What is a surrogate?
A surrogate mother, also sometimes referred to as a gestational carrier, is a woman who carries a baby for people who want to become parents but are struggling to have a baby on their own. Most surrogates take part in gestational surrogacy, which means that they themselves have no biological ties to the baby. Surrogate mothers are paid to carry the baby, and they’re protected by a legal contract signed by all involved parties.
Surrogates have already had a child or children of their own, and want to help others start their own families.
Who do gestational carriers help?
Surrogate mothers help people who are trying to start or grow their families and facing difficulty in doing so, whether that’s due to infertility or because someone in an LGBTQIA+ relationship wants to have a genetic link to their baby.
There are two different types of surrogacy: traditional and gestational. Most surrogacy agencies – including Love & Kindness – will only work with gestational surrogacy. In gestational surrogacy, the surrogate has no genetic ties to the baby she carries.
Women who become gestational surrogates have the chance to help people of all different ethnicities and sexual orientations, whether they are single or married, local to the US or international.
Why do women choose to work with
Love & Kindness?
We respect how selfless surrogates are. As a surrogate, you’re obviously filled with an immeasurable amount of love and kindness to give birth to another family’s child. It’s such a precious and honorable undertaking. This is why we go above and beyond to support you during this incredible journey.
By becoming a surrogate, you’re giving hope to intended parents who may have lost it along the way. With your help, they’ll achieve their dream of expanding or adding to their family. This isn’t something just anyone can give — but surrogates can!
Surrogacy Application
The process
* If your last physical exam with your OB was more than a year ago.
** Approximately nine (9) to ten (10) weeks after the embryo transfer.
Surrogate Qualifications
What are the program requirements for surrogates?
We look for the following in potential surrogates:
- You're between 21 and 45 years old
- You're a US citizen or permanent resident
- You have a valid driver's license
- You've had one or more healthy pregnancies
- You've had fewer than two c-sections
- You've had fewer than five pregnancies
- You're able to pass a standard background check
- You're a non-smoker, and have no history of drug use
- You have a BMI of less than 35
We can’t accept surrogates with the following conditions:
- You've never been pregnant and given birth
- You currently use Essure as a form of birth control.
- You've taken insulin, beta blockers, anticonvulsants, antidepressants, or antianxiety medications in the past 12 months
- You've smoked during any previous pregnancies, or smoked in the last two years
- You've ever had one or more of the following complications: placental abruption, placental accreta, HELLP, medicated postpartum depression
- You delivered prematurely (prior to 37 weeks for single pregnancies, 36 weeks for twins) in your most recent pregnancy
- In your most recent pregnancy, you experienced: preeclampsia, unresolved placenta previa or vasa previa, medicated gestational diabetes, cerclage, or toxemia
Surrogate Benefit Package
Compensation information
Once you sign up with Love & Kindness, we’ll provide you with a detailed financial benefits package that aligns with the current industry standard but tailored just for you. From there, you’re able to customize any items as you see fit, as long as you remain in good faith.
You’ll be financially compensated as a surrogate, on top of making the dreams of devoted intended parents come true. Because of your sincerity, Love & Kindness strives to ensure you feel valued and appreciated from the beginning to the end of this surrogacy journey.
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
As a surrogate, Love & Kindness aims to make you feel valuable, validated, and appreciated
with every step of this beautiful journey. We assist you throughout the application process,
provide a customizable benefits and payments package, and facilitate instant communication
through our surrogacy mobile and desktop app!
We believe the benefits of working with an agency is helpful for surrogates. We match you with intended parents, handle the legal paperwork, facilitate communication between both surrogate and intended parents, keep you updated on application processing, provide compensation schedules, and more. Becoming a surrogate can feel overwhelming, which is why we’re here to help from start to finish.
Successful surrogate applicants will:
- Be between the ages of twenty-one (21) and forty (45)
- Have had uncomplicated pregnancies and at least one (1) healthy delivery
- Have a Body Mass Index (BMI) of no greater than thirty (35)
- Live in a surrogacy-friendly state (unfortunately, if you live in Michigan, New York, Nebraska or Louisiana we can’t accept you)
- Have a support system of friends and family. If married or partnered, the spouse/partner must also be willing to cooperate and participate however necessary
Love & Kindness offers a standard benefits and payment package which can be further customized to your liking. The compensation varies depending on your location, surrogacy history, and the final results of your payment package selection.
If you’re interested in becoming a surrogate with Love & Kindness, we have an application online form you can fill out right at the bottom of this page.
Based on guidelines set by fertility clinics, we can work with surrogates nine (9) months after a vaginal delivery or one (1) year after a cesarean delivery.
Of course! Since you’re being a gestational carrier (which means you’re not providing your eggs), you don’t even need to have tubes at all! You’ll be pregnant through in-vitro fertilization (IVF) embryo transfer.
No! You do not need your own medical health insurance to become a surrogate. Your intended parents will be responsible for all your pregnancy-related medical expenses and will purchase a health insurance plan for you if necessary. But if you already have a health insurance plan, Love & Kindness will review the policy to see if it is appropriate to use for surrogacy, and your intended parents will reimburse you for the premium costs as well.
No, all the fees and expenses are covered by the Intended Parents via funds in the escrow account. However, there are times where you may have to pay an upfront cost for things like co-pays, deductibles, and travel expenses (such as hotel check-in deposit or food), and be reimbursed later.
Your financial package will be addressed in your gestational surrogacy agreement with your intended parents. Love & Kindness will work with a professional escrow service to distribute funds to you, according to the terms on the contract. The payment comes in two forms, mailed check or ACH direct deposit.
Unfortunately no. Surrogacy can be a physically and emotionally taxing process; you need the support from your significant other to be a successful surrogate. If you’re legally married, we will also need your spouse’s full cooperation to ensure the intended parents’ parental rights legal proceedings are done smoothly. If you happen to be estranged from your spouse for a long time already but you’re still legally married to him/her, or if you’re in the middle of a divorce/legal separation, please discuss your situations with us fully so we can address it with professional legal help from a qualified attorney.
Yes. An SSN is needed to conduct financial background and criminal history checks for any woman who applies for our surrogacy program. ALL information you share with Love and Kindness is kept private, secure and confidential.
Intended parents and the surrogate will video chat through Zoom or Skype before the match is confirmed. During this chat, both parties can openly ask questions about each other and the program. We’ll also confirm important matters regarding the process.
Intended parents can visit and communicate with the surrogate to the degree both parties are comfortable with. Even if your intended parents are not able to meet you in person during the pregnancy, they will definitely meet you at the birthing hospital!
During the medical process of your surrogacy, carriers are expected to abstain from sexual intercourse two (2) weeks before and two (2) weeks after the embryo transfer. The recommended timeline and guidelines may change, however, depending on your IVF clinic.
Have more questions?
Don’t hesitate to ask! Reach out to us by email at info@loveandkindnesssurrogacy.com
and we’ll get back to you as soon as possible.
