Russian parliament restricts ‘reproductive tourism’

The Russian parliament’s upper house, the Federation Council, passed a bill on Wednesday that prohibits single males and foreigners from hiring women to become surrogate mothers. The sponsors say the legislation is needed to protect children.

Under the new rules, foreign nationals and single Russian males are banned from obtaining these services in the country. Surrogacy will remain available only to married couples, where at least one of the spouses is a Russian citizen, and to single Russian women who are unable to have children due to medical conditions. Also, all children born under these circumstances will automatically receive Russian citizenship.

One of the co-sponsors of the bill, Senator Margarita Pavlova, said on Tuesday that the practice has become a “conveyor belt” to take children out of the country, with the fate of around 45,000 surrogate babies unknown.

The legislation restricting so-called ‘reproductive tourism’ was approved by Russia’s lower house, the State Duma, last week. Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin said the measure was long overdue, as “these babies oftentimes end up in very dangerous situations – they become victims of crimes, including illegal organ trade, and are adopted by same-sex couples.”

Russian legislators have long debated restrictions on surrogacy, with some even calling for a blanket ban on the practice. The current bill was first introduced in 2021. Before it becomes law, it must be signed by President Vladimir Putin.

Russia has sought additional protection for children born in the country – in 2012, it outlawed the adoption of Russian children by US nationals following several high-profile cases of abuse and even deaths of adopted children, as well as sanctions imposed by Washington on Moscow.