Why Should You Consider Surrogacy in the USA?

In Israel, surrogacy for gay or unmarried people is prohibited, and so for some there is no way of doing surrogacy in Israel. Even many heterosexual couples find it very difficult since the law in Israel restricts the kind of women who can be surrogates (for instance, only unmarried women can apply to become one), and there is a chronic shortage in available surrogates. However, if a single or couple does surrogacy in the United States, it is not illegal and children may be brought back into Israel without issue.

The United States is widely considered to be the preferable country for surrogacy among Israeli, Europeans and other international parents due to legal, societal and medical conditions. In the USA almost every state permits compensated surrogacy and no appeals court in any state has ever given custody to a gestational carrier. The US also offers a supportive environment for surrogates and couples. Recent stories in American and European media including including CNN, the New York Times, Tribune de Genève, The Sunday Times, Newsweek, Wall Street Journal, and Svenska Dagbladt demonstrate a growing acceptance of surrogacy. John Weltman was quoted in Newsweek as saying that parents who work with a reputable agency like Circle have a "99 percent chance of getting a baby and a 100 percent chance of keeping it."

Having children in the States can be relatively easy for international couples. It is only necessary to come to the United States three to four times, including the 20-week ultrasound and birth. Departures from the United States are easy as well - most international couples return to their countries within 2 weeks of the birth of their children, with their names on the birth certificate and US Passports, if they choose to apply for them.

Why Circle?

Circle's success with international clients may be attributed to the special attention that is given to addressing every country's needs and legal circumstances. By the end of 2008 we already helped bring to the world more than 10 Israeli babies, and we started 2009 with 15 more clients from Israel at various stages of our program. Once they become clients, Circle's staff leads all parents through the logistical, legal and administrative processes involved from day one, and until they gain full custody of their newborns and bring them home. Circle has in fact established an "Israeli track" to its program, in order to make sure our services are suitable to the needs of Israeli prospective parents, and compatible with Israeli laws. We have partnered with Israeli organizations and lawyers, and established a connection to the Ministry of Interior, in order to provide a complete solution for our clients before and after the birth. Circle also has an Israeli contact person to help with the unique aspects of going through the process from Israel, the process of bringing a child back to Israel, and to connect new clients with the growing network of surrogacy parents and parents-to-be in Israel. Circle's staff regularly meets with prospective clients for intake consultations in their own countries and cities, and we expect to make at least two trips to Israel in 2009. 

We are very proud of the amazing success rates Circle achieves in general, and with our Israeli clients in particular. We screen our surrogates very thoroughly, and make sure they are matched well with the intended parents, such that the relationship between the families are truly amazing (see below). Our reputation among Israelis is such that we also have several Israeli clients in the USA, and some more in Europe as well... If fact, our program as a whole is experiencing a growing number of clients and births (see this new interview with John Weltman, and our Surrogacy Update page), especially due to a growing number of international clients (now more than 40%). To meet the growing demand we have been adding staff (see our updated About Us page), and increased our surrogate recruiting efforts. We are also continuing to offer new innovations in order to make the surrogacy process shorter and more affordable.