How Do I Become a Surrogate? 10 Steps Potential Surrogates Can Expect

Deciding to become a surrogate is an exciting, momentous, and incredibly generous act that will change someone's life in a beautiful way. Whether you are thinking about being a surrogate in Los Angeles, considering surrogacy in Boston, or looking into the surrogacy process in a town in between, we encourage you to research and find the agency that best fits you and what you hope to get out of your journey. You have options, and you’re not limited to a surrogacy agency that’s physically in your state.

So, how does the surrogate process work? For women interested in learning more about surrogacy before becoming a surrogate, we’ve compiled 10 steps in the surrogacy process.

1. Understand Surrogate Qualifications & Requirements

Women who wish to be surrogates must meet a set of criteria and requirements to ensure they are a good fit for surrogacy. When you decide to be a surrogate, you’re giving a tremendous gift to deserving parents; requirements are put in place to ensure that surrogates are mentally, emotionally, and physically prepared.

Reviewing the list of surrogate requirements is a great first step in determining whether surrogacy is right for you. Although this list may feel long, the requirements are in place to ensure that surrogacy is safe and the right choice for the surrogate.

At Circle, a successful surrogate:

• Has delivered a child of her own and is currently parenting at least one child.

• Has completed at least one successful pregnancy and birth without complications

• Is between 21 and 42 years of age.

• Typically has a Body Mass Index (BMI) of less than 33. Calculate My BMI.

• Resides in the United States in a surrogate-friendly state (we cannot accept gestational carriers who reside in Nebraska or Louisiana)

• Does not participate in the following government aid programs: cash assistance, welfare, public housing and Section 8 

2. Know the Difference Between Gestational and Traditional Surrogacy

When researching surrogacy, it’s important to know the differences between the two types of surrogacy: traditional and gestational.

Gestational surrogacy is an arrangement in which a woman carries a child to term for intended parents who cannot have children on their own. This woman is referred to as a gestational surrogate or gestational carrier and can also be more commonly called a surrogate. Intended parents create fertilized embryos through in vitro fertilization, sometimes with the assistance of an egg donor or sperm donor. These embryos are cultivated in a laboratory and transferred into the surrogate’s uterus. Women who are gestational surrogates have no genetic relationship to the child(ren) they carry. Gestational surrogates do not use their eggs.

In traditional surrogacy, the surrogate has a biological relationship to the child(ren) she carries; she uses her eggs to create the embryos.

The more common type of surrogacy today is gestational surrogacy. Circle Surrogacy ONLY works with gestational surrogacy; Circle surrogates will NEVER share DNA with the babies they carry.

3. Fill Out Our Application & Connect With the Circle Team!

When you're ready, you can fill out our surrogate application. It takes only a few minutes, and you can do it from your phone!

The surrogate application is our opportunity to get to know you. We’ll ask questions about you, your health and birth history, your support network, and other questions that tell us what you're looking for in a surrogacy journey.

After completing the application, you'll connect with our Surrogate Intake Team to begin pre-screening. We want to answer any questions you may have and discuss your expectations for your surrogacy journey. We have experienced surrogates on staff, and you can ask to speak with one at any point during the application process so they can answer any questions or share their story with you.

At this point, we’ll initiate your Medical Records Review. We review medical histories on a case-by-case basis; everyone is unique! At the same time, we'll also conduct psychological evaluations and background checks. This ensures the safety of both you and the baby you’ll carry.

4. Match With Intended Parents

Using Circle's proprietary MatchMade® matching process, you and your Surrogate Advisor find the ideal intended parent match. Our surrogates can express preferences about the intended parents with whom they are matched. You can share with us the type of intended parents you'd like to work with, the level of contact and communication desired, and overall expectations of what you hope to get out of the journey. Different things to think about for your intended parent match are:

• Am I open to matching with parents from the United States and another country?

• Do I want to help a heterosexual couple or a same sex couple?

• Will I match with a couple, or am I open to helping a single intended parent?

When it comes to matching, there are three main requirements to connect a surrogate and intended parent(s): legal fit, personality fit, and views on termination and selective reduction.

If you are interested in meeting intended parents after reading their profile (and they are interested after reading yours), the Circle team will set up a video call so you can officially meet to see if you’d be a good match. If that call goes well and you both want to move forward together, we consider you “matched” at this point!

If you don’t feel it’s a match, we’ll share additional parent profiles with you until you find “the one.” (Trust us, you’ll know in your gut when you’ve found your intended parents!)

5. Finalize Legal Agreements & Contracts

As a surrogate, you will have legal representation throughout the process (paid for by your intended parents), independent of the attorney working with your intended parents. You’ll work closely with your attorney to finalize the contract until both parties—you and your intended parents—agree.

At this stage, it’s important to fully agree on all aspects of the contract to ensure a smooth and successful journey.

Once negotiations are complete, you’ll sign and return your Agreement(s), and the process will move forward.

6. Complete Medical Screenings

Medical screenings happen after matching and during contract negotiations. This is the first of two times you must travel as a surrogate. You'll travel to the IPs’ IVF clinic for your medical screening. Each clinic is different, so the screening experience varies. You can expect a medical exam, blood work, likely an ultrasound, and perhaps other tests to ensure your body is ready for surrogacy. Typically, you'll fly in one day, have your appointment the following morning, and then fly home that night. Don’t worry, travel costs are all covered!

This is also when we'll determine insurance coverage. Surrogate maternity-related coverage comes from either your current health insurance plan or a plan purchased for you by your intended parents that is specific to surrogacy. Circle will coordinate all insurance coverage on your behalf. You will never pay for any medical bills for your surrogacy; they will all be covered for you.

7. Prepare for—and Travel to—the Embryo Transfer

Once you’ve been medically screened and you and your IPs sign the contract, you’ll receive an IVF treatment schedule to help prepare your body for embryo transfer. The timeline includes the start date of your medications through the actual retrieval and transfer date. Surrogate medications may differ depending on the surrogate and the clinic doctor she works with.

While taking your IVF medications to prepare your body for a pregnancy, you’ll attend appointments at a clinic near your home. These appointments are called “local monitoring,” and they are just that: They monitor how you are responding to the medications during the time leading up to the embryo transfer. Your chosen clinic will monitor you and share your results with the intended parents’ IVF clinic (who will share results with Circle). Because these appointments are close to your home, it limits the need for travel, making life a little easier for you! And even though the clinic is nearby, your gas and mileage will be covered.

Once your doctor determines you're ready, it's time for the embryo transfer. You'll travel with a companion to the IP's clinic, where the relatively quick transfer occurs. This is often a chance to spend time personally with your intended parents. The trip typically takes 3 to 7 days.

8. Pregnancy!

The wait time between the embryo transfer and confirmed heartbeat—usually after 6 weeks of pregnancy—can feel like a lifetime! Many surrogates find Circle’s private surrogate social group a great resource for connecting with other surrogates, asking questions, and sharing stories. When you're joyfully pregnant, you will have continued support from your Journey Coordination team and Circle mental health professional during your pregnancy. They ensure that you and your IPs are prepared for birth. During the pregnancy, Circle encourages intended parents and surrogates to have weekly video calls, stay in touch, and update each other on the journey. This can deepen your relationship.

9. Celebrate Delivery Day

You’ve given birth before, so you know what to expect! The only difference is that your intended parents will be there, anxiously awaiting the moment they meet their baby. It’s a really exciting day for everyone! Before birth, you and your IPs will have worked with your Journey Coordination team and the hospital to establish a birth plan. Because of this, the hospital is aware that your delivery is a surrogate birth and that there will be intended parents in attendance. The primary job of the hospital staff is to make you comfortable and ensure your delivery goes as smoothly as possible.

This day will likely be filled with many emotions, and every one of them is completely normal!

10. Take Care of YOU

Many surrogates have told us that the most wonderful thing about delivering a baby for intended parents is that they can be discharged from the hospital and go home and REST … because they don’t have a newborn baby to care for! And that is precisely what you should do: rest and relax. Let your body heal. Spend time with your children and family.

Relationships Between Surrogates and Parents After Birth

Depending on the depth of the relationship with your intended parents, you will determine the level of contact and communication you keep up. Some surrogates and intended parents share photos and updates. Others plan visits and trips together.

How your relationship continues is entirely up to you. Just know you did an amazing, selfless thing that made the most significant difference possible in people’s lives.

Learn More About Becoming a Surrogate & Get Started

If surrogacy sounds like something that interests you, we encourage you to learn more about being a surrogate at Circle Surrogacy! We have a whole section of our site dedicated to surrogate resources. You can read testimonials from previous surrogates, check the requirements, calculate your potential surrogate pay, and apply when ready!

We can’t wait to meet you!