Donor Agreements — Eggs, Sperm, Embryos

A donor agreement is a legal contract that defines the rights, responsibilities, and future boundaries when someone provides genetic material—egg, sperm, or embryos—to help create a child. It lays out:

• Parentage: donor relinquishes parental rights; intended parents assume full legal parentage.
• Use of material: IVF, surrogacy, number of embryos, future cycles.
• Contact level: anonymous, open-ID, known donor, or structured future communication.
• Medical information: what must be shared now and updated later.
• Embryo disposition: what happens to unused embryos in various scenarios.
• Compensation and reimbursements: what’s allowed under state law and agency policies.
• FDA and clinic requirements: infectious disease testing, screening windows, storage rules.

These agreements protect intended parents, the donor, the gestational carrier, and—most importantly—the child, ensuring all parties understand rights and boundaries.

Who It Helps

A Donor Agreement Is Essential For:

• Known donors (family, friends, acquaintances).
• Directed donation in LGBTQ+ family building.
• Donors providing fresh eggs or sperm for embryo creation used in surrogacy.
• Embryos created in previous marriages/partnerships.
• States where courts require proof that donors waived parental rights.
• Clinics requiring documented consent for embryo use in surrogacy.

A Simpler Path May Work If:

• You’re using anonymous bank donors (egg or sperm) already covered by standardized contracts.
• Embryos were created with banked material and agreements are already in place.
• Your clinic is in a surrogacy-friendly state with a predictable parentage order process.

Still, even in low-risk states, donor agreements can prevent delays in transfer scheduling or parentage filings.

Step-By-Step

A simple sequence with timing checkpoints that reduce risk and stress.

1. Pre-Screening (Before Cycle Planning)

• Confirm whether the donor is known or banked.
• Clinic reviews donor history, FDA testing timelines, and required paperwork.

2. Legal Intake (Before Stimulation or Collection)

• Attorney drafts donor agreement for eggs, sperm, or embryos.
• All parties review privacy, parentage, and future contact rules.

3. Signing & Notarization

• Donor signs relinquishment clauses.
• Intended parents sign decision-making authority and financial sections.

4. Clinic Clearance

Clinic receives signed agreement before scheduling:

• egg retrieval
• sperm collection
• embryo thaw or creation
• embryo transfer to carrier

5. Downstream Legal

• Agreement becomes part of the parentage packet for pre-birth or post-birth orders.
• This sequence prevents miscommunication, frozen cycles, and delayed embryo transfers.

Pros & Cons

Pros

• Establishes clear parentage with zero ambiguity.
• Protects the donor from unintended legal or financial responsibility.
• Allows intended parents to make medical and legal decisions without conflict.
• Provides structure for future contact, disclosures, and medical updates.
• Required by most clinics and courts, minimizing later risk.

Cons

• Adds legal cost and time (especially for known donors).
• Can feel emotionally sensitive when donors are close family or friends.
• State-by-state rules vary—some require extra filings or certifications.

Costs & Logistics

Typical Line Items

• Donor agreement attorney fees: $600–$2,500 depending on complexity.
• Donor’s independent legal counsel (ILC): $300–$1,000.
• Courier fees for notarized originals (if needed): $50–$150.
• Extra storage agreements for embryos: $500–$1,000/year in some clinics.

Escrow & Payment Flow

• Known donors may receive:

  • compensation (where allowed),

  • reimbursement (where required),

  • travel and medical expenses.

• Escrow often releases funds after agreement signing and before retrieval or collection.

Insurance Notes

• Donor’s medical insurance rarely covers donation.
• Intended parents typically cover all donor-related medical expenses.

What Improves Outcomes

Actions With Real Impact

• Draft the donor agreement before medical stimulation or sample collection.
• Use separate attorneys for donor and intended parents.
• Align the agreement with state-specific parentage order requirements.
• Clarify future access to medical history—especially for genetic updates.
• Set explicit rules for unused embryos (discard, donate, research, or store).

Actions That Rarely Help

• Overly detailed emotional clauses that no clinic or court considers binding.
• Adding compensation structures not compliant with state law.
• Relying on verbal agreements with known donors (risk is extremely high).

Case Study

A real-world path from uncertainty to clarity.

A couple planned to use embryos they created years earlier during a previous marriage. Their new attorney discovered that the original agreement did not authorize embryo use with a surrogate.

The attorney drafted an updated embryo disposition agreement:

• ex-partner reviewed and signed rights release,
• clinic updated storage consent,
• intended parents completed a new legal packet for parentage court.

Result:
The embryo transfer proceeded without delay, and the parentage judge approved the order using the updated agreements. Clear legal steps avoided a months-long complication.

Mistakes to Avoid

• Starting donor cycles without a signed agreement.
• Assuming embryo consent forms from years ago are still legally valid.
• Failing to give donors independent legal counsel.
• Skipping future-contact clauses (common pain point 10–15 years later).
• Expecting the clinic to “handle the legal side”—they cannot.
• Using donor agreements that don’t match your state’s parentage rules.

FAQs

Q. Do we need a donor agreement if we use a sperm or egg bank?

Ans : Usually no—banks include standardized contracts. But your attorney may still review them.

Q. Is a donor agreement required for known donors?

Ans : Almost always. Courts and clinics require formal relinquishment.

Q. Can a donor change their mind after donation?

Ans : Not once the agreement is signed and medical procedures are complete—parentage rights are legally waived.

Q. Do embryo donors need separate legal counsel?

Ans : Yes. It protects both sides and is required by most courts.

Q. Can we limit the number of families created with donor material?

Ans : Yes—”family caps” are common and included in agreements.

Next Steps

• Free 15-min nurse consult
• Upload labs for a personalized pathway
• Get a state-specific cost breakdown for your surrogacy case

Related Links

• Legal ethics surrogacy
• Intended Parents
• Become a Surrogate
• Fixed‑Cost Packages
• SART
• CDC ART
• ASRM