Frequently Asked Questions

Attorney Robert Nichols has been matching clients with surrogate mothers since 1999. We created the Center for Surrogacy & Egg Donation, Inc. in 2007 as a way to better serve our clients and carriers. Our staff has over 20 years of experience in matching intended parents with surrogates.

There are 2 types of surrogate mothers: Gestational Surrogates / Carriers; and Traditional Surrogates. A Gestational Surrogate is a woman who becomes pregnant through the IVF process using the eggs of the Intended Mother (although an Egg Donor may be used) and the sperm of the Intended Father (although a Sperm Donor may be used). Therefore, a Gestational Surrogate becomes pregnant with a child who is not genetically related to her.

A traditional surrogate is a woman who is artificially inseminated with the intended father's sperm and carries her own biological child created from her egg and the intended father's sperm. The Center for Surrogacy and Egg Donation, only works with Gestational Surrogates. We do not work with Traditional Surrogates.

We have matched well over 500 clients with surrogates, with many having come back to do a second surrogacy with us.

Surrogacy is a very complicated process. It is important to have an agency with a lot of experience in the surrogacy world to help you and your surrogate navigate the various parts of the process. In addition, it is critical that both you and your surrogate have someone they can talk to and help mediate any issues that may arise during the surrogacy process. In fact, a good agency can help anticipate issues and avoid problems between you and your surrogate from the beginning.

Some potential carrier candidates respond to our advertising or contact us after researching surrogacy on the internet. Others are referred by friends who have had a good experience working with our agency. Regardless of how a potential surrogate candidate finds us, all receive the same information and the same extensive screening.

Potential Surrogates first complete an extensive questionnaire; the completed questionnaire gives us substantial information about the potential carrier, including her pregnancy and health history, as well as details about her life from childhood through to today. After careful review of the carrier questionnaire, a member of the CSED. Surrogacy Team will interview the potential surrogate to ensure that she understands and is committed to the process, as well as to make sure she will meet all of the fertility clinic requirements. We also obtain a copy of the carrier’s pregnancy related medical records, including her prenatal, labor and delivery records. If those records reveal any information that is not consistent with the information provided by the carrier, the carrier will not be accepted into our program. If the records reveal any concerns, e.g.,. pregnancy related medical issues that could cause a problem in future pregnancies, we will have these issues reviewed by a medical professional at one or more of the fertility clinics with whom we work. We also always work alongside the carrier’s own obstetrician, so that they can give us his or her opinion about whether the potential carrier can become pregnant again without risk. Finally, we perform a background check on the potential carrier and all other adults living in her home.

No. We strongly believe that the surrogate matching process needs to be highly individualized. At the beginning of the process, a member of our Surrogacy Team will meet with you in person or via phone / video conferencing to review our matching process, as well as go over with you the large number of issues that affect our search for your Surrogate. After that meeting, we will only send you profiles of carriers who meet your search criteria.

Yes! In fact, you are encouraged to, and your surrogate will want you to, attend as many obstetrician’s appointments as possible. In almost every case, the intended parents are in the delivery room with the carrier when the baby is born.

Yes. Our agency requires that both intended parents and Surrogates have separate independent counsel. You will be represented by the law firm of Nichols, DeLilse & Lightholder, P.C. Your carrier will be referred to an independent attorney experienced in reproductive law who is not affiliated with CSED or Nichols, DeLilse & Lightholder, P.C.

Please visit our Surrogacy Estimated Costs page for a detailed breakdown of the costs associated with the surrogacy process. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions about the financial aspects of surrogacy. We will be happy to answer all of your questions. We will also review the potential costs with you in detail during the initial consult.

The CSED Surrogacy Team will extensively interview and pre-screen your carrier to make sure she is committed to the process. Also, our Surrogate Questionnaire and screening process are designed to elicit medical and psychological information to dramatically reduce the chance that your carrier will not pass the screening at your clinic. In the unlikely event your carrier changes her mind or does not pass the screening process, CSED will match you with another carrier as quickly as possible and at no additional cost paid to CSED. We will do so until you have a carrier approved by your clinic and who participates in the surrogacy cycle. You should speak with your clinic about whether you will be charged additional fees by the clinic if a carrier does not pass the screening.

CSED matches intended parents in the order they signed up with our agency. Due to the high demand for surrogates, especially in the New England area, there typically is a wait list for surrogates. The length of time to get to the top of the wait list can vary significantly. The more flexible you are with your matching criteria, including things like the carrier’s location, doing a single embryo transfer, etc., the more quickly you will get to the top of the wait list. Once you are matched, it typically takes 1-3 months to get through the IVF clinic screening and another 1-2 months to get to transfer. Assuming the first transfer is successful, your baby or babies would be born 8-9 months later. Overall, the entire process can take between 16 and 24 months.

Yes! The Center for Surrogacy and Egg Donation has helped many single people become parents through surrogacy. We firmly believe that your sexual orientation and / or relationship status should have no bearing on your ability to have your own family.

Health insurance for surrogacy can be quite complicated. We will discuss how insurance will work in your particular situation during the initial consult.