Surrogacy in Ukraine

Ukraine is considered as one of the most popular surrogacy destinations for heterosexual couples. We are going to introduce some of the interesting details and then try to decide, whether Ukraine is a suitable choice to consider.

 

Ukraine is one of those very few countries in Europe that are accepting surrogacy. The capital Kiev is a safe, active, developed and a beautiful city. The development of the country matters in our case, because it is connected with the quality of medical service as well. No worries, in Kiev there are several professional surrogacy agencies and a number of clinics with high quality service and equipment. There are medical centers in other cities as well (Odessa, Lviv, Kharkov and so on). Success rate of IVF is as high as up to 60%. Doctors are professional and caring. Pricing whatsoever is relatively affordable (up to 50% lower) in comparison with USA and Canada.

 

Surrogacy in Ukraine is legal, which obviously means that it is regulated by the law. Regulations are indeed advantageous for intended parents for the following reasons :

 

  • No need of adoption

Ukrainian law allows to issue birth certificates with intended parents’ names. No matter what the real biological tree looks like, baby’s documents will only have the names of IP(s) in them.

 

  • No disputes

Thanks to regulations, there has not been recorded even a single dispute about the custody over the child. Actually, it is not allowed for surrogate mother to be an egg donor at the same time. No genetic connection of a surrogate with a child, contributes to the absence of conflicts as well.

 

  • Families don’t experience delayed stays 

No complications with documents + no dispute about parental rights = no delayed stay in a foreign country.

 

Requirements for intended parents (IPs)

 

In order to participate in a surrogacy program in Ukraine, IPs have to be married. Additionally a  couple has to provide surrogacy agency and clinic with medical reports. They should prove that the couple’s decision to proceed with the program is reasonable. Conclusion should be the following – intended mother is not able to bear a baby herself, without a surrogate mother. Reasons may include :

 

  • Absence of womb
  • Deformation of uterus that makes pregnancy and delivery impossible
  • Diseases that do not allow to bear a child, because it may become fatal for mother
  • At least 4 unsuccessful IVF attempts with embryos of high quality

 

Surrogate mothers’ age should be between 20-40 years. They are required to have at least one child previously.  

To sum up, let’s list pros and cons of Ukraine as a surrogacy destination.

 

Advantages

 

  • Professional doctors
  • Well equipped clinics
  • Professional surrogacy agencies
  • Low costs
  • Simple collection of documents

 

Disadvantages

 

  • Ukraine is not a member of European Union (strict legal EU protection does not apply to clinics).

 

Verdict : When intended parents make right decisions concerning clinics and agencies, there is no need to worry about membership of EU. You can read about how to choose a right surrogacy agency on our blog. We will be offering more information gradually. Taking into account all of the advantages that the country offers, the answer is –  yes, parents can and should consider Ukraine as an attractive option for surrogacy.