Step-By-Step Surrogacy Process For Intended Parents
It takes a lot to entrust your family’s future to a surrogacy agency. At IARC, we understand that intended parents have lots to consider. With all that’s involved in the surrogacy journey, you need an agency with a proven surrogacy process for success. That’s where we come in.
Knowing what to expect is an essential element in reaching a positive outcome in your surrogacy journey. At IARC, we are transparent about our practices every step of the way. This transparency, combined with our proven process, helps protect your finances, legal security, and most importantly, your family’s future. Here’s what you can expect from IARC’s surrogacy process, step-by-step.
Your first Educational Consult will outline all steps of the surrogacy process in detail and address your particular needs. Contact us or schedule a free consultation for more information.
IARC’s 7-Step Proven Process for Intended Parents
IARC prioritizes your unique needs above all as we support you throughout your journey, regardless of your medical reasons for surrogacy.
We are fully dedicated through the ongoing coordination of clinic appointments, facilitation of legal guidance from the surrogacy contract to establishing parentage, and several months of support following birth.
Read on to learn more about our surrogacy process for intended parents (IPs).
Step 1: Is Surrogacy Right For Your Family? Research and Select Surrogacy Agency
The choice to embark on the surrogacy journey is complex. Intended parents must navigate personal and emotional challenges while choosing the perfect surrogacy agency. Budget, legal guidance, surrogate matching, and mental health support are significant factors to consider.
At the same time, aspiring surrogates must balance their selflessness with care for their own life and family. Since surrogacy entails many legal, financial, and health responsibilities, those with a heart to help intended parents must review these logistical factors extensively before beginning their surrogacy journey.
Using our proven process, IARC can help dispel the uncertainty by offering:
- Guidance in critical preliminary research with all information provided free of charge.
- An educational consultation with IARC’s director, Steve Snyder.
- Unlimited opportunities to ask for more information as needed.
- A variety of surrogacy resources available to you every step of the way.
Once you’re confident that surrogacy with IARC is the right choice for you and your family, you’re encouraged to take the next step by joining a match list.
Step 2: Find a Clinic For Your Surrogacy Journey
If you don’t already have a preferred surrogacy clinic, choosing the right clinic requires consideration of not just your budget but the type of surrogacy experience you’ll have.
The two types of surrogacy are traditional surrogacy, where the surrogate’s eggs and the intended father’s sperm make the embryo, and gestational surrogacy, where the parents use their own eggs and sperm.
IARC supports gestational surrogacy, as we recognize that not all intended parents can gestate on their own. Because gestational surrogacy affords the opportunity for one or both of the intended parents to be genetically linked to their baby, it is also the most popular form of surrogacy today.
Once we have helped you choose the appropriate clinic from our list of recommended U.S. surrogacy clinics, you’ll begin the necessary medical screening to get the first IVF cycle underway and schedule surrogate screening appointments. This could entail the following, along with any other surrogacy procedure required:
- Infectious disease screening
- Practice embryo transfer
- Uterine exam
Step 3: Match With Your Surrogate
At IARC, surrogate matching is handled with the care and significance it deserves. Matching with a surrogate is often one of the most stressful parts of the surrogacy journey. You want to be sure that you and your future surrogate “click.”
A healthy relationship facilitated by IARC between you and your surrogate reduces the likelihood of you and your surrogate having different expectations or assumptions about the surrogacy process. Positive dynamics can also help minimize stress, which ultimately supports a healthy pregnancy.
The intended parents have the power to choose the surrogate they feel is best for their family, just as the surrogate is free to choose who she believes is best for her. IARC in no way determines or dictates which surrogate with whom you match. Here are a few key characteristics to keep in mind when choosing a surrogate match:
- Emotional and psychological stability*
- At least one past successful pregnancy
- Healthy medical history
*IARC carefully assesses these and many other elements of the surrogate profile, which is available to IPs during the matching process.
Step 4: Final Medical Approval, Sign Your Surrogacy Contract, and Embryo Transfer
To progress further into your journey, you’ll need to sign a contract with your surrogate to solidify expectations, legalities, and logistics. You’ll also receive a final medical screening at your selected clinic to receive medical clearance for surrogacy and schedule the embryo transfer.
This stage can feel very complicated, especially for those who have little to no experience with legal agreements. Fortunately, the IARC network is aligned with reputable legal experts and offers clients invaluable tools and resources.
Your selected team of legal experts prepares and reviews IARC surrogacy contracts and oversees the legal facets of your journey, and your surrogate is provided with her own independent legal representation. So, rest assured that this aspect of your experience is in good hands!
Step 5: Pregnancy and Preparation For Birth
During this stage, your surrogate will confirm your pregnancy with blood tests and ultrasounds at a clinic within their local area. The obstetrician (OB) will begin pregnancy care, and beginning at week 10, IARC will coordinate with you and your surrogate the timeline for preparing for the baby by arranging appointments for monitoring the surrogate’s and baby’s health.
Your full-time IARC Program Coordinator will be at your side throughout every step of the medical process for surrogacy, offering the following support:
- Liaison with the fertility clinic for final medical screening and pregnancy confirmation
- Frequent updates for current and upcoming steps for the surrogacy birth plan
- Scheduling of prenatal exams and obtainment of results, if desired
If any additional concerns arise, you’ll have access to our IARC leadership for trouble-shooting, ensuring your program flows smoothly at every phase.
Step 6: Delivery Day
At last, the moment you’ve been waiting for: It’s time to welcome the baby! This day should be a joyous occasion — not a nerve-wracking one. The IARC team will do everything in its power to ensure you and your surrogate are fully prepared for the baby’s arrival.
Most notably, your IARC Coordinator will facilitate the surrogacy birth plan with you and your surrogate, making certain that every major detail will be properly addressed.
We understand that this is one of the most sensitive chapters in the surrogacy journey. Your IARC team will help make sure that all parties are given the attention, compassion, and respect they need during this time to facilitate a healthy emotional transfer for your family.
Step 7: Finally, Parentage and Parenthood Proceedings
To conclude the legal portion of your surrogacy journey, you must establish parentage and complete payment of all medical bills and reimbursements. The former secures your role as the baby’s parents in the eyes of the law.
Fortunately, the preparations for this process begin mid-pregnancy, so you don’t have to worry about being overwhelmed by too many legal details while you welcome a new life home. You’ll have the option to establish parentage in the most efficient and beneficial way. Keep in mind, your options depend on state laws and insurance needs.
On a personal level, you and your surrogate will evolve into the next stage of your relationship. Many IPs and surrogates wish to remain in contact. Whether you choose this path or not, the IARC network of experienced surrogates and intended parents will always be available to you for support.
IARC’s Proven Process
IARC’s surrogacy process is unmatched. Not only does our highly experienced staff guide you through each and every stage of the journey, but we are determined to meet your unique needs with highly individualized service. Here’s what it means to have IARC’s support:
- Budget-friendly payment plan: IARC provides transparent program costs and an all-inclusive flat agency fee with no added agency fees under any circumstances, including no additional fee if you need any rematches with subsequent surrogates. Plus, you pay three separate installments as the various stages of your program become successful.
- Individualized matching and support: You’ll be matched with a surrogate that suits your precise, unique needs and has the same expectations and aspirations for your journey. We’ll consider every detail, including their medical history, financial stability, and psychological suitability. Throughout your entire journey — including a year after birth — you’ll get comprehensive, personalized support from your experienced team.
- A tight-knit community: IARC and its predecessors have served intended parents for more than 40 years and built an ever-growing network of altruistic surrogates who share our values. Such support from an authentic community is a treasure for those embarking on a surrogacy journey.
Learn More About the IARC Difference Today
The surrogacy journey is dynamic and deeply personal, full of both joys and stressors for intended parents. Considering all the moving parts and confusing legal matters, it’s best to have a team beside you to protect your family’s health and safety while ensuring the best possible outcomes for your surrogate and new baby.
As a full-service surrogacy agency, IARC prides itself on our individualized support and an unyielding dedication to our surrogates and parents. We aim to provide a safe, fulfilling experience for all intended parents looking for a surrogate. Ready to begin your journey? Schedule a free consultation today.