the legal parents - are used. That is, the child carried by a surrogate mother is genetically foreign to her. The legislation of the Russian Federation prohibits the use of the egg of the surrogate mother herself. It gives the baby the opportunity to be born. After birth, the child is transferred to his genetic parents.

Surrogate mother< /a> receives a fee after childbirth and regular payments during pregnancy. Legislation does not regulate the commercial aspects of programs, so both parents and surrogate mothers prefer to work with agencies. At the agency, a lawyer draws up a detailed agreement for each party, and managers clearly monitor the interests of each party.

The surrogate mother’s responsibilities are enshrined in law and are stated in the contract:

• Compliance with doctor’s appointments and accurate fulfillment of prescriptions;
• Healthy lifestyle, taking care of yourself and the child;
• Providing genetic parents with information about their well-being and the health of their child - usually through agency curators;
• Transfer of the newborn to the legal parents within the period specified in the contract;
• Maintaining confidentiality during pregnancy and after the birth of the child.

Responsibilities of genetic parents in relation to surrogate mother:

• Regular payments for the maintenance of the surrogate mother during pregnancy;
• Payment for the entire medical part of the program, including prescribed medications, vitamins and orthopedic products;
• Payment transportation expenses related to pregnancy (travel to the clinic and back, moving to another city for the gestation period);
• Payment for comfortable housing for the surrogate mother if she moves to another city for the gestation period;
• li>Payment of remuneration after the birth of a child.

Both parents and the woman carrying their child sometimes feel vulnerable and fear that their interests will be violated. A tense environment will not benefit the growing baby and deprives future parents of joyful anticipation. When a reliable agency acts as an intermediary, parents can be confident in the health of the surrogate mother chosen for them and in the legally competent preparation of documents for the child after childbirth. And the surrogate mother can be calm about organizing the everyday and financial aspects of the program.

How ISA Fertility Agency can help

Isa Fertility is an international premium surrogacy agency. We work throughout Russia and the world and will be happy to help you:

• Select a surrogate mother taking into account the wishes of the family;
• Organize and control all household and medical parts of the program for a surrogate mother and constantly inform parents about the progress of pregnancy;
• Organize the safe birth of a child in the selected clinic;
• Monitor compliance with all financial conditions specified in the contract;
• Prepare all necessary documents for registration of the newborn and the departure of the family to the country of residence;
• Represent the family in court if a court decision is necessary to obtain a birth certificate.

Parents who are not officially married or single people can obtain a birth certificate for their child born in a surrogacy program only on the basis of a court decision. To obtain this decision, it is necessary to prepare a set of documents provided for by Order of the Ministry of Justice of Russia dated December 28, 2018 N307, Article 16 of Federal Law dated November 15, 1997 N 143-FZ and participate in the judicial review of the case. In such cases, you may need the help of a qualified lawyer.

Legislative acts regulating surrogacy in Russia:

Article 55 of the Federal Law of the Russian Federation dated November 21, 2011 N 323-FZ “On the fundamentals of protecting the health of citizens in the Russian Federation”

Order of the Russian Ministry of Health No. 803n dated July 31, 2020

Family Code of the Russian Federation dated December 29, 1995 N 223-FZ

Federal Law “On Acts of Civil Status” dated November 15, 1997 N 143-FZ