Becoming the child's legal parent - Surrogacy rights at work

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Becoming the child's legal parent

Surrogacy is when someone else carries and gives birth to a baby for the intended parents.

If you use a surrogate, the surrogate will be the child’s legal parent at birth.

You must apply to become the legal parent within 6 months of the child's birth to get surrogacy rights, leave and pay.

You must apply for:

a parental order – if one intended parent is genetically related to the child
an adoption order – if the intended parents are not genetically related to the child

If you apply for an adoption order, the rules for adoption are different.

You can also read more about:

Last reviewed

29 March 2023