Inside the Surrogacy Process: What Surrogates Can Expect at Each Stage
Embarking on a surrogacy journey is an incredible opportunity to help grow a family. If you’re considering becoming a surrogate, it can be helpful to understand what each phase of the process involves and how it may feel along the way. While every experience is unique, most surrogacy journeys follow a similar process.
1. Initial Application
The surrogacy process begins when you reach out to a surrogacy agency and complete an initial application. This application gathers basic health information, reproductive history, and your reasons for pursuing surrogacy. At this stage, you’re simply exploring your eligibility and getting your questions answered. The application is thorough, but it’s designed to help determine whether surrogacy is a good fit for both you and our agency.
2. Comprehensive Screening and Evaluation
Once your initial application is accepted, you’ll undergo a more detailed screening process. This typically includes:
- An in-person or phone meeting with your surrogacy coordinator
- A background check for you and any adult 18 or older living in your home
- Psychological assessments for you and your partner (if applicable) to discuss the emotional and mental intricacies of surrogacy
- Review of your insurance details
- A phone consultation with a maternal fetal medical professional to discuss pregnancy records and discuss potential risks
The goal of these evaluations is to make sure surrogacy is safe and healthy for you and for the baby. Yet, it’s completely normal to feel a bit overwhelmed or nervous during this time. Luckily, you’re not navigating this process alone: our team makes sure to check in regularly, answer your questions, help coordinate appointments, and thoroughly explain everything so that you’re aware of the next steps.
3. Matching With Intended Parents
After the screening and testing processes have been completed, our agency will add you to our database as an available surrogate. When intended parents show interest in your profile, you will be given the chance to review their profile as well. If there is potential for a match, our team will coordinate introductory conversations. This part of the process is often exciting and a great chance to connect with the family you’ll be supporting, ask questions, and build trust.
Once a match is confirmed, you will undergo a thorough medical evaluation at the intended parents’ fertility clinic to ensure your body is physically ready for the journey.
4. Legal Contracts and Preparation
After a match is agreed upon, both you and the intended parents will work with attorneys to draft and sign legal agreements. These protect everyone’s rights and clarify expectations around medical care, compensation, decision-making, and other important aspects of the journey. Our team will help coordinate attorney referrals, timelines, and logistics, ensuring the process moves forward smoothly.
5. Embryo Transfer
With legal agreements in place, you’ll begin the medical process to prepare your body for pregnancy. This often includes hormonal medications and fertility treatments leading up to an embryo transfer, where embryos created via in-vitro fertilization (IVF) are placed in your uterus.
Once the transfer is done, you’ll have a blood test about 10 days later to check for pregnancy signals, and if positive, early ultrasounds will confirm that everything is progressing well. Our team will remain integrated during this stage, offering both logistical and emotional support as you transition into pregnancy.
6. Pregnancy and Delivery
After pregnancy is confirmed, you’ll continue receiving care through your obstetrician, as in any other pregnancy, to help monitor your health and the baby’s development. It’s also common to stay in touch with our agency and the intended parents throughout this period, which many surrogates find helps build trust, connection, and shared excitement as the pregnancy progresses.
As your due date nears, you’ll work with the intended parents to finalize a birth plan that reflects everyone’s wishes. On delivery day, the intended parents typically join you at the hospital so they can be present for the birth of their child.
After delivery, our team is ready to help with follow-up needs, answer questions, and provide support as you rest, heal, and transition out of the pregnancy, making sure you feel cared for after an incredible journey. For many surrogates, this moment is often a great source of pride and personal fulfillment, knowing they’ve played a crucial role in helping a family grow.
How Fertility Source Companies Supports Your Surrogacy Journey
From the first application to post-birth support, surrogacy isn’t something you journey through on your own. You can count on us to coordinate medical care, support communication with intended parents, connect you with legal and psychological professionals, and advocate for your well-being every step of the way. Our expertise and guidance help make a complex process feel manageable, empowering, and deeply meaningful. If you’re considering becoming a surrogate, know that there is a team behind you, ready to support, guide, and celebrate you throughout this life-changing experience. If you’d like to learn more about how our agency can help you navigate surrogacy, don’t hesitate to reach out.