Becoming the child's legal parent
Surrogacy is when someone else carries and gives birth to a baby for the intended parents.
If you use a surrogate, the surrogate will be the child’s legal parent at birth.
You must apply to become the legal parent within 6 months of the child's birth to get surrogacy rights, leave and pay.
You must apply for:
- a parental order – if one intended parent is genetically related to the child
- an adoption order – if the intended parents are not genetically related to the child
If you apply for an adoption order, the rules for adoption are different.
Find out your adoption leave, pay and other rights
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