Texas is one of very few states that are considered “surrogate friendly.”

In addition to specific laws in Texas regarding surrogacy (see below), the residency requirement is also favorable. As long as either the surrogate or intended parents reside in Texas, a surrogacy arrangement can be validated in Texas. Intended parents from all over the U.S. and the world specifically seek out Texas for their surrogacy arrangement because of this reason.

There are specific laws regarding surrogacy that were set forth in 2003.

Texas law, written in 2003, requires that a gestational agreement be entered into at least fourteen days prior to the embryo transfer. This agreement requires various requirements, such as:

• The intended parents must be married to each other.
• The gestational mother’s eggs may not be used in the assisted reproduction procedure.
• The agreement must state that the IVF physician has informed all parties of the clinic’s published success rates, the potential for multiple births, risks associated with medical procedures and fertility drugs, and the possibility of psychological effects.

When the pregnancy is confirmed, the court may validate the gestational agreement if it finds that:

• All parties understand everything involved in the gestational agreement.
• There is a medical necessity for the agreement, such as the intended mother not being able to carry and/or give birth to a child without unreasonable risk to her physical or mental health or the health of the unborn child.
• Unless waived by the court, a home study of the intended parents has been completed.
• The gestational mother has had at least one previous pregnancy and delivery and another pregnancy, and delivery would not pose an unreasonable risk to her physical or mental health or to the child’s health.
• The agreement adequately states which party is financially responsible for all expenses associated with the pregnancy and delivery.

The validation of the gestational agreement ensures that when the child is born, the intended mother and intended father’s names is placed on the child’s original birth certificate, and no adoption is required.

“Traditional Surrogacy” agreements are where the surrogate’s own egg is used. Due to the various legal and emotional aspects of Traditional Surrogacy, Shared Conception does not handle traditional surrogacy agreements and exclusively offers gestational surrogacy, where the eggs of the surrogate mother are never used. Therefore, the surrogate mother has no biological ties to the child.

Texas law is less clear about single individuals or unmarried LGBTQ+ couples entering into a surrogacy agreement. For questions regarding this matter or clarification regarding any of the above information, please speak to your attorney.

The information contained on this website is for the purposes of presenting general information about surrogacy and is expressly not intended and should not be regarded as legal advice. If you have legal questions about surrogacy or believe that you require legal counsel, you should seek the advice of a licensed attorney. Shared Conception, L.L.C. and its agents, employees, representatives, and officials are not licensed attorneys and cannot and do not provide legal advice.