What are Surrogacy Laws in India?

Surrogacy laws in India are governed by the Surrogacy (Regulation) Bill, 2019, which was passed by the Indian Parliament and came into effect on January 15, 2020. The bill lays down a legal framework for regulating surrogacy in India, and aims to protect the rights and welfare of surrogates, commissioning parents, and children born through surrogacy.

Under the new law, only "altruistic surrogacy" is allowed, which means that surrogates cannot be paid for their services, except for medical expenses and insurance. Surrogates must be close relatives of the commissioning parents, such as sisters or daughters, and must be between the ages of 25 and 35. They must also have had at least one child of their own and must have received counseling from a medical professional before agreeing to act as a surrogate.

The new law also establishes surrogacy boards at the state and national level to regulate and monitor surrogacy arrangements, and requires that all surrogacy clinics be registered with the government. In addition, it makes it mandatory for the commissioning parents and the surrogate to execute a surrogacy agreement which must be approved by the appropriate surrogacy board.

As per the law, it is also necessary that all surrogacy procedures be done only at clinics which are authorized by the Indian Council of Medical Research.

It is worth noting that commercial surrogacy is banned in India since the law passed, earlier it was a popular destination for foreign couples seeking surrogates. The law is set to regulate surrogacy in the country and protect the rights of all parties involved.