Surrogacy in Georgia for foreigners: law, paperwork and the baby's citizenship

Georgia is one of the few countries in the world where surrogacy is explicitly permitted by law and intended parents' rights are protected from the moment the contract is signed. Here is the legal side of a programme for international couples: who can participate, how documents are issued, and what happens with the baby's citizenship.

What the law says

Surrogacy in Georgia is regulated by the Law on Health Care, in force since 1997 – one of the oldest legal surrogacy jurisdictions in the world. The key principle: the intended (genetic) parents are recognised as the child's parents, not the surrogate. She has no parental rights and cannot keep the child – this is fixed both by law and by contract.

Programmes are available to heterosexual couples who are married or have lived in a de facto partnership for over a year. A medical indication is mandatory: surrogacy is performed when a woman cannot carry a pregnancy for health reasons.

The birth certificate is issued directly in your names

Georgia's main legal advantage: the intended parents are listed on the child's birth certificate from the start. No adoption, no court order, no consent from the surrogate after birth – the document is issued directly, usually within days of delivery. The surrogate does not appear in the child's documents at all.

What about the baby's citizenship

A child born in Georgia to foreign parents does not automatically receive Georgian citizenship – the child acquires the parents' citizenship under their national law. For most countries the procedure looks like this: you receive the Georgian birth certificate with an apostille, apply to your country's consulate in Tbilisi, obtain citizenship and a travel document for the baby, and fly home.

Timelines depend on the consulate: for some countries it takes 1–2 weeks, for others up to a month. We check your consulate's requirements in advance and prepare the full document package, so you spend the minimum necessary time in Georgia – usually 3–5 weeks after the birth.

Which documents you will need

The standard package: passports, marriage certificate (or proof of partnership), medical documents confirming the indication for surrogacy, and a notarised contract with the surrogate signed before the embryo transfer. Foreign documents must be translated and apostilled – we handle this process end to end.

What to pay attention to

The legal safety of a programme depends on the quality of the contract: it must fix the compensation and payment schedule, the parties' obligations and procedures for non-standard situations. Work only with agencies that sign official contracts and show them before any payment. Also check your own country's requirements: some states require a genetic link between the child and at least one parent – this is standard in Georgian programmes, but consular procedures differ.

Bloom Fertility Agency handles the legal side from contract to the baby's documents: an in-house lawyer, trusted notaries and experience with consulates of many countries. At a free consultation we will review your situation and your country's specific requirements.