Surrogacy By State

Becoming a Surrogate in Missouri


Key Points:
  • Learn the seven steps of becoming a surrogate in Missouri.
  • Discover the requirements to become a surrogate.
  • Become a surrogate in Missouri by contacting a surrogacy agency today.

“I want to be a surrogate mother.” If you’ve ever expressed that wish, then you have the ability to change the lives of a family who is dreaming of a child. You can get started on your journey by contacting a surrogacy specialist.

Speak with a specialist today!

Want to learn how to be a surrogate in Missouri? Here are the seven steps you’ll need to complete to be a surrogate in MO:

Step 1: Choose Surrogacy

The first step in how to be a surrogate mother in Missouri is to commit to the surrogacy process. You should take some time to learn about the process and how it may affect you and your family. Surrogacy is about a year-long commitment, and it requires a lot of time, physical sacrifice and dedication, as well as mental and emotional fortitude.

If you’re married, your spouse will also need to commit to your surrogacy journey. They’ll need to participate in helping you throughout your pregnancy and to emotionally support you in addition to legally agreeing to the terms of your surrogacy contract, which acknowledges that they have no legal parental rights to the child that you’re carrying.

Consider why you’re interested in being a surrogate mom in Missouri. If you’re primary motivation is surrogacy compensation, then you’re probably not a good candidate to carry a baby for someone else in MO; it takes a genuine desire to help another family to really make a surrogate’s experience worthwhile.

Step 2: Choose the Type of Surrogacy and the Surrogacy Professional You Want to Work With

Once you’re sure that you want to be a surrogate, you’ll need to determine the type of surrogacy you want to pursue, as well as the surrogacy professional you want to guide you through the process to learn how to be a surrogate in Missouri.

There are two ways to be a surrogate in MO:

  • Traditional surrogacy, where you use your own egg and the sperm from a donor or an intended father. You would be the biological mother of the child that you would carry, so this method of surrogacy carries additional legal and emotional complexities, and is the less common choice for surrogates and intended parents.
  • Gestational surrogacy, where you use the egg and sperm from donors or the intended parents. You would not be biologically related to this child. This is the most common method of surrogacy.

There are two types of surrogacy professionals that you can consider:

  • Surrogacy agencies, which can help you find intended parents and provide most, if not all, of the services needed for your surrogacy process.
  • Surrogacy attorneys, who provide the legal assistance needed for your surrogacy process, and are often able to give recommendations for how to locate potential intended parents.

Step 3: Meet the Requirements to Become a Surrogate Mom in MO

You’ll next need to check to see that you meet the requirements to apply to be a surrogate mother in Missouri. Those requirements will vary depending on the surrogacy professional that you choose to work with, but generally include the following:

Health

When you sign up to be a surrogate mother in Missouri, you’ll need to be medically screened and meet a number of health requirements first. You’ll need to be smoke- and drug-free, have a health BMI range, have had at least one healthy birth with no pregnancy complications and more. Learn more about the health requirements in the process to be a surrogate mother in MO here.

Legal

If you’re interested in learning how to become a gestational surrogate or traditional surrogate in MO, there are also legal requirements you must meet. For example, you must be a permanent U.S. resident, you must not currently be on any state financial assistance and more. Learn more about the legal process of how to become a surrogate mom in Missouri here.

Emotional

If you’re willing to be a surrogate mother in Missouri or any other state in the U.S., you’ll need to undergo a psychological screening. This is done to ensure that you’re prepared for the mental and emotional experiences of surrogacy. Surrogacy professionals often prefer potential surrogates who have stable and emotionally supportive families at home who encourage them in their dreams of being a gestational surrogate carrier. Learn more about creating a support system when you’re learning how to become a gestational surrogate in Missouri here.

Step 4: Choose Intended Parents

Part of learning how to be a surrogate mother in Missouri is learning how to find intended parents. If you’re working with a surrogacy agency, they’ll show you profiles of potential intended parents that you can choose from.

If you already have someone that you want to carry for, a surrogacy professional will guide you through the legal and medical processes.

If you’re working with a surrogacy attorney and becoming a surrogate without an agency in MO, you’ll search for intended parents independently using word-of-mouth, searching online, etc.

Step 5: Establish a Legal Surrogacy Contract

Both the intended parents and the surrogate will need separate legal representation when drafting the legal contract for Missouri surrogacy. In your contract, you’ll establish that the legal parental rights of the baby will belong to the intended parents, come to an agreement regarding surrogacy compensation, and discuss what you would all want to do in the event of pregnancy complications, if you became pregnant with multiples and other “what-if” situations.

Once both parties have legally agreed to the contract, you can proceed to the next steps to becoming a surrogate in Missouri — the medical process.

DID YOU KNOW?

Surrogates can earn $50,000-$110,000 depending on experience and location.

Step 6: Begin the Embryo Transfer Processes

If you’ve successfully cleared the medical screenings, you’ll begin fertility treatments, medications and hormone injections. This leads up to an embryo transfer at the agreed-upon fertility clinic. After the embryo transfer process, you’ll need to remain at the fertility clinic for a few hours, and then you’ll need to rest for a few days.

Sometimes it takes a few cycles for an embryo transfer to result in a successful, healthy pregnancy. But once a doctor has confirmed a healthy surrogate pregnancy, you’ll be able to proceed as you would with any other pregnancy, attending regular prenatal checkups and updating the excited intended parents about their baby’s growth!

Step 7: Welcome the Baby with the Intended Parents

The most rewarding part of becoming a surrogate in Missouri is the moment when you give the gift of parenthood to someone else. When you go into labor, the intended parents will typically travel to you.  Your hospital plan and the intended parents’ involvement in your delivery will be something that you discuss together earlier in your pregnancy, often in the surrogacy contract stage.

Some surrogates and intended parents remain in touch long after the baby has been born. However, even if you don’t communicate very often, you’ll always be an important part of each other’s stories!

“How do I become a surrogate mother?” Missouri surrogates create families and bring children into the lives of parents. If you’re asking this question, then you have an amazing heart!

If you’d like to learn more about how to be a surrogate in Missouri, you can apply to be a surrogate mother in MO here.

Male and Female couple smiling with surrogate mother
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