Your surrogacy contract is the legal foundation that guarantees your family’s financial future is safeguarded, allowing you to focus on a healthy, stress-free pregnancy.
At American Surrogacy, we prioritize transparency to give you the security you deserve, and we have outlined the essential components of a protective contract below.
For a financially assured path through surrogacy, connect with our experienced staff.Secure Your Compensation
What is Included in Surrogate Compensation?
Real fairness in surrogacy compensation goes deeper than just a number; it acts as a financial shield for your family. A comprehensive contract breaks your pay down into three key pillars:
- Base Compensation: This is your direct pay—unrestricted funds you can use for savings, student loans, or family goals.
- Monthly Allowances: These are set monthly payments to cover minor pregnancy-related costs (like vitamins or gas) without the hassle of submitting receipts.
- Contingent Protections: These are event-based payments designed to protect you if your pregnancy requires more from your body or schedule.
This structure ensures you never dip into your own pockets. If you are paying for copays, travel, or maternity clothes without reimbursement, the contract isn't doing its job. A professional agreement also includes specific protections for unexpected events:
- Multiples: Recognizing the higher physical demand, compensation increases if you carry twins, ensuring you are paid for the extra monitoring and risk involved.
- C-Section: If a Cesarean section is necessary, the contract guarantees additional compensation to cover the major surgery and protect your recovery time.
- Lost Wages: Reimbursement for lost wages due to appointments or bed rest ensures your household income remains stable, so you never have to choose between your health and your paycheck.
- Bed Rest Definitions: The contract explicitly defines "strict confinement" versus "modified activity." This distinction is critical because strict bed rest triggers additional coverage for childcare or housekeeping, directly supporting your family when you need it most.
Contact us today to discuss what a fair, competitive compensation package looks like for you.
Is Surrogate Compensation Legally Guaranteed?
Yes. Once the Gestational Carrier Agreement (GCA) is signed by all parties, your compensation becomes a legally binding obligation. This provides two layers of security: financial certainty and relationship protection. By letting the contract strictly define the financial rules, you and the parents are free to build a connection focused on the baby, not the business transaction.
To guarantee your interests are represented, you will retain independent legal counsel. You will not share an attorney with the intended parents, preventing any conflict of interest. Your attorney acts as your advocate, closing potential loopholes and verifying that every payment trigger is tied to an objective medical milestone.
When Do Surrogates Get Paid?
Surrogacy compensation follows a timeline that begins well before a confirmed pregnancy. Understanding the payment schedule helps you plan for the milestones you achieve during the preparation phase.
A monthly allowance for miscellaneous expenses typically begins immediately upon contract execution, ensuring you have cash flow support from Day 1. A signing bonus or commencement fee is triggered by contract execution to acknowledge the time you invested in screening, background checks, and legal review. You receive a medication start fee triggered by the start of injectable medications, compensating you for the physical toll of the hormone regimen required to prepare for embryo transfer, regardless of the transfer's outcome. A transfer fee is triggered by the procedure date, compensating you for the medical appointment and mandatory rest period, recognizing your commitment to the attempt itself. Base Compensation is typically triggered by the confirmation of a heartbeat (around 6-8 weeks gestation), marking the transition to active pregnancy payments.
Get matched with parents who have the funds secured to support your payment timeline.
Do Surrogates Get Paid Monthly or in a Lump Sum?
Once active pregnancy payments begin, standard industry practice is to distribute base compensation in monthly installments rather than a single lump sum. This structure ensures you have consistent resources throughout the pregnancy.
Typically, total base compensation is divided into equal monthly payments, often spanning 8 to 10 months. For a $50,000 base, this results in approximately $5,000 per month.
Your contract also accounts for biological realities that rarely follow a strict calendar. If you happen to deliver early (e.g., at 36 weeks), you typically do not forfeit the remaining payments; the balance is usually due within a set window after birth.
Conversely, if the pregnancy extends beyond the scheduled installments, your monthly allowance for miscellaneous expenses generally continues until delivery. This ensures you aren't paying for prenatal needs out of pocket during those final weeks.
What Can You Negotiate in a Surrogacy Contract?
Think of the initial contract draft as a proposal, not a final verdict. You have the right to request adjustments that reflect your specific life circumstances. While agencies offer standard benefit packages, your attorney is there to help you tailor them.
Common points of negotiation include:
- Lost Wage Caps: Standard caps on lost wages may not cover high-income earners or variable schedules. You can request a cap aligned with your actual pay stubs.
- Childcare Costs: If your local childcare costs exceed standard allowances, it is reasonable and expected to request a rate that matches your actual costs.
- Travel Preferences: You can specify travel needs for the transfer, such as requiring direct flights or coverage for a companion if you are anxious about traveling alone.
Your attorney will advise on what is standard, but you should feel empowered to voice your needs. A contract that fits your life leads to a smoother, less stressful journey. Negotiating is a normal part of the process, but you don't have to navigate these requests alone.
How Does a Surrogacy Escrow Account Work?
An independent escrow account acts as a neutral financial referee, ensuring you never have to ask intended parents to write a personal check. Professional agencies utilize escrow accounts to hold journey funds.
The escrow releases funds automatically according to the contract schedule, removing the awkwardness of asking for money and ensuring payments always happen on time.
Your contract will also include a "minimum balance" clause. This clause requires parents to replenish the account long before it dips below a set threshold, ensuring unexpected costs or emergency expenses never come out of your pocket.
What Happens if Intended Parents Miss a Payment?
While rare in agency-managed journeys, contracts address potential banking delays to eliminate uncertainty. Agreements typically include provisions for late fees or interest to ensure you are compensated for any delays.
Crucially, they often contain a "pause" clause: if the escrow account is not properly funded, you are generally not required to proceed with the next medical step. This provision offers significant leverage and protection.
This oversight is a key advantage of the agency model. In an independent journey, you would personally manage collections, acting as both surrogate and debt collector. At American Surrogacy, we monitor the escrow account and handle all follow-up, allowing your relationship with the parents to remain focused on the joy of the pregnancy, not the stress of the transactions.
Why Use an Agency for Surrogacy Contracts?
The difference between a stressful financial experience and a secure one often lies in the quality of professional support. Our ultimate goal is to remove every financial and legal distraction, allowing your energy to be focused solely on your health and the developing relationship with the intended parents.
We manage the complexities that an independent journey leaves to you:
We perform detailed financial and legal screening of intended parents before matching, eliminating the risk of partnering with someone unable to fund the journey. We provide a contract template, reviewed by multiple state experts, that closes potential loopholes and reduces the chance of state-specific legal errors. We handle all long-term accountability, monitoring escrow to ensure timely payment releases and preventing the "pay as you go" risks common in unmanaged arrangements.
In short, we secure your finances so you never have to worry about them.
Get a Secure Surrogacy Contract Today
Your contract is the roadmap for a safe journey, allowing you to rest easier knowing your time is valued and your rights are protected. You do not have to navigate legal terminology or negotiations alone.
At American Surrogacy, we are here to ensure you have a contract that is equitable and secure. You are doing something remarkable; let us ensure you are protected while you do it.
Contact American Surrogacy today to start your journey with complete financial peace of mind.