India has taken great strides in Surrogate legislation and in a recent change in law, has provided legal sanction for Gestational surrogacy for married (male-female) couples.

In a further development, Indian embassies and consulates are authorized to issue something called the “Surrogacy Visa”. If you intend to take the gestational surrogacy route to having a child in India, you can apply for a Surrogacy Visa provided your partner is of the opposite gender and both have been married for at least two years. The last of bit was introduced after a spate of legal wrangles between (usually) recently married couples who divorced while the gestation period was in progress. Needless to say, it created a lot of legal complications. The Surrogacy Visa provides more than enough time for your stay in India.

Gestational Surrogacy in India Explained

Eggs and seeds from the couple intending to have a child through gestational surrogacy are collected and used to create embryos in a lab. These embryos are examined and then transferred to the surrogate mother's uterus. In India it is legally required that at least the eggs or the seeds must come from the intending parents i.e. there has to be a genetic link to one or both of the intending parents.

Gestational surrogacy is extremely common in India and there are lots of fertility clinics that provide surrogacy services. Some are big, well equipped, funded and provide ISO certified professional service. There are others of comparable quality but might be located in the hinterland of India. The bulk of surrogacy centres are probably just holes in the walls run by quacks pretending to be professional fertility experts.

In India, most of the surrogate moms tend to be married because Indian society frowns on unmarried pregnant women. To avoid matrimonial and legal complications, Indian law requires that the surrogate mom’s husband sign a written, notarized consent agreeing and providing consent to his wife to participate in the surrogacy program in return for monetary gain. The consent also stipulates that he and his wife (surrogate mom) will not lay claim to the baby / babies born as a result of the gestation surrogacy program. In the rare event that the surrogate mom is not married, a similar legal consent must be obtained from her parents.

Finding the right Gestational Surrogacy Centre in India

Start by Googling for ISO certified fertility clinics or surrogacy centres in India. The website of such clinics need to be informative and should provide answers to a majority of your queries. The physical address and contact numbers must be easy to find. Short-list all such surrogacy centres.

Next, look at the physical addresses of these surrogacy centres; are they located in the heart of a major India city that also has an international airport? Narrow down the list to surrogacy centres that meet these criteria.

Google reviews for each of the gestational surrogacy in India centers in the list. Where possible, communicate with those who might have used the services and obtain a feedback on their experience. Finally, select the one that has all or majority of the checkboxes ticked.