Declaration of Parentage

Generally speaking, within Canada, the surrogate is presumed to be the child’s mother because she is the one who gives birth, and if she has a male spouse, he is presumed to be the father.

In several provinces, the intended parents can apply for a birth certificate showing them to be the child’s only parents through an administrative process. In other provinces, you’ll need to legally overturn those presumptions by applying for a Declaration of Parentage from the courts.

If you require a court order because of provincial laws or in order to register the child’s birth in your home country, as soon you receive your Declaration of Parentage, you can take this court order to the Registrar General in the province in which the child is born and obtain a birth certificate with your names on it. Then you can also apply for the child’s passport.

Each province handles this procedure a bit differently. Ontario, British Columbia and PEI are the most surrogacy friendly jurisdictions. Quebec should be avoided at all costs because it has legislation that deems surrogacy agreements to be null and void.

Watch the video to learn more.