Surrogacy

Definition of surrogacy

The Surrogacy Act 2010 defines a surrogacy arrangement as being:

an arrangement under which a woman agrees to become, or to try to become, pregnant with a child and that the parentage of the child born as a result of the pregnancy is to be transferred to another person or persons (a pre-conception surrogacy arrangement), or
an arrangement under which a pregnant woman agrees that the parentage of a child born as a result of the pregnancy is to be transferred to another person or persons (a post-conception surrogacy arrangement).

Central Register

Since the commencement of the Surrogacy Act 2010 on 1 March 2011 the NSW Ministry of Health Central Register, established under the Assisted Reproductive Technology Act 2007, is used for the recording of certain information concerning surrogacy arrangements.

The Central Register contains a range of information about ART procedures. Section 37 of the Surrogacy Act 2010 requires that information about surrogacy arrangements must be recorded in the Central Register before a parentage order can be granted by the Supreme Court. The information that is to be recorded in the Central Register is set out in Division 3 of Part 3 of the Assisted Reproductive Technology Act 2007.

Donor eggs or embryos

In accordance with the mandatory information provisions in the Assisted Reproductive Technology Act 2007, where donated gametes or a donated embryo have been used in a surrogacy arrangement all relevant donor details must be provided to the Central Register by the ART Provider involved in the treatment. This mandatory information is able to be released to donor conceived children once they turn 18 years of age.