Surrogacy or replacement pregnancy is a practice that It is not legal in Spain, so many couples who cannot conceive travel abroad to fulfill their dream of being parents. The majority of babies of Spanish parents (80 percent of the total) who arrive in the world through rental bellies are born in the United States or in Ukraine.
As we read in El Confidencial, it is precisely in the latter country, where more than twenty Spanish families who have had their babies through surrogacy, are trapped in a Kiev hotel without being able to return to Spain. The reason is that They cannot register their babies at the consulate and get their passports to be able to travel back home. Some have been waiting for a solution for more than a month.
They cannot enroll their children
The reason is that the Consulate of Spain in Kiev announced that as of July 5 would stop enrolling babies born through surrogacy according to the procedure they had been applying so far.
How was the procedure so far? A DNA test was obtained from the father in front of a consulate official and sent to a Spanish laboratory to prove filiation with the baby. Upon verification, the baby was registered and a Spanish passport was issued with which they could return to Spain. Once in Spain, the mother had to start an adoption process, since the legislation in our country only recognizes the mother as the one who gives birth, even if she has contributed the eggs.
According to the Consulate, the change is due to the entry into force last May of the New Data Protection Law, which prevents DNA testing to verify filiation. The new regulation at European level prevents the taking of genetic material because it is considered sensitive data.
Babies in a legal limbo
The solution they give them is to carry out the tests in Spanish laboratories with which they have an agreement, but it is impossible since the baby does not have a passport to travel. The only option they find is that babies born from July 5 apply for a Ukrainian passport with the father's last name to travel to Spain, and once here carry out the relevant procedures.
The associations that defend surrogacy are considered a poor excuse by the authorities that would be solved with a consent document and a violation of the rights of the child, so they request through a collection of signatures on Change.org to reconsider the decision:
"According to article 17 drafted by Law 18/1990 of the civil code, those born to a Spanish father and / or mother are considered Spanish of origin.
Please reconsider the decision erroneously taken, and the position adopted by the Spanish Consulate in Kiev, as this decision violates the fundamental rights of the child, and violates the current Spanish law and regulations. "
From the association Are Our Children declare that "They are working as quickly as possible to channel legal channels that allow, in the interest of the minor, to guarantee their access to the Spanish Civil Registry in the fastest possible way".
Registration of babies in the case of surrogacy
There are many Spanish couples who travel to Ukraine in search of a pregnant woman because the costs are lower compared to other countries where it is also legal such as the United States, the United Kingdom or Canada.
However, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is very clear: strongly discourages starting a surrogacy gestation process abroad, and especially in Ukraine.
According to Spanish law, the woman who gives birth is legally the mother and consider null a surrogacy contract. On the registration of births produced by this technique, it states:
SUBROGATED MATERNITY OR SUBSTITUTE MANAGEMENT
"Within the framework of the Spanish legal system, in relation to the possibility of registering the birth of a minor in the Civil Registry, it is recalled that article 10 of Law 14/2006 of May 26 on Assisted Human Reproduction Techniques, establishes that the contract by which the pregnancy is agreed, with or without price, will be null and void, being the maternal filiation of the child determined by childbirth and paternal according to the rules of marriage or non-marriage filiation, as appropriate. This means that, in accordance with the provisions of the Law (of June 8, 1957) of the Civil Registry, it is not possible to make a birth registration by transcription of the local certification when there is doubt of its legality according to Spanish Law ".
An outlaw activity in Spain
Being considered an illegal activity in our country, it lacks a legal system that supports it:
"Consequently, it is strongly discouraged to initiate such a process by have no place in the Spanish legal system. The Spanish Authorities cannot be held responsible for the promises and statements made by private agencies, which carry out outside Spain an activity not covered by Spanish Law. Nor can it be ensured that the treatment given to pregnant mothers is good. "
Irregularities in Ukraine
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs also warns of scams, malpractice and poor medical control during pregnancy in that country:
"In recent months there have been scams and deceptions by the so-called assisted reproduction clinics and people linked to this type of business (irregularities in the process, lack of reports, lack of transparency and mainly medical malpractice), As it is reiterated, they are not allowed in Spain.
To all this we should add the medical malpractice reflected in numerous cases: induced abortions by pregnant women assisted reproduction clinics from the sixth week of pregnancy, with the aim of increasing expenses and carrying out another expensive insemination process, or poor medical control during pregnancy of pregnant mothers.
For all the above it is not advisable to start a surrogacy or replacement pregnancy process in Ukraine".
Meanwhile, there are more than twenty families each with a particular history, who hope to find a solution and be able to return to Spain with their babies.
