What Has Happened to Surrogacy in New Zealand
Tuesday March 18, 2025

What Has Happened to Surrogacy in New Zealand

Tuesday, March 18, 2025

In this video, Page Provan Director, Stephen Page, steps beyond Australia’s borders to discuss the complex world of surrogacy in New Zealand.

If you’re considering surrogacy in New Zealand, brace yourself for a challenging legal journey. Unlike in Australia, surrogacy laws in New Zealand operate under an outdated Adoption Act from the 1950s, creating a bureaucratic maze that can make the process incredibly difficult.

  • Gestational vs. Traditional Surrogacy – The differences and legal hurdles
  • Committee Approval – A major roadblock for gestational surrogacy
  • Adoption Laws – Why intended parents must undergo an intrusive assessment
  • International Surrogacy – Why Kiwis still face adoption requirements even when pursuing surrogacy overseas
  • Proposed Law Reforms – How New Zealand’s Law Commission is pushing for change

The good news? A 2024 Law Commission review may finally modernize New Zealand’s surrogacy laws and bring them closer to international best practices. Will New Zealand automatically recognize intended parents without forcing them into an adoption process? Time will tell.

Things to Read, Watch & Listen

Who is a parent may not be determined by biology: Full Court

Who is a parent is a fundamental question in the eyes of a child. As families come in all shapes and sizes, with the rise of sperm donation, IVF and egg donation over 40 years ago, society has continued to change as to who is recognised as a parent.

GAME CHANGER: Friday the 13th brought GOOD luck for overseas surrogacy families!

GAME CHANGER: Friday the 13th brought GOOD luck for overseas surrogacy families!

For many, Friday the 13th is a day synonymous with bad luck and superstition. But on December 13, 2024, this infamous date marked a remarkable turning point for Australian families who have welcomed children through overseas surrogacy.

BREAKTHROUGH: 8 children born through mitochondrial donation in the UK – could Australia be next?

BREAKTHROUGH: 8 children born through mitochondrial donation in the UK – could Australia be next?

In a remarkable leap forward for medical science and reproductive technology, the United Kingdom has recently celebrated the birth of eight healthy children—four boys and four girls—through the pioneering technique of mitochondrial donation.

Family Law Section Law Council of Australia Award
Member of Queensland law society
Family law Practitioners Association
International Academy of Family Lawyers - IAFL
Mediator Standards Board