Surrogacy By State

Connecticut Surrogacy Laws


Key Points
  • As an intended parent, you can establish your legal parentage through pre-birth orders.
  • Both parties will have their own surrogacy attorney who will help draft a surrogacy contract that outlines rights, roles, responsibilities, compensation and more.
  • Consulting a surrogacy professional or attorney is essential for navigating Connecticut surrogacy laws.

The clear surrogacy laws in Connecticut make it relatively easy to become a surrogate or parent through surrogacy in this state. As with any of the surrogacy laws in the United States, an experienced professional can help you navigate CT surrogacy laws and complete the process successfully.

You should contact a surrogacy attorney if you’re dealing with any legal issues with surrogacy or if you have any questions about surrogacy law in CT. Although the following guide can give you a better understanding of the general rules and regulations of surrogacy in Connecticut, it is not meant to be used as legal advice.

Here are some of the most frequently asked questions about Connecticut surrogacy laws and their answers:

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“Is Surrogacy Legal in Connecticut?”

Yes. Addressed in Connecticut law in the issuing of birth certificates and pre-birth parentage orders to protect the legal parental rights of intended parents, surrogacy is confirmed as being legal in the state of Connecticut.

Despite the media-fueled hype about “illegal surrogacy” and arguments about whether surrogacy should be legal, surrogacy is a legal and welcomed way to grow families in Connecticut.

“Is Traditional Surrogacy Legal in Connecticut?”

Although traditional surrogacy laws in Connecticut are not specifically addressed in Connecticut surrogacy legislation, traditional surrogacy is generally permitted because there are no laws prohibiting the practice. However, regardless of the lack of Connecticut surrogacy laws prohibiting it, most surrogacy professionals in CT will not complete traditional surrogacy due to the increased legal and emotional risks associated with this type of surrogacy.

The gestational surrogacy laws in Connecticut are more clear. It’s easy for gestational surrogates and intended parents to pursue this type of surrogacy in CT legally, and it’s the most common type of surrogacy today.

“Is Compensated Surrogacy Legal in Connecticut?”

Yes. CT surrogacy laws neither regulate nor prohibit a surrogate’s ability to receive compensation for the time she dedicates to the surrogacy process, the medical risks she accepts, the wages she loses out on at work, the surrogacy-related travel expenses she may incur and other financial factors related to the pregnancy or surrogacy process.

DID YOU KNOW?

Surrogates can earn anywhere from $50,000 to $110,000 depending on their experience, location and the agency they work with.

“Is Same-Sex Surrogacy Legal in Connecticut?”

Yes. Same-sex couples and LGBT+ individuals have the same legal rights and will experience generally the same surrogacy process as opposite-sex couples, with the exception of likely requiring an egg or sperm donor to complete the IVF procedure. The legal processes are also usually the same for same-sex couples. Learn more about LGBT surrogacy in Connecticut here.

Creating a CT Surrogacy Contract

A Connecticut surrogacy legal contract will need to be created by the intended parents, the gestational surrogate, the surrogate’s spouse (if she’s married) and each party’s surrogacy attorney. This must be complete prior to beginning any medical procedures.

Individual attorneys are needed to ensure that each party is fairly advocated for throughout the legal process, and the involvement of the surrogate’s spouse (if applicable) is needed to legally confirm that he has no parental rights over the child that she carries.

Surrogacy contracts cover a range of important topics, including surrogate compensation, the risks and responsibilities that each party accepts, expectations for contact before, during and after the process, and other issues. This contract will act as a roadmap to help everyone understand what lies ahead before you begin together.

Once everyone has agreed to the finalized version of the contracts and it’s met the surrogacy laws in Connecticut, you can proceed to the medical stages of the surrogacy process.

Determining Legal Parentage in Connecticut

The laws on surrogacy in Connecticut are fairly clear about how to establish the rights of the intended parents through pre-birth parentage orders, or in some situations, post-birth measures like adoptions.

In most situations, particularly with gestational surrogacy, intended parents will be able to obtain a pre-birth parentage order, securing their legal parental rights with ease. After a ruling from the Connecticut Supreme Court, even in gestational surrogacy situations when neither of the intended parents is biologically related to the child, the State Office of Vital Statistics of the Connecticut Department of Health must comply with court-issued parentage orders, protecting the parental rights of intended parents who use egg and sperm donors or embryo donors.

However, in traditional surrogacy, because the surrogate is the biological mother of the baby, a pre-birth parentage order is not permitted. In those circumstances, an adoption must be completed after the baby is born to establish Connecticut surrogacy legal rights for the intended parents. Traditional surrogacies are usually the only circumstances in Connecticut where an adoption is required instead of a parentage order.

An adoption professional can help you understand the Connecticut surrogacy laws that may affect you and your ability to pursue surrogacy, either as a surrogate or as a parent. Legal situations can vary depending on the situation, so contact a surrogacy professional now to learn more about surrogacy laws in Connecticut and how they may affect your surrogacy journey.

Male and Female couple smiling with surrogate mother
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