In Victorian surrogacy news, a child-free surrogate has been approved to be a surrogate for Victorian intended parents.

It is requirement in Victorian gestational surrogacy arrangements, that a surrogate must have birthed at least one child prior to becoming a surrogate. This requirement might be based on  a presumption that a child-free surrogate cannot possibly understand the complexities of pregnancy and birth and therefore cannot give informed consent. I query the relevancy of this, noting that most people can be informed about the consequences and risks of pregnancy without experiencing it first-hand. We can also obtain informed consent from someone receiving medical treatment, without expecting that they have experienced it before.

Victorian gestational surrogacy arrangements must be approved by the Patient Review Panel. The surrogacy laws require that PRP approval can only be obtained where a surrogate has birthed a child, unless there are exceptional circumstances.

Only Victoria, Western Australia and Tasmania require that a surrogate must have previously delivered a child. It is not a requirement in New South Wales, Queensland, Northern Territory, ACT, or South Australia.

Victorian traditional surrogacy arrangements do not require PRP approval and are generally arranged at home. In those cases, a surrogate is not required to have birthed a child before becoming a surrogate.

And so, with all that in mind, a Victorian arrangement has applied to the Patient Review Panel for approval of an arrangement where their potential surrogate has not previously delivered a child. After the application was lodged, the Patient Review Panel deliberated and ultimately approved the arrangement.

Similar arrangements have chosen not to proceed with an application, for fear of wasting time, effort and money in case their application was ultimately refused.

While this outcome is positive for everyone involved, and might provide some comfort to other arrangements, it cannot be relied upon as a precedent. The Patient Review Panel determines each case on the facts and the application, and must be satisfied that the arrangement meets the requirements of the legislation. Similar applications will need to satisfy the PRP of that criteria.

If you are new to surrogacy, you can read about how to find a surrogate, or how to become a surrogate yourself. You can also download the free Surrogacy Handbook which explains the processes and options.

You can read a broad overview for surrogacy in Australia and how it works. You can also book in for a consult with me below, and check out the legal services I provide.