Surrogacy is one of the most extraordinary journeys anyone can take; built on trust, compassion, and careful planning. And that planning is everything.
As Intended Parents, you’re about to begin one of the most meaningful adventures of your life and the path to parenthood through surrogacy can feel overwhelming. The laws, the paperwork, the medical timelines, it’s a lot to manage.
That’s where we come in.
At Flowerday Fertility Law, we act as your guide through each legal milestone, helping you move forward with clarity, compliance, and peace of mind. Every surrogacy journey in Canada follows three essential legal steps, and understanding them is the key to a confident start.
Step 1: The Surrogacy Agreement – Understanding Surrogacy Law in Canada
The first legal milestone in surrogacy law Canada is the Surrogacy Agreement, a document that defines the rights and responsibilities of both the Intended Parents and the Surrogate. This must be completed before conception to meet Canadian legal standards.
It’s more than just a contract; it’s a reflection of your shared intentions and values. It sets expectations, protects everyone involved, and shows the court that all parties entered the arrangement thoughtfully and with consent.
How Plaid Fertility Law Simplifies the Surrogacy Agreement Process
We know how important this step feels and how much you want to get it right. That’s why we created Plaid Fertility Law, our secure digital platform that lets you move through agreement drafting, review, and signing at your own pace, from anywhere in the world.
Plaid combines efficiency and oversight: every document is lawyer-reviewed, customized to your circumstances, and fully compliant with the Assisted Human Reproduction Act (S.C. 2004, c.2).
It integrates with fertility clinics for seamless legal clearance and keeps your information secure allowing you to focus on building your family, not chasing paperwork.
Plaid Fertility Law was designed to make complex legal steps simple, transparent, and human because your journey deserves both compassion and precision.
Why the Surrogacy Agreement Matters in Altruistic Surrogacy
- Confirms pre-conception intent, ensuring everyone’s expectations align.
- Encourages open discussion about testing, selective reduction, and termination decisions.
- Protects each person’s rights, obligations, and privacy.
- Demonstrates compliance with Canada’s altruistic surrogacy laws.
- Required by fertility clinics before embryo transfer and legal clearance.
Key Provisions in a Canadian Surrogacy Agreement
- Prenatal obligations: testing schedules, nutrition, and medical appointments.
- Reimbursement of expenses: detailed, receipt-based, and transparent.
- Custody and parental rights: confirming that the Intended Parents are the child’s legal parents from birth.
- Confidentiality and privacy clauses.
- Acknowledgment of risk: ensuring informed consent for all medical procedures.
Understanding Reimbursements Under the Assisted Human Reproduction Act
The Reimbursement Regulations (2020) allow Surrogates to be reimbursed for documented expenses directly related to the pregnancy, including:
- Travel or mileage for medical care
- Childcare during appointments
- Prenatal vitamins, maternity wear, and groceries
- Lost wages due to medical leave or bed rest
- Counselling, doula, or midwife services
- Medically prescribed products or treatments
Records must be kept for six years and provided to Health Canada upon request. Non-compliance can result in fines up to $500,000 or 10 years in prison.
A simple guideline: If the expense wouldn’t exist but for the pregnancy, it’s likely reimbursable.
Step 2: The Hospital Letter – Protecting Rights During Birth in Canadian Surrogacy
By around 20–24 weeks of pregnancy, your fertility lawyer in Toronto will send a hospital letter for surrogacy to the hospital or birthing centre where the Surrogate will deliver.
This step ensures everyone from the delivery team to social workers understands exactly who has custody and decision-making rights at birth.
Why the Hospital Letter Matters in Surrogacy Law Canada
- The Intended Parents are recognized as the child’s custodial parents from birth.
- The Surrogate is not placed in a position of medical or parental decision-making.
- The healthcare team has clear direction consistent with the Surrogacy Agreement.
The letter extracts essential clauses from the Agreement, ensuring the hospital’s protocols align with your legal arrangement.
It’s a small but powerful document, one that prevents confusion, protects everyone’s roles, and allows the moment of birth to unfold smoothly and joyfully.
Step 3: Establishing Legal Parentage in Ontario – The Final Step in Surrogacy Law
The final step in Canadian surrogacy law is the formal transfer of legal parentage in Ontario (or other provinces) from the Surrogate to the Intended Parents. While each province has its own process, the outcome is universal: confirming that the Intended Parents are the child’s only legal parents.
Two Routes to Legal Parentage in Ontario
1. The Administrative Route
- Introduced in 2017 under the Children’s Law Reform Act.
- Used when specific eligibility criteria are met.
- Completed at least seven days post-birth, once the Surrogate provides written consent.
- Filed with the Registrar General, resulting in the child’s birth certificate naming only the Intended Parents.
2. The Judicial Route
- A court application before the Ontario Superior Court of Justice.
- Requests orders declaring:
- The Intended Parents are the child’s only legal parents.
- The Surrogate (and spouse, if any) are not legal parents.
- The child’s birth may be registered solely in the Intended Parents’ names.
- Most international Intended Parents choose this route for global recognition of parentage.
- Canadian Intended Parents must use it if they don’t meet the administrative criteria.
- The process takes about four weeks post-birth, after which the Intended Parents receive both short-form and long-form birth certificates.
Guided by Flowerday Fertility Law – Trusted Fertility Lawyers in Toronto
These three legal steps Surrogacy Agreement, Hospital Letter, and Legal Parentage form the foundation of every safe and ethical altruistic surrogacy journey in Canada. Each step brings you closer to your goal: holding your child in your arms.
At Flowerday Fertility Law, we guide you through every milestone with professionalism, warmth, and innovation.
By combining legal expertise with modern technology like Plaid Fertility Law, we make the path to parenthood smoother, faster, and less stressful while keeping it compliant with Canadian surrogacy law.
Final Thoughts on Surrogacy Law in Canada
Surrogacy in Canada is rooted in compassion, consent, and compliance. By following these legal steps, you protect those principles so that Surrogates are respected, families are protected, and your journey unfolds within an ethical and secure framework.
You are the hero of this story, the ones taking courageous steps to build your family. Our role is to guide you with clarity, care, and unwavering support.