Italy passes strict ban on international surrogacy

Italians protest ban on international surrogacy

"The law will make it virtually impossible for gay fathers to have children"

(Image credit: Simona Granati - Corbis / Corbis via Getty Images)

What happened

Italy's far-right government Wednesday passed one of Europe's most restrictive bans on international surrogacy, making it illegal for Italians to use surrogate mothers abroad or work in foreign fertility clinics that facilitate such pregnancies. Domestic surrogacy has been prohibited under Italian law for two decades.

Who said what

Italy's conservatives have framed the new law as helping protect the "dignity" of mothers, but critics call it a "crackdown by the government on LGBT families, as the law will make it virtually impossible for gay fathers to have children," The New York Times said. Same-sex couples are already banned from adoption. The new law "goes further" than surrogacy bans common in Europe, "classifying surrogacy as a rare universal crime that transcends borders, like terrorism or genocide," The Washington Post said. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni — "a single mother who never married the father of her daughter — has vowed to amplify 'traditional family' values." Italy's continued criminalization of surrogacy stands against a "backdrop of falling birthrates," Reuters said, "with national statistics institute ISTAT saying in March that births had dropped to a record low in 2023 — the 15th consecutive annual decline."

What next?

Italy's new law, punishable by up to two years in prison and 1 million euros ($1.1 million) in fines, is so far-reaching, it's "unclear if it could withstand legal challenges," the Times said. Any potential prosecution could "trigger constitutional challenges" and "diplomatic tensions," and getting proof from abroad would face high hurdles.

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Rafi Schwartz has worked as a politics writer at The Week since 2022, where he covers elections, Congress and the White House. He was previously a contributing writer with Mic focusing largely on politics, a senior writer with Splinter News, a staff writer for Fusion's news lab, and the managing editor of Heeb Magazine, a Jewish life and culture publication. Rafi's work has appeared in Rolling Stone, GOOD and The Forward, among others.