Finding the best surrogacy agency means half of the problem is solved for the intended parents.
A surrogacy agency is a one-stop solution for future intended parents who want to grow families through gestational surrogacy. An experienced and credible surrogacy professional can make the surrogacy process a hassle-free experience for both future parents and for surrogate mothers. But the question is how to find the best surrogacy agency?
Working with a surrogacy agency does not mean that intended parents are free of all tasks. In a subtle way a surrogacy professional guide, support, prepare and set realistic expectation. Besides this, the surrogacy agency will work around finding a surrogate mother, matching her to the parents, finding the IVF clinic, and guiding the legal scenarios for your case.
You will closely spend a year or more with the surrogacy agency. So, you need to be sure that you are comfortable while working with the surrogacy agency. Choose the one which answers your questions without any hesitation or any problem.
Parents, who wish to pursue surrogacy, should know which agency they want to work with?
When choosing a surrogacy agency, here are some of the checklists you should consider while working with the surrogacy agency –
#1. What are the services that they offer to surrogates and intended parents?
The best agency will be the one that offers you a one-stop solution to your problems. The agency will take care of your matching services for surrogate and egg donors, legal and medical services, and many other aspects like counseling and support and education, etc.
Based on your surrogacy case, during your surrogacy process, you may have specific services that you want to take care of. Always clearly mention the goals and services you want from the agency. A surrogacy agency offers many functions. These functions are –
- Matching of intended parents with the surrogate
- Medical screening of both the intended parents and the surrogate
- Coordination of data and resources between clinics and surrogacy lawyers, and intended parents
- to ensure that all measures are taken to provide help during surrogacy ups and downs and to ensure smooth navigation of the surrogacy process.
- Help the parents in finding and matching an egg donor via egg donation agencies
- Provide mental and emotional support throughout the journey.
#2. What kind of legal services will the agency provide?
The surrogacy laws vary in each state, so your agency will discuss the surrogacy legal status for your case. Agencies need to provide 3 basic services in the legal requirements –
- Contract – Prior to the birth of the child or even before the embryo transfer, the surrogate mother and the intended parents need to work with the attorney to draft and negotiate the contract of surrogacy. Your agency will help you with recommending the best reproductive lawyer.
- Pre-Birth Order – This process differs from nation to nation and within the nation as well. Most surrogacy-friendly states allow the intended parents to work with their legal advisor and file a pre-birth order. The pre-birth order facilitates the post-birth order and allows the baby to be discharged to the intended parents after birth from the hospital.
- Post-Birth Order – In a few cases, additional legal steps are needed to be followed after the baby is born via surrogacy. This is especially in the case where only one parent is genetically related to the child or both of the intended parents are genetically not linked to the child. If intended parents completed an embryo adoption and none of them is genetically related to the child, then they have to perform the full adoption before transferring the child’s legal rights to the intended parents.
#3. What is their screening surrogacy process?
The best surrogate agencies prepare all parties for physical, mental, and emotional challenges and hurdles they might have during the surrogacy process.
This means not only educating them about the surrogacy process, responsibilities and risks, but also completing criminal background screenings, medical tests, psychological assessments, and more. For a year or more, your surrogacy journey will be an intimate relationship, which is why it is so important for the person(s) involved in your surrogacy to be as dedicated and prepared for the process as you are.
#4. How does an agency choose surrogates?
Many agencies work in surrogacy-friendly states across the country with a large number of surrogates and expected parents.
Surrogates are screened extensively, and large pools of candidates give you a better chance of finding a woman who matches certain traits of personality you are looking for. Most agencies accept only 10 percent of applicants after extensive screenings including interviews, background checks, and additional health and medical assessments. This ensures a dedicated pool of surrogates is available for potential matches. The surrogate compensation varies depending on which state she lives in. Some USA states like California offer higher surrogate pay up to $60,000.
#5. How much will I be involved in the Surrogacy Process?
The agency that will be suitable for you is the one that weaves the surrogacy journey around your preferences. It is important to understand how will you be included or involved in the surrogacy journey.
Whether you will be able to choose your surrogate? Whether you will be accompanying your surrogate to the appointments or whether you will get to know how things are progressing.
#6. Does the agency work with transparency?
You should feel confident in the communication from your first interaction with an agency, whether it’s on their website or through a phone call. If an organization tries to retain information about its procedures or expenses from you, use caution to proceed.
To make the process as transparent as possible, you’ll want an agency to be up-to-date about their services and how the process works from the first inquiry until delivering your baby.
If you are a gay couple surrogacy seeker, look out for an LGBT supportive surrogacy agent who has experience in growing families for gay men.
#7. What does a surrogacy agency cost?
If you are a planned parent considering a surrogacy service, this is an important question to ask. It is important that you can afford your journey via surrogacy.
It’s a very bad sign if you’re speaking to a surrogacy professional and he is unclear on exactly what you might pay to have a baby through surrogacy.
The surrogacy agency cost may vary but again it depends on what all services you are taking — the cost of a surrogacy plan directly reflects the level of services they offer.
#8. History of the surrogacy agency
You must be very careful when it comes to choosing a surrogacy agency. Look for its history, the number of successful IVF cases it has handled, and many more things. Do not forget to ask for a reference from the previous intended parents, who have finished their journey.
Getting feedback from couples who have already traveled the road on which you plan to go, can make you feel secure and confident about your surrogacy agency.
An experienced surrogacy professional knows what is the thing NOT to do rather than things that need to be done. Their experience and mistakes in the past make them more prepared and guarded and the future parents can take advantage of it.
Read more on this topic:
How do I choose a surrogacy agency?
How do I find a surrogate mother with our without an agent?
What does average surrogacy cost?
Conclusion
Now, as you know that a surrogacy agency plays an integral part in your surrogacy journey. You need to choose them carefully. So, take your time to choose a surrogacy agency that meets your surrogacy goals.
You can also go through an independent or private surrogacy arrangement, where no surrogacy agency is involved. In independent surrogacy, you need to find a surrogate mother yourself (maybe a friend or family member as a surrogate) and then manage the full surrogacy process yourself. Here, as no surrogacy agency is involved, so you can save the surrogacy agency fee.
What is the right option for you? That you decide yourself, based on your specific needs and financial limitation.
If you’d like to learn more about IVF, Egg Donation, or surrogacy agency services globally, check out the rest of our website at IVF Conceptions.
I am Neelam Chhagani, a chief Surrogacy Consultant, representing IVF Conceptions, with more than 10 years of experience in international surrogacy. It will be my great pleasure to assist you. With vast experience and deep subject knowledge, I guide and support intended parents, understanding the surrogacy process in terms of process, costs, and legalities country-wise and then manage their journey with one of our programs/partners worldwide. So, basically, saving their ton of research time and money and thus, channelizing you toward the right direction.