Children born to surrogate mothers

This page explains how a child born of a surrogacy arrangement can meet the requirements to be registered as a British citizen.

We will consider applications for registration under section 3(1) of the British Nationality Act 1981 (the 1981 Act). How an application is considered will depend on the individual circumstances of the case. These cases can be split in to 3 categories:

1. Where a man is the biological father of the child but falls outside the relevant definition of "father" in the 1981 Act

We would normally register the child as a British citizen in these circumstances if:

a. We are satisfied about the paternity of the child; and
b. We have the consent of all those with parental responsibility; and
c. We are satisfied that, had the child been born to the father legitimately:
i. the child would have had an automatic claim to British citizenship under s.1(1) or s.2(1) of the 1981 Act; or
ii. the child would have had an entitlement to registration under either s.1(3), s.3(2) or s.3(5) of the 1981 Act; or
iii. we would normally have registered under s.3(1) of the 1981 Act; and, if appropriate
d. There is no reason to refuse on character grounds.

2. Where a man is neither the biological father of the child nor within the relevant definition of "father" in the 1981 Act

We would normally register the child as a British citizen in these circumstances if:

a. we have the consent of all those with parental responsibility; and
b. we are satisfied that, had the child been born to the man legitimately:
i. the child would have had an automatic claim to British citizenship under s.1(1) or s.2(1) of the 1981 Act; or
ii. the child would have had an entitlement to registration under either s.1(3), s.3(2) or s.3(5) of the 1981 Act; or
iii.we would normally have registered under s.3(1) of the 1981 Act; and, if appropriate
c. there is no reason to refuse on character grounds; and
d. the man has been granted either:
i. an order under s.30 of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990, or
ii. an order by a foreign court, within whose jurisdiction the child was born, directing that he be treated, in law, as the child's father

3. Where a woman (whether the child's biological mother or not) falls outside the definition of "mother" in the 1981 Act

We would normally register the child as a British citizen in these circumstances if:

a. we have the consent of all those with parental responsibility; and
b. we are satisfied that, had the woman been the child's mother for the purposes of the 1981 Act:
i. the child would have had an automatic claim to British citizenship under s.1(1) or s.2(1) of the 1981 Act; or
ii. the child would have had an entitlement to registration under either s.1(3), s.3(2) or s.3(5) of the 1981 Act; or
iii. we would normally have registered under s.3(1) of the 1981 Act; and, if appropriate
c. there is no reason to refuse on character grounds; and
d. the woman has been granted either:
i. an order under s.30 of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990, or
ii. an order by a foreign court, within whose jurisdiction the child was born, directing that she be treated, in law, as the child's mother

You can find further information in our staff guidance including the definition of parent for nationality purposes in Chapter 6 Annex F of the nationality instructions.

Before making an application, you should make sure the child meets the requirements listed above and provide all of the evidence you have to support the child's claim.

If you apply for British citizenship for a child born out of a surrogacy arrangement you must include a covering letter confirming that the child was born as the result of a surrogacy arrangement. Please mark the top of the application form with 'Surrogacy case'. Your application may be delayed if you do not follow this procedure.