Surrogacy in Iran: a complex and risky journey

Surrogacy in Iran is not a mainstream pathway for Australians, and at present it carries obvious travel, legal and practical risks. Yet for a small group of Iranian-Australian families, it has been a pathway to parenthood that feels culturally familiar, has access to sophisticated IVF treatment, and can result in an Australian child returning home with their parents.

That does not make it simple. International surrogacy is already the most legally complicated form of surrogacy. Iran adds another layer, including its religious framework, anonymous donation arrangements, private parentage agreements, Australian citizenship evidence requirements, and uncertainty about travel and consular services.

Careful preparation is essential. A surrogacy journey is not a matter of booking treatment, signing a clinic document and expecting everything to fall into place later. The legal foundations need to be right from the beginning.

Who Typically Pursues Surrogacy in Iran?

In practice, Australians undertaking surrogacy in Iran are almost exclusively Iranian-Australian heterosexual married couples. They commonly have family, language, cultural knowledge or personal connections in Iran. They understand the country’s benefits and its challenges in a way that most other Australians do not.

Iran is not generally a suitable destination for single intended parents, gay couples or couples without a strong Iranian connection. The available structure is directed towards heterosexual married couples, and the legal and cultural settings are restrictive for anyone outside that group.

The current environment also demands realism. Iran has experienced conflict, political repression, economic instability and significant disruption. Australians considering travel should monitor the current advice published by the Australian Government’s Smartraveller service for Iran before making any travel decision.

Even if conditions become more stable over time, there may still be war damage, inflation, practical difficulties in entering or leaving the country, and limited Australian consular support. Those issues can become critical when a newborn child needs documents, citizenship approval and a passport before leaving Iran.

Why Egg Donation and Surrogacy Are Available

Iran permits forms of assisted reproduction, including egg donation and surrogacy, through religious rulings known as fatwas. These rulings are made within the country’s Islamic religious structure, including by ayatollahs.

There is broader acceptance of surrogacy than egg donation, but the Iranian-Australian surrogacy arrangements encountered in practice have generally involved both. An intended father provides sperm, an anonymous egg donor provides eggs, and an Iranian surrogate carries the pregnancy.

Iran has a sophisticated IVF sector, with research and clinical capability that can be of a high standard. However, good medical treatment is only one part of an international surrogacy arrangement. The parentage position, documentation, immigration process and Australian legal consequences remain equally important.

Anonymous Donors and Iranian Surrogates

Typically, the clinic arranges both the egg donor and the surrogate. The egg donor is generally anonymous. Open-identity donation, where a donor-conceived person can later obtain identifying information about their donor, is strongly preferable from a child-centred perspective. That approach is not ordinarily available in Iran.

The surrogate is usually Iranian, and the payments made to surrogates and donors tend to be low by Australian standards. The arrangements are commonly presented as altruistic rather than commercial.

That label must not lead intended parents into a false sense of security. Australian laws are concerned with much more than the name given to an arrangement. Payments, expenses, agency services, clinic structures, residence, intended parent status and the relevant state or territory law can all matter.

Before any arrangement proceeds, intended parents must obtain Australian legal advice about whether the proposed steps could expose them to criminal liability at home. In six of Australia’s eight jurisdictions, an overseas commercial surrogacy arrangement may potentially involve a criminal offence.

How Parentage Is Established in Iran

Iran does not have a single Act of Parliament that simply declares intended parents in a surrogacy arrangement to be the child’s legal parents. Instead, parentage is generally established through a private agreement, operating against the background of the relevant religious rulings.

The agreement should make clear that:

• The intended parents are to be recognised as the child’s parents.
• The surrogate is not to be recognised as a parent.
• The surrogate’s husband is not to be recognised as a parent.
• The parties understand their respective obligations throughout the pregnancy and after birth.

A birth certificate can then be issued naming the intended parents. That is important, but it is not the end of the Australian process. Australian authorities will look behind a foreign birth certificate and seek evidence of genetic parentage and the circumstances of the birth.

Bringing a Child Home to Australia

The central challenge is usually obtaining Australian citizenship by descent and then an Australian passport for the child. The evidence must be gathered properly in Iran, translated into English and presented in a way that addresses the Australian Government’s requirements.

The likely documentation includes:

• The Iranian birth certificate naming the intended parents.
• The surrogacy agreement.
• The surrogate’s maternity and hospital records.
• Identification documents for the surrogate.
• A certificate of genetic affinity.
• Records demonstrating the genetic connection between the intended father and the child.
• Certified English translations of all relevant documents.

A DNA test is also generally required. The intended father and child ordinarily provide DNA samples through the Australian Embassy in Tehran, with the sample card then sent by diplomatic courier for testing at an Australian laboratory chosen and paid for by the intended parents.

That process becomes substantially more difficult when the Australian Embassy in Tehran is closed. Families cannot assume that a standard DNA collection pathway, consular appointment or document-handling process will be available. Practical alternatives may be needed, and those alternatives must be planned lawfully and carefully.

For general information about citizenship applications, families can consult the Australian Government guidance on citizenship by descent. In a surrogacy matter, however, general guidance should never replace tailored legal advice. Each family’s genetic circumstances, documents and country-specific arrangements are different.

Do Not Treat the Paperwork as an Afterthought

International surrogacy journeys often become difficult not because the pregnancy was unsuccessful, but because a vital document was never obtained, an agreement was poorly drafted, a translation was inadequate, or intended parents did not understand the citizenship evidence they would later need.

The sensible approach is to identify document requirements before treatment starts. It is far easier to obtain the right maternity records, surrogate identification and signed agreements while everyone is available and cooperative than to try to reconstruct evidence after a birth.

Parents should also understand that a birth certificate from Iran does not necessarily settle every Australian legal issue. Citizenship, passports, family law recognition and state-based surrogacy offences can involve separate questions.

Australia’s surrogacy framework continues to evolve. Families considering any pathway should keep informed about potential reforms and the issues raised by the ALRC surrogacy report and proposed Australian law changes.

Build the Foundations Before Starting

Surrogacy is a long-term family decision, not merely a fertility treatment. The legal work needs to start before embryos are created, before a surrogate is introduced and certainly before travel is booked.

The comparison with the Leaning Tower of Pisa is apt. The building is famous, but its foundations were not properly prepared. A surrogacy journey needs stronger foundations: sound legal advice, informed decisions, complete documents, a lawful payment structure and a realistic plan for citizenship and travel home.

For eligible Iranian-Australian married couples, Iran may be a familiar and workable pathway. It can offer access to IVF, egg donation and surrogacy arrangements that are recognised locally through contract and religious rulings. But it is available to only a narrow group of intended parents, and it remains a complex and potentially risky international journey.

The goal is not simply to achieve a birth overseas. The goal is to ensure the child’s legal, citizenship and travel arrangements are properly addressed so the family can return to Australia safely and securely.

About Stephen Page

Stephen Page is one of Australia’s leading surrogacy lawyers and an accredited family law specialist at Page Provan Family & Fertility Lawyers. A multi-award-winning practitioner, he has extensive experience advising intended parents on Australian and international surrogacy, parentage, citizenship and fertility law matters.