Download this memo for key facts, considerations, and questions about the current state of international commercial surrogacy.

Key Facts and Sources

• 3,432 babies were born in the US in 2013 as a result of surrogacy arrangements, up from 727 in 1999 (Center for Disease Control and Prevention)
• A 2008 estimate put the global surrogacy industry at $6 billion annually (Smerdon UR. Crossing bodies, crossing borders: international surrogacy between the United States and India. Cumberland Law Rev. 2008;39(1):15–85.)
• Until recently, India was the hub of international commercial surrogacy. One surrogacy clinic there claimed to have delivered more than 1,000 babies between 2004 and 2015 (The Economist)
• Before India banned commercial surrogacy, estimates of industry worth ranged from $400 million (Business Insider) to $2.3 billion (AP News) annually, with more than 3,000 fertility clinics across the country (Business Insider)