If you\u2019re thinking of becoming an egg donor in the UK, you obviously have strong altruistic impulses and a sisterly generosity that makes you want to offer your help to women who need it. But your kind-hearted gesture is not something to be undertaken lightly. You need to know what your commitment will be in terms of time and inconvenience, and be prepared for what to expect if you decide to go ahead.<\/p>\n
In this IVI blog article we explain in general terms all you need to know about the process of egg donation<\/strong>, and point out where you can find more detailed information if you need it. We will take you through how the egg donation process <\/strong>works, explain the legal and regulatory framework in the UK and offer you some insight into how women may benefit from your gift of life.<\/p>\n The physical aspect of egg donation<\/strong> and retrieval is important, but there are many other parts to the process. These could vary from clinic to clinic, and so we will take you through what happens in our IVI UK Donor centre<\/a>.<\/p>\n The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) sets the regulatory framework for egg donation<\/strong> in the UK. This body lays down the rules about who can be a donor, what compensation is allowed, whether you can donate to a known recipient, and the regulations around anonymity, among other things.<\/p>\n Who can be an egg donor?<\/strong><\/p>\n The HFEA has a set of eligibility criteria that potential donors must meet. Some of these are in order to protect the health and wellbeing of the donor, while some are to do with the suitability of the eggs for use in assisted reproduction.<\/p>\n You should be between 18 and 35 years old, because this is the age when your eggs are at their best quality. There should be no history of genetic disorders or inherited disease in your family and you need to be of normal weight, with a BMI between 20 and 30. You should not be actively trying to conceive while undergoing egg donation<\/strong>.<\/p>\n Can you donate to a known recipient?<\/strong><\/p>\n Yes, it is perfectly fine to donate your eggs to a friend or family member. There are restrictions around which family members may be recipients but normally any female relation would not be a problem. Clinics are able to relax the rules about the 35 upper age limit in the case of family donations.<\/p>\n The rules about anonymity<\/strong><\/p>\n Unlike many European countries, in the UK complete anonymity is not possible. The recipient of your donation has the right to only basic information about you but any children born are able to access full contact details when they reach the age of 18.<\/p>\n What financial compensation can a donor receive?<\/strong><\/p>\n Egg donation<\/strong> is most definitely not a commercial transaction and most women who donate are only too glad to be able to help infertile women and couples. However, compensation for time off work and travel is permissible, and at IVI we make a payment of \u00a3750 to compensate donors for these expenses.<\/p>\n All over the UK, thousands of women are unable to use their own eggs to fulfil their dream of starting or completing a family. This could be a result of cancer treatment which destroyed the ability of their ovaries to produce eggs, they could have experienced an early menopause or they may have a genetic disorder which they can\u2019t risk passing on to their children.<\/p>\nHow does the egg donation process work?<\/h2>\n
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The rules about egg donation in the UK<\/h2>\n
Who will benefit from my egg donation?<\/h2>\n
I want to be an egg donor \u2013 what do I do now?<\/h2>\n