SA Surrogacy Laws
SA Surrogacy Laws Briefly Explained
In the recent past, SA surrogacy laws were fairly informal and non-regulated. The parties to a surrogacy agreement could even simply verbally agree to their terms and conditions, without having to fulfil any legal requirements. However, with the changes to the SA surrogacy laws that came into effect when the Children’s Act 38 of 2005 was promulgated on 1 April 2010, the surrogacy process has now become regulated and formulated.
SA surrogacy laws now protect all parties
Nowadays, all parties are required to adhere strictly to the new SA surrogacy laws, and at the end of the day this ensures a smooth surrogacy process and that the best interests of the child borne of any surrogacy agreement are upheld at all times.
SA surrogacy laws explained
Before undertaking the surrogacy process, the new SA surrogacy laws now include requirements that:
- a formal surrogacy agreement be drawn up and signed by all parties;
- the surrogacy agreement be approved by the High Court;
- all parties involved undergo medical and psychological evaluation;
- the partner of the surrogate mother is also party to the agreement;
- at least one of the intending parents must permanently reside in South Africa;
- the surrogate mother must have had at least one full term pregnancy and birth;
- ideally, the reproductive cells (gametes) of both intending parents be used for the in vitro process;
- the intending parents automatically become the legal parents of the child (requiring no adoption process, as was the case before the new SA surrogacy laws);
- should the surrogate mothers gametes be used, she has the right to terminate the agreement within a 60-day period of giving birth and will be the legal parent of the child; and
- the surrogate mother is not liable for any compensation whatsoever for the process, excepting for expenses directly related to the pregnancy and birth.
Contact Adele van Der Walt Incorporated for more information on SA surrogacy laws and how they apply to you.
For more information on this subject, please give us a call at (SA) or e-mail us at susann@avdw.co.za
