Embryo Donation
Where to Donate Embryos
Finding an Embryo Donation Agency or Clinic
Determining how and where to donate your embryos may seem challenging. The Embryo Adoption Awareness Center has been building relationships with adoption agencies and fertility clinics since 2007.
On this website, we endeavor to help you understand where to conduct your research to find the right donation organization for you.
You Have Several Alternatives When Placing or Adopting Embryos
Through An Embryo Adoption Agency
When you choose to work through an adoption agency the recipient family will have undergone educational programs, medical screening, and background checks (criminal history). They will provide you with information regarding their current family structure, economic status, and hopes and dreams for children. The agency will work to match you with a family that best meets the criteria you have specified.
The families agree upon a mutual level of future communication. The communication may be facilitated by the agency if desired. This has proven to bring the best future outcomes for both the children who are born and the donating and adopting families. Historic records of the donation are maintained by the agency.
The agency will have the necessary legal documents for the transfer of property (the embryos) from you to the adopting family. The agency will coordinate with the fertility clinics involved regarding medical testing required by the FDA and shipment of the embryos.
The adoption process can take time and embryo storage fees can be a financial burden. Some embryo adoption programs have established embryo storage programs to help ease the burden. The Snowflakes Embryo Adoption Program, for example, has established a partnership with Fairfax Cryobank, which allows you to store your embryos at a reduced rate while working through the Snowflakes Embryo Adoption process.
Generally you receive little to no information regarding the recipient family. Your embryos are donated directly to the clinic and the clinic determines who receives them. They may be given to multiple families (e.g.: You donate 10 embryos, 4 are given to family A, 3 are given to family B and three are given to family C). There will likely be no communication between you and the recipient family and few, if any, historical records of the donation are maintained by the clinic.
You will want to be sure to have the appropriate legal documents completed prior to anyone receiving your embryos. In these contracts you terminate your ownership of the embryos and your future parental rights.
A Fertility Clinic’s Embryo Donation Program
Match Yourself With a Recipient
You may know someone personally who would benefit from your embryos. You may arrange for a self-directed match. The onus is then upon you and the recipient family for the legal, medical, regulatory and logistical necessities of the donation. There are some agency programs that will help you navigate these important processes for a fee after you self-match.