Surrogacy in India for International and Same-Sex Couples: What Changed

Until the mid-2010s, India was a common destination for international couples, single parents and same-sex couples seeking IVF with donor eggs and surrogacy. Many families from abroad completed treatment in Indian clinics during that period. The law has since changed, and people reading older stories online are often unsure what is allowed today.

How the Rules Changed

In 2015 the Government of India stopped surrogacy arrangements for foreign nationals. The Surrogacy (Regulation) Act, 2021 and the Assisted Reproductive Technology (Regulation) Act, 2021 then set out who can use surrogacy and donor eggs or sperm in India.

Who Can Use Surrogacy in India Today

• A married Indian couple (wife aged 23 to 50, husband aged 26 to 55) with a medical need for surrogacy.
• An Indian woman who is widowed or divorced and aged 35 to 45.

Surrogacy must be altruistic and gestational, and it can only take place at clinics registered under the Act. Single men, same-sex couples and foreign nationals are not eligible under the current law.

What This Means If You Live Abroad

If you live outside India, check the surrogacy and assisted reproduction laws of your own country and of any country where you plan treatment, and take independent legal advice before starting. Rules on legal parentage, citizenship and travel for the child vary widely between countries.

Questions to Ask Before You Start

• Am I eligible for surrogacy or donor egg IVF under the law where treatment will take place?
• Is the clinic registered with the appropriate authority?
• How will legal parentage and the child's citizenship be established?
• What medical and laboratory steps are involved, and how many IVF cycles might be needed?

If you would like an independent explanation of the IVF and embryology steps involved, you can book a consultation with Goral Gandhi.