Surrogacy in Virginia

Surrogacy in Virginia

Gestational Surrogacy is permitted under Virginia’s Assisted Conception Statute, which is now entitled “Status of Children of Assisted Conception,” but only to intended parents who meet the enumerated restrictions. The intended parents must be a married couple or an unmarried individual, the gestational carrier’s compensation is limited to reasonable medical and ancillary expenses that include reasonable costs for housing and other living expenses attributable to the pregnancy (lost wages are not an allowable expense) and, under the statute, the gestational carrier cannot give her consent until 4 days post-birth.

If the intended parents wish to seek court approval of the contract before the embryo transfer, this is not through a pre-birth parentage order. Rather, this is a lengthy process under the statute that requires home studies on all parties, the appointment of a guardian ad litem for the unborn child, and a full trial-like court hearing. Consequently, almost all intended parents decide to bypass such a lengthy and expensive process. Instead, the intended parents choose to proceed the non-court approval route, wait until at least the 4th day after birth for the gestational carrier to sign the birth certificate amendment paperwork, and then file a Surrogate Consent & Report Form with the Birth Registrar.

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