Legislation to regulate Assisted Human Reproduction (AHR), including non-commercial surrogacy, has been approved by the Cabinet and published by the Government. Surrogacy in all forms is banned in some countries because it ‘splits’ motherhood into a birth mother and a genetic mother. Egg and sperm donation deliberate cut the tie between  child and one or both of its biological parents.

The Bill will regulate all forms of AHR, including commonly-used procedures such as in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) and donor-assisted human reproduction (DAHR), as well as newer technologies such as embryo screening and surrogacy.

Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly said the Cabinet had last week approved the publication of the Health (Assisted Human Reproduction) Bill 2022 and its presentation to the Dáil.

While the legislation published today will regulate fertility clinics and domestic, non-commercial surrogacy it does not include any provisions on international surrogacy and a Special Joint Oireachtas Committee is being set up to examine this with the aim of issuing recommendations within three months. Ukraine and Russia are the only countries in Europe that permit commercial surrogacy.

The proposed law regulates domestic non-commercial surrogacy. ‘Reasonable expenses’ can be compensated through an informal agreement.

Minister Donnelly said the Bill would pave the way for AHR methods to be provided via public funds.