Naturalization, Citizenship Legal status of the child born through surrogacy in India.

[new venture]

Jurisdiction

California

Hi, I'm Permanent Resident and my husband is a USA citizen. I have many medical issues for which our doctor does not allow us to even try to have a baby as it might be born with some medical syndromes or I might have risk. We are thinking of having our biological child through surrogacy from India primarily because of the lower cost there. What will be the legal status of our baby? What are the pros and cons of such a decision? What are the legal processes?

 

[mightymoose]

Hmm. That seems a bit tricky. You will have quite a bit of planning to do in order to pull that off, and that planning ought to begin with an actual visit to an attorney, perhaps one who specializes in immigration matters.
I'm sure it can be done, and has likely been done before, but you will need actual legal help rather than opinions from people on the Internet.

 

[Michael Wechsler]

This is truly a fascinating question and I don't mean any disrespect. Here is how the U.S. Department of State answers the question of surrogate births abroad in foreign countries such as India:

The U.S. Department of State determines whether a child born abroad to a U.S. citizen parent acquired U.S. citizenship at birth

A child born abroad may acquire U.S. citizenship at birth if the parent/parents of the child meet the conditions prescribed in the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA).

The U.S. Department of State interprets the INA to mean that a child born abroad must be biologically related to a U.S. citizen parent who meets the following statutory transmission requirements of INA 301 or 309 in order for the child to acquire U.S. citizenship at birth:

• A U.S. citizen father must be the genetic parent of the child and meet all other statutory requirements in order to transmit U.S. citizenship to the child at birth.
• A U.S. citizen mother must be the genetic and/or the gestational* and legal mother of the child at the time and place of the child's birth and must meet all other statutory requirements in order to transmit U.S. citizenship to the child at birth. (*Gestational mother is the woman who carries and gives birth to the child)

DNA testing is often the best way to establish a genetic or blood relationship after the child is born.

 

[army judge]

We are thinking of having our biological child through surrogacy from India primarily because of the lower cost there.

You should retain a well respected attorney, practicing in your state of residence, to advise you before you spend one dollar towards any surrogate child scheme.

As Professor Wechsler pointed out, immigration law must also be adhered to rigidly.

Add in the laws of surrogacy, things become more complicated.

Be very careful before embarking on your unique idea, as we rarely get what we thought we were buying.