Below is a brief description of procedures that intended parents should complete to receive travel documents for their newborn and be able to travel home together. Please note that the following information does not constitute and is not to be used as professional legal advice. You should not act upon any information on this website without first seeking professional legal counsel.
Getting Home
Making the Complicated Simple
During the early stages of a surrogacy program, bureaucracy related to registering a child’s birth, obtaining citizenship and a passport may at first glance seem remote and unimportant. However, omissions and mistakes made at this early stage could lead to extremely serious consequences and, in a worst-case scenario, leave intended parents in legal limbo once the child is born, causing them to spend much more time in Ukraine then was originally planned.
At Fertility Ukraine we always plan ahead. Our legal specialists, together with a case manager, will start working with you from day one to make sure that after the birth you will be able to obtain a passport for your child and safely return home as one family.
Our Services:
- Preliminary assessment of procedures and supporting documents that are required for obtaining travel documents for the child based on the citizenship and status of the intended parents;
- Ensure that the intended parents’ home country requirements are duly addressed in a surrogacy Ukraine program
- Ensure a surrogacy contract exists between the intended parents and gestational carrier;
- Collection of documents for embassy/consulate submission;
- Translation of documents and their legalization (apostille);
- Applying for and obtaining a Ukrainian birth certificate;
- Assistance with submitting documents to the embassy/consulate (if required, our lawyer will accompany intended parents to embassy appointments);
- Assistance with obtaining notarized consent forms from a surrogate mother and, if required, her presence at embassy/consulate interviews;
- Verification of Ukrainian rules on border crossing with minors; making sure that intended parents comply with all requirements;
- Assistance with engaging a specialized lawyer in the home country of intended parents (if required) for the purpose of obtaining a parental order, second parent adoption or other similar legal procedures.
Why is this important:
Different countries have different immigration laws regarding international surrogacy and approaches toward the surrogacy process. Thus, your ability to obtain citizenship and travel documents (passport) for the newborn delivered by a Ukrainian surrogate mother will depend on many factors. This includes those that take place before the embryo transfer. For example, many European countries that do not recognize surrogacy will most likely treat a woman who gave birth to a child (a gestational carrier) as the legal mother and her husband as the legal father of a child (even if genetically the child is related to both intended parents). Consequently, if you are from one of those countries, you can only choose a surrogate mother who is not married. Some embassies may require the presence of the surrogate mother during appointments and her consent be certified by an embassy officer, which means that such details must be agreed upon with a surrogate and be reflected in the corresponding notarized agreement with her. Some embassies may require that intended parents collect and present all pregnancy-related medical reports and also their photos with the child after the birth and up to the moment the documents are submitted. Please also keep in mind that such procedures as DNA tests, legalization of documents, etc., all require time and may impact your travel plans and how long the wait will be in Ukraine after the child’s birth.
Do I need to hire a lawyer in my home country?
If further legal action is required in your home country, it makes sense to hire a qualified lawyer there during the early stages of the surrogacy process to make sure that with our assistance, you collect all the required documents, legalize them, and are ready to handle all formalities upon returning home. Retaining a qualified immigration lawyer may also be required in more complicated cases, i.e. if intended parents are citizens of different countries or are naturalized citizens in their country
(e.g. are not citizens by birth).
Please note that during COVID-19, we attempt limit physical contact as much as possible. Consequently, it might be possible handle all the arrangements with no need to travel to Ukraine, at least at the initial stages of a program. For more details please see our COVID-related notice here.
Country by Country:
Examples of required formalities
United statesSurrogacy programs are legal and exist in both Ukraine and the U.S. Consequently, U.S. Embassies have clear and transparent procedures that allow legal parents who are U.S. citizens to obtain citizenship and travel documents for a child born to a surrogate mother in Ukraine.
Legal parents need to submit applications and supporting documents to the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv in order to obtain a Consular Report of Birth Abroad (CRBA) and U.S. passport for their newborn. Please note that in order to obtain a CRBA, at least one of the legal parents must be genetically related to the child and such relation must be confirmed by a DNA test made in U.S. by an AABB-accredited laboratory. Legal parents should directly contact the laboratory and order a DNA kit(s) to be shipped directly to the U.S. embassy in Ukraine. The DNA tests must be collected by a qualified panel physician at the embassy. The test results will also be sent directly to the embassy by the lab (legal parents receive an emailed copy).
Normally, the whole process last a couple of weeks to one month.
Legal actions upon return home:
Once the child receives a U.S. passport at the embassy, usually, no additional procedures (e.g. second parent adoption or parental rights court order) are required upon returning to the U.S.
Learn moreSurrogacy programs are legal and exist in both Ukraine and the U.S. Consequently, U.S. Embassies have clear and transparent procedures that allow legal parents who are U.S. citizens to obtain citizenship and travel documents for a child born to a surrogate mother in Ukraine.
Legal parents need to submit applications and supporting documents to the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv in order to obtain a Consular Report of Birth Abroad (CRBA) and U.S. passport for their newborn. Please note that in order to obtain a CRBA, at least one of the legal parents must be genetically related to the child and such relation must be confirmed by a DNA test made in U.S. by an AABB-accredited laboratory. Legal parents should directly contact the laboratory and order a DNA kit(s) to be shipped directly to the U.S. embassy in Ukraine. The DNA tests must be collected by a qualified panel physician at the embassy. The test results will also be sent directly to the embassy by the lab (legal parents receive an emailed copy).
Normally, the whole process last a couple of weeks to one month.
Legal actions upon return home:
Once the child receives a U.S. passport at the embassy, usually, no additional procedures (e.g. second parent adoption or parental rights court order) are required upon returning to the U.S.
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GermanySurrogacy is not legal according to German law and only a woman who gives birth to a child is considered the legal mother. Therefore, regardless of the fact that under Ukrainian law both German intended parents are recognized as the legal parents of a child born via a surrogacy arrangement and their names will be indicated on the child’s Ukrainian birth certificate, German authorities may recognize only the intended father’s parental rights (even if there’s no genetic connection to the child) and an additional second parent adoption process will be required upon returning to Germany with child. Furthermore, there are certain additional requirements in relation to the gestational carrier (surrogate mother).
In particular:
- she should not be married at the time of birth (otherwise her husband may be recognized as the father by German authorities);
- her name will appear as the child’s mother on the German birth certificate (and she will be considered as the legal mother until the second parent adoption procedure in Germany is completed);
- the surrogate mother must be present at the German embassy/consulate and give consent to paternity, name, and passport for the baby;
- her limited involvement may be required during the second parent adoption stage (provide responses to court requests, etc.)
After childbirth, the commissioning parents need to schedule an appointment at the German embassy and submit a set of documents to obtain a German birth certificate and a passport for the child. If the commissioning parents are able to submit all the required documents, another appointment will be scheduled at the embassy/consulate to acknowledge paternity, apply for a German birth certificate (including the child’s name), and for passport issuance. The embassy/consulate will then issue a German passport for the child (with a stamp that the child’s name has not yet been confirmed by the German civil registry office).
Normally the whole process takes a couple of weeks.
Legal action upon returning home:
There are number of additional steps that should be performed by the commissioning parents once back in Germany. In particular, the child’s German birth certificate (stating as parents the Ukrainian surrogate and German father) and name confirmation will be issued by the father’s home civil registry office based on the documents received from the embassy. Furthermore, the intended German mother must apply to a German court to initiate the so called second parent adoption procedure. Once completed, the Ukrainian surrogate will be replaced in the child’s official documents with the mother’s name. Please note that additional assistance from the surrogate may be also required during the second parent adoption procedure – the court may request additional consent, etc.
Learn moreSurrogacy is not legal according to German law and only a woman who gives birth to a child is considered the legal mother. Therefore, regardless of the fact that under Ukrainian law both German intended parents are recognized as the legal parents of a child born via a surrogacy arrangement and their names will be indicated on the child’s Ukrainian birth certificate, German authorities may recognize only the intended father’s parental rights (even if there’s no genetic connection to the child) and an additional second parent adoption process will be required upon returning to Germany with child. Furthermore, there are certain additional requirements in relation to the gestational carrier (surrogate mother).
In particular:
- she should not be married at the time of birth (otherwise her husband may be recognized as the father by German authorities);
- her name will appear as the child’s mother on the German birth certificate (and she will be considered as the legal mother until the second parent adoption procedure in Germany is completed);
- the surrogate mother must be present at the German embassy/consulate and give consent to paternity, name, and passport for the baby;
- her limited involvement may be required during the second parent adoption stage (provide responses to court requests, etc.)
After childbirth, the commissioning parents need to schedule an appointment at the German embassy and submit a set of documents to obtain a German birth certificate and a passport for the child. If the commissioning parents are able to submit all the required documents, another appointment will be scheduled at the embassy/consulate to acknowledge paternity, apply for a German birth certificate (including the child’s name), and for passport issuance. The embassy/consulate will then issue a German passport for the child (with a stamp that the child’s name has not yet been confirmed by the German civil registry office).
Normally the whole process takes a couple of weeks.
Legal action upon returning home:
There are number of additional steps that should be performed by the commissioning parents once back in Germany. In particular, the child’s German birth certificate (stating as parents the Ukrainian surrogate and German father) and name confirmation will be issued by the father’s home civil registry office based on the documents received from the embassy. Furthermore, the intended German mother must apply to a German court to initiate the so called second parent adoption procedure. Once completed, the Ukrainian surrogate will be replaced in the child’s official documents with the mother’s name. Please note that additional assistance from the surrogate may be also required during the second parent adoption procedure – the court may request additional consent, etc.
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United KingdomOnly altruistic surrogacy is legal in the U.K. A surrogate mother can receive remuneration for reasonable expenses, however. Under UK nationality law, the mother and the father of a child are considered to be the woman who carries and gives birth and her husband (the man she is married to at the time of the child’s conception). Therefore, regardless of the fact that under Ukrainian law, both British intended parents will be recognized as legal parents of a child born via a surrogacy arrangement and their names will be indicated in the child’s Ukrainian birth certificate, UK authorities will recognize only the intended father’s parental rights (if there is a genetic connection to the child and the surrogate mother was not married at the time of embryo transfer) and an additional parental order in the UK to transfer legal rights from the surrogate mother to the intended mother will be required. If the surrogate mother was married at the time of embryo transfer, the parental order will be required for both commissioning parents, assigning paternity over to them and absolving the surrogate mother and her husband’s paternal responsibility for the child. Please note that there is only a short, fixed period in which commissioning parents can apply for a paternal order. This period starts 6 weeks after the child is born and ends 6 months after birth.
When the surrogate mother is single (unmarried, divorced, widowed):
The child has an automatic claim to British nationality if the commissioning father is British and has a genetic link to the child. In this case, the commissioning parents may apply for a British passport for the child. Normally, the whole process takes about one month.
When the surrogate mother is married:
In this case, the commissioning parents must first apply to register the child as a British citizen (by completing the MN1 form that is submitted to the Home Office via the embassy). The Home Office must be satisfied that:
- at least one of the commissioning parents is a British citizen;
- the surrogate parents have provided consent;
- had the child been born to the commissioning couple, s/he would have had an automatic claim to British citizenship.
Once registration is complete, the commissioning parents may apply for a passport (a similar procedure as described above when the surrogate mother is single). The process of registering the child as a British citizen, followed by obtaining a passport, may take up to several months. Consequently, the commissioning parents should plan to remain in Ukraine for some time following the child’s birth.
Legal action upon returning home:
Usually, the commissioning parents must additionally apply for a parental order (not earlier than 6 weeks and not later than 6 months after the child’s birth) upon their return to the U.K., in order to transfer parental rights from the surrogate mother to the commissioning mother. Once completed, the British mother’s name will replace the Ukrainian surrogate in the child’s official documents.
In certain cases, (when the British commissioning father is not genetically related to the child or if the commissioning mother is the only British citizen), the commissioning parents may need to apply for a parental order before they may register their child as a British citizen and obtain travel documents (to get their child from Ukraine to the U.K.). Such cases require careful planning and specialist legal advice in the U.K. before any surrogacy arrangements are put in motion. This is done to avoid potential legal and organisational complications after the child is born.
Learn moreOnly altruistic surrogacy is legal in the U.K. A surrogate mother can receive remuneration for reasonable expenses, however. Under UK nationality law, the mother and the father of a child are considered to be the woman who carries and gives birth and her husband (the man she is married to at the time of the child’s conception). Therefore, regardless of the fact that under Ukrainian law, both British intended parents will be recognized as legal parents of a child born via a surrogacy arrangement and their names will be indicated in the child’s Ukrainian birth certificate, UK authorities will recognize only the intended father’s parental rights (if there is a genetic connection to the child and the surrogate mother was not married at the time of embryo transfer) and an additional parental order in the UK to transfer legal rights from the surrogate mother to the intended mother will be required. If the surrogate mother was married at the time of embryo transfer, the parental order will be required for both commissioning parents, assigning paternity over to them and absolving the surrogate mother and her husband’s paternal responsibility for the child. Please note that there is only a short, fixed period in which commissioning parents can apply for a paternal order. This period starts 6 weeks after the child is born and ends 6 months after birth.
When the surrogate mother is single (unmarried, divorced, widowed):
The child has an automatic claim to British nationality if the commissioning father is British and has a genetic link to the child. In this case, the commissioning parents may apply for a British passport for the child. Normally, the whole process takes about one month.
When the surrogate mother is married:
In this case, the commissioning parents must first apply to register the child as a British citizen (by completing the MN1 form that is submitted to the Home Office via the embassy). The Home Office must be satisfied that:
- at least one of the commissioning parents is a British citizen;
- the surrogate parents have provided consent;
- had the child been born to the commissioning couple, s/he would have had an automatic claim to British citizenship.
Once registration is complete, the commissioning parents may apply for a passport (a similar procedure as described above when the surrogate mother is single). The process of registering the child as a British citizen, followed by obtaining a passport, may take up to several months. Consequently, the commissioning parents should plan to remain in Ukraine for some time following the child’s birth.
Legal action upon returning home:
Usually, the commissioning parents must additionally apply for a parental order (not earlier than 6 weeks and not later than 6 months after the child’s birth) upon their return to the U.K., in order to transfer parental rights from the surrogate mother to the commissioning mother. Once completed, the British mother’s name will replace the Ukrainian surrogate in the child’s official documents.
In certain cases, (when the British commissioning father is not genetically related to the child or if the commissioning mother is the only British citizen), the commissioning parents may need to apply for a parental order before they may register their child as a British citizen and obtain travel documents (to get their child from Ukraine to the U.K.). Such cases require careful planning and specialist legal advice in the U.K. before any surrogacy arrangements are put in motion. This is done to avoid potential legal and organisational complications after the child is born.
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