Become a Gestational Carrier

Tennessee Reproductive Medicine’s Gestational Carrier Database links our patients to potential gestational carriers (GCs). Thank you for your interest in becoming a gestational carrier.

What is a gestational carrier?

A gestational carrier is a form of surrogacy in which a woman carries a pregnancy to term and gives birth to a baby for another woman or couple.

The embryo carried to term is created with the intended father’s or donor’s sperm and the intended mother’s or donor’s eggs. The resulting embryo is transferred into a GC’s uterus. Although the woman carries the pregnancy and gives birth to the baby, she is not genetically related to the child.

Many individuals or couples turn to GCs as their last option of having a baby. There are many reasons they may choose this option, including infertility or underlying medical conditions making pregnancy dangerous to mother or baby.

Primary criteria

TRM has strict criteria that every woman must meet before applying to be a carrier. These include:

• Age between 21-40 years old.
• No history of any serious or ongoing medical conditions.
• No history of a positive AIDS or HIV test.
• No history of alcohol or drug dependence.
• No history of serious mental health disorders.
• Must be a non-smoker, live in a smoke-free household and, if employed, work in a smoke-free environment.
• Must be of average body mass index (BMI) (under 30).
• If prior pregnancy has occurred, must have had no significant complications during pregnancy or birth.

Legal considerations

We encourage you to review the information on our website, including legal and medical ramifications, before completing the GC application.

Establishing a relationship between the carrier and intended parents involves discussions with medical professionals, mental health professionals and legal counsel.

Laws governing gestational carrier and surrogacy vary by state. Tennessee law has language regarding gestational carriers and surrogacy but specifies parental rights only for the intended married couple.

TRM cannot provide any legal advice regarding these matters and mandates a contract be enacted between the carrier and intended parents prior to the beginning of the treatment cycle.