Considering building your family through surrogacy?
While surrogacy is an amazing process that offers a path to parenthood for many, it can be quite expensive. Most agencies, like our own, only engage in gestational surrogacy.
Gestational surrogacy is when a person carries and gives birth to a baby for another person or couple using an embryo created through in vitro fertilization (IVF), with no genetic relation to the baby. The eggs used for this process either come from the intended parents or a donor.
For those considering surrogacy, understanding these costs, and seeing a detailed surrogacy cost breakdown is crucial for making informed decisions and financial planning. This blog will explore the various expenses involved and offer insights to help you navigate this life-changing journey.
What Is the Average Cost of Surrogacy?
To break down the cost of surrogacy in the USA, it is essential to note that the average cost of surrogacy is $130,000 – $180,000. Although exceedingly high, this price is the total average cost for a surrogacy journey, including the agency fee, medical expenses, travel costs, and various other associated costs.
This price increases if you require an egg donor in addition to a surrogate. When an egg donor is involved, the average cost of surrogacy rises to $150,000 – $210,000.
Again, it is important to understand that these costs cover medical procedures, legal fees, surrogate and donor compensation, agency services, and all aspects of the journey.
This price breakdown is for intended parents located in the U.S. (in a state where surrogacy contracts are legal). International intended parents may encounter different fees based on their location and specific circumstances. Please reach out to us for more information regarding international surrogacy costs.
Breakdown of Surrogacy Costs
When diving into all the information regarding surrogacy costs, it is important to understand what these numbers truly breakdown into.
Surrogacy costs can be organized into six main categories:
- Surrogate Compensation
- Medical Expenses
- Legal Fees
- Insurance Costs
- Agency Fees
- Other Surrogacy Costs
There are many dynamic aspects to the pricing/costs that could have effects on the total cost. While explaining each of these categories, we will provide a loose average of The Fertility Agency’s costs and fees. These averages do not apply to all US based agencies.
Surrogate Compensation
$65k-$90k
Overall, surrogacy compensation with The Fertility Agency is between $65k-$90k.
Surrogacy compensation depends on factors such as location and prior experience as surrogate. Most of this cost is surrogacy base compensation, ranging from $50k-$70k based on the aforementioned factors.
The rest of the surrogacy compensation cost covers aspects of the journey such as counseling and support services, lost wages (surrogate & their partner), embryo transfer fee, monthly allowance, maternity clothing, and other similar parts. Background tests and psychological evaluations are also included in this category/fees.
Medical Expenses
$28k-$73k
Medical expenses for surrogacy journeys can differ based on the desires of the intended parents and how the process goes. Due to this, medical expenses can range anywhere from $28k-$73k.
For instance, if the embryos created are inadequate quality, or if the embryo transfer fails, more cycles may be required, and the cost will be higher.
This cost also includes all medical screenings, appointments, monitoring, and medication.
There are various other factors that may increase costs of medical expenses for surrogacy such as selective reduction, having multiples, c-sections, and other medically costly procedures.
Regardless of what happens, with our agency by your side, we will be there to support and guide you throughout the entire process.
Legal Fees
$5,600 – $19,000
Legal fees for surrogacy differ based on experience, like medical expenses, usually ranging from about $5,600 – $19,000.
This cost includes attorney fees for the intended parents, attorney fees for the surrogate, and court filing fees. Your legal team will be responsible for establishing and managing your contract, supporting and looking out for your best interest, and filing to establish parental rights.
Insurance Costs
$23k – $38.5k
Insurance for gestational surrogacy can cost anywhere from $23k – $38.5K. This includes life insurance, medical insurance for the gestational surrogate, insurance management fees, and post birth insurance.
Life Insurance: This policy is taken out for the gestational surrogate to provide financial protection in the unlikely event of her death during the surrogacy process. It ensures that her family is financially supported.
Medical Insurance: This covers the surrogate’s medical expenses related to the pregnancy, including prenatal care, delivery, and any complications that may arise. If the surrogate’s existing health insurance does not cover surrogacy, a separate policy may need to be purchased.
Insurance Management Fees: These fees cover the administrative costs of managing the various insurance policies and ensuring that all claims are processed correctly. This can include the services of an insurance specialist who helps navigate the complexities of surrogacy insurance.
Post-Birth Insurance: This insurance covers the medical expenses of the newborn after birth until the intended parents’ insurance takes over. It ensures that the baby is covered for any immediate medical needs following delivery.
Each insurance type is essential in protecting the financial and physical well-being of the surrogate and intended parents throughout the surrogacy journey.
Agency Fees
$25k – $35k
While surrogacy agency fees can vary widely, our average fee is between $25k-35k. Agency fees for surrogacy cover several key services essential to the surrogacy process.
These fees are paid out at various points in the surrogacy process, in four separate installments.
Not all intended parents and/or surrogates choose to use an agency, but it is extremely helpful in guiding you throughout the process.
Agencies conduct in-depth screenings and background checks, expert-led matches, can connect you with the best clinics, doctors, etc., and will overall support and guide you throughout the entire journey. They will help with contracts, travel, communication, psychological support, legal support, and with anything else needed during the process.
When searching for an agency, years of experience, success rates, and testimonials are valuable.
Other Surrogacy Costs
Although the previous categories discussed cover most of the cost of a gestational surrogacy journey, there are additional fees. For instance, setting up an escrow account usually costs about $1000.
As briefly noted, since we only work with gestational surrogates, unless the intended parents have eggs to use, an egg donor is required. This adds around $10k-$20k depending on several factors such as experience, education level, etc.
We no longer service egg donation at The Fertility Agency; however, we recommend looking into agencies with extensive egg donor databases such as Hatch Fertility.
How to Make Surrogacy More Affordable
We understand and acknowledge that sadly, surrogacy is not affordable for everyone looking to complete their family in alternative ways. Here are some surrogacy affordability tips!
Surrogacy can be made more affordable for intended parents through various grants and assistance programs.
Organizations like Men Having Babies (MHB) offer financial help through their Gay Parenting Assistance Program (GPAP), providing grants, discounts, and free services to eligible parents. Similarly, the Baby Quest Foundation offers grants to cover fertility treatments, including surrogacy. These programs can significantly reduce the financial burden, making surrogacy more accessible.
Personal financing options also help manage surrogacy costs. Intended parents can consider home equity loans or lines of credit, which allow borrowing against home equity. Another option is withdrawing funds from a 401(k)-retirement plan, though this may involve penalties and taxes. Fertility financing loans, designed specifically for fertility treatments, offer flexible repayment terms. By combining grants, assistance programs, and personal financing, intended parents can better handle the high costs of surrogacy.
Additionally, it can be useful to keep an eye out for discounts, many agencies conduct these at various points throughout the year, including our own. Fill out an Intended Parent application or contact us to join our email list and stay up to date on all discount opportunities.
Learn More About Surrogacy Costs at The Fertility Agency
Understanding the various costs involved in surrogacy, including medical procedures, legal fees, surrogate compensation, and agency services, is necessary for making informed decisions and effective financial planning.
The cost breakdown shown above is based on The Fertility Agency’s average pricing. Again, this does not apply to all agencies!
Not only does The Fertility Agency have lower fees than many of its competitors, but it is also well-known in the industry for its impressive matching skills, 20 years of experience, and for having an amazing staff, filled with former intended parents and surrogates. Our staff is extremely supportive, empathetic, and cannot wait to help you complete your family.
We deliver dreams, let us help deliver yours: become an intended parent with The Fertility agency today.
