Irish Examiner | March 25, 2023
Despite discouragements from the Irish government, some Irish couples have pursued new surrogacy arrangements in Ukraine even amidst the ongoing Russian invasion. Others have turned to neighboring countries, including Georgia, to find a surrogate.
Insider | March 21, 2023
The war in Ukraine has resulted in “extreme pressure” on the country of Georgia for surrogates. Georgian are recruiting women from other countries to meet the demand from foreign couples, with some requiring strict requirements for surrogates’ behavior.
CNBC | March 7, 2023
With more intended parents interested in surrogacy––largely from wealthier Western countries––comes more demand for surrogates. Women in countries including Georgia and Mexico are drawn to surrogacy because of the financial compensation, but risks of exploitation–particularly in a largely unregulated industry– remain.
Shanti Das & Simon Bowers & Malia Politzer | The Guardian | December 18, 2022
UK surrogacy laws require intended parents to apply to become legal parents, which can take up to a year to be finalized. In the meantime, intended parents have no legal rights to the child, including the ability to make decisions in the case of medical emergencies.
Heinrich Boell Stiftung/Foundation | August 4, 2022
Surrogacy is a growing industry in Georgia, but interviews with women who agree to be surrogates reveal how economic constraints motivate their participation. Many face the choice between being a surrogate or migrating––which would mean enduring time away from their own children.
Charu Sudan Kasturi | Business Insider | June 8, 2022
India’s commercial surrogacy ban may be driving intended parents to Georgia, where commercial surrogacy is not only legal but also relatively inexpensive. Georgia’s laws also favor intended parents, because the surrogate has no legal parentage rights to the child.
Winifred Badaiki | Impact Ethics | March 26, 2021
Many intended parents seek surrogacy services in the Republic of Georgia because prices are among the cheapest globally. Due to Georgia’s poor economic situation, many Georgian women turn to gestational surrogacy to escape poverty or other precarious situations. However, the country’s lack of surrogacy regulation means surrogates have few if any rights, and the industry often exploits the power dynamic between the low-income carriers and middle-class intended parents.
Civil.ge. | August 28, 2020
Changes to Georgia’s surrogacy laws will require intended parents (only heterosexual couples are recognized) to live in a relationship for a year prior to engaging in surrogacy. The announcement was followed by a media outcry that these policies would prevent single women from using in vitro fertilization. The state responded by stating that the regulations aim to protect the rights of the surrogate, and of surrogate children from risks of infant trafficking, exploitation and other inhumane treatment.
By Pearly Jacob | Eurasianet | May 27, 2020
Georgia is an increasingly popular destination for commercial surrogacy, but COVID-19 travel restrictions have impacted surrogates, babies, and intended parents there as well. The article reveals that at least 40 babies are stranded in Georgia without parents, 30 of them in Chachava Clinic, one of the oldest maternity hospitals in Georgia. The article also notes that surrogacy is unregulated in Georgia, has no system for recording births, and is only available to heterosexual couples with fertility challenges.