Surrogacy in canada for uk citizens

Our surrogacy program in Canada makes the impossible possible.

Who can do surrogacy processes in Canada?

Surrogacy in Canada is a beautiful utopia.

For many international intended parents, pursuing this journey in Canada remains a beautiful utopia. While there is indeed a law theoretically allowing foreigners to participate, the surrogacy laws in canada dictate that the framework is strictly altruistic. This legislation places a rigid legal limit on the amount the gestational carrier can receive as compensation, which is practically restricted to strictly covering her justified medical expenses.

A surrogate in the USA typically receives between 55,000 and 65,000 US dollars, and Canadian candidates are fully aware of this, often demanding similar sums under the table. However, paying any excess compensation is a severe criminal offence punishable by up to 10 years in prison and a fine of 500,000 Canadian dollars. As a responsible legal firm, we cannot recommend that you enter into such dangerous territory.

Intermediation or advertising for the services of a surrogate is also prohibited (section 6 assisted human reproduction act 2004)”.

It is completely forbidden for any canada surrogacy agency, lawyers, or doctors to commercially recruit a surrogate. Additionally, there is no public social security coverage for non-residents; therefore, all medical expenses that may be incurred during the process are entirely at your own expense.

Because of these strict surrogacy laws in canada, there is absolutely no fixed price for the procedure. If there are any unexpected extra medical costs, such as the need for an incubator, you will have to pay for them out of pocket, and the total price of the journey can quickly skyrocket.

There is a shortage of surrogates, so it can take anywhere from 24 months to 48 months at best to find a surrogate.

When you eventually do locate a surrogate for surrogacy in canada for uk citizens, she must personally evaluate and explicitly accept you as the intended parent(s).

Severe penalties for non-compliance under surrogacy laws in canada

Sec. 60. A person who contravenes any of sections 5 to 7 and 9 is guilty of an offence and:

is liable on conviction on indictment to a fine not exceeding $500,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding ten years, or to both; or
is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding $250,000 or to imprisonment for a term of up to four years, or to both.

Sec. 61. A person who contravenes any provision of this Act – except any of sections 5 to 7 and 9 – or of the regulations or an order made under subsection 44 (1) is guilty of an offence and is

is liable on conviction on indictment to a fine not exceeding $250,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years, or to both; or
is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding $100,000 or to imprisonment for a term of up to two years, or to both.

Therefore, if any commercial canada surrogacy agency offers to mediate a process for you locally, you should know that it is committing a severely illegal act, and far more seriously, it directly implicates you in the exact same criminal offence. We do not understand why brokers offer this destination when viable alternatives exist. The law in Canada was fundamentally made for Canadians who have a sister, a sister-in-law, a cousin, or a friend who genuinely wants to gestate a baby free of charge for the commissioning parents, granting legal guarantees for those specific parties. It was not designed so that foreigners, en masse, would flock to the country to achieve their goal of becoming parents.

It is also curious that on their websites (in a not very visible area), the agencies themselves warn the following:

Restrictive legislation (no economic negotiation with the surrogate is allowed).
Very small companies, with limited response times and communication channels.
Ambiguous attitude of the consular authorities.
Ambiguity in health coverage for surrogacy babies. Some hospitals have issued invoices to parents for this concept.

Every month we receive calls from parents who have started more than a year ago, a surrogacy process in Canada, either directly or through an agency. After more than a year without finding a surrogate, they give up.

Therefore, as a law firm, we should not recommend Canada as a destination for our surrogacy process.

Advantages and Disadvantages of surrogacy in canada for uk citizens

Advantages

In the surrogacy process in Canada, a court judgement is obtain in the name of the commissioning parents. However, it is not recognized by the government for automatic registration.
Surrogacy in Canada is available to all types of families, regardless of their marital or sexual status (married, cohabiting, single, unmarried, same sex couples).

Disadvantages

Surrogacy in Canada is altruistic, i.e. the surrogate cannot be compensated for carrying the child. This makes it very difficult to find surrogates.
Commercial surrogacy is prohibited, with penalties of imprisonment, intermediation, and advertising of any kind, even between private individuals for surrogacy.
There is no social security, so all medical expenses that may be incur for surrogacy are at your own expense.
There is no fixed price for surrogacy in Canada. If there are any extra costs, such as incubator etc…. You will have to pay for them and the price of the surrogacy can skyrocket.
There is a shortage of surrogates, so it can take anywhere from 12 months to a year and a half to find a surrogate.
When you find a surrogate, she must accept you as the commissioning parents for a surrogacy in Canada.
The cost of surrogacy in Canada is very similar to the cost of surrogacy in the United States. A surrogacy procedure costs between 120.000€ and 150.000€, if there are no surprises.