In the UK, assisted reproduction is regulated by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act, which specifies that all donations are compulsorily non-anonymous and altruistic. Donors must be between the ages of 18 and 35, fit and healthy, and have no history in the family of inherited diseases or genetic disorders.

Under UK law, egg donors have no legal rights or responsibilities for children born as a result of their donation. Women who wish to receive donor eggs have counselling about the desirability of telling their child about their genetic origins, but there is no legal obligation to do so.

As provided by law, some donor’s non-identifiable information (height, eye colour, hair colour, year and country of birth, marital status, etc.) will be available to the parent at the time of the donation and to any children conceived with such donation when they turn 16. At 18, the child (and not the parents) can access the donor’s full identity and contact details. They may contact the donor if they wish, but this doesn’t change the legal status of the donor.

Most of our patients want to know as much as possible about their donor, so we make sure our donor profiles are as detailed as possible, including how they describe themselves, how their friends see them, what their hobbies are, etc. In addition, many of our donors write a goodwill message for any children born from their donation – which can also be read by the parents.

Donor from egg bank

As a patient, you can choose to use donated eggs from our egg bank. These gametes have been donated by women who meet HFEA requirements, as the regulatory agency for assisted reproduction in the United Kingdom.

Known donor

A patient may choose to use an oocyte donated from a relative or another known person. There are of course restrictions on mixing the eggs and sperm of close family members such as brother and sister (including half brothers and sisters) or uncles and nieces. In any case, the donor must meet the donation criteria established by the HFEA and counselling will be necessary to ensure that both parties understand the implications of the process.

Law 14/2006 on assisted human reproduction techniques regulates egg donation in Spain and establishes that it is compulsorily anonymous, meaning there can be no links or contact between donor and recipient and they can only know very basic data such as the complexion, height, eye colour, etc. of the donor. Spanish donors must be between 18 and 35 years of age, they must be healthy and have no family history of genetic diseases. In addition, the legal framework guarantees that all donations are voluntary and altruistic, thus avoiding any lucrative or commercial motivation.

To learn more about donation in Spain and the donor allocation process, you can visit our international website.