How much does surrogacy cost?
Every surrogacy journey is unique, and the total cost will vary based on each family’s circumstances. Expenses may include agency fees, gestational surrogate compensation and reimbursements, medical and insurance expenses, fertility treatments, psychological services, legal fees, escrow costs, and possible travel expenses. Please visit our Estimated Expenses page for a more detailed overview.
How does Dakota Surrogacy match intended parents with gestational surrogates?
We believe a successful surrogacy journey begins with a thoughtful, mutual match built upon trust, respect, shared expectations, and open communication. After developing a clear understanding of what you hope for in a surrogate relationship, we will introduce you to candidates whom we believe may be a good fit based on factors such as personality, values, preferences, communication styles, location, compensation expectations, and views regarding important aspects of the pregnancy.
If you are interested in a candidate, we will share your profile with her. When the interest is mutual, we will arrange a match meeting by video conference or, when practical, in person. The match will move forward only after both the intended parents and the gestational surrogate independently agree that they feel comfortable and confident proceeding together.
How does Dakota Surrogacy screen and qualify gestational surrogates?
We seek compassionate, dependable women who are motivated by a genuine desire to help another family experience the blessing of parenthood. Candidates must satisfy our agency requirements and complete a comprehensive screening process. This includes detailed questionnaires, personal interviews, criminal background checks for the candidate and her spouse or partner, medical-record reviews, and an assessment of her home environment and support system.
Each candidate must also have previously given birth and demonstrate a history of healthy pregnancy and delivery. Additional psychological and medical evaluations are completed by qualified professionals before final approval. To learn more, please visit our Surrogate Requirements page.
What does it mean that Dakota Surrogacy takes a faith-based approach?
Our faith guides how we think, serve, and operate. We believe every person involved in a surrogacy journey should be treated with dignity, compassion, honesty, and respect. We view the opportunity to help build families as both a blessing and a profound responsibility, and we strive to conduct our work with integrity, humility, and thoughtful care.
Our faith-based approach shapes the level of support we provide, the relationships we foster, and the ethical standards we uphold throughout each journey. We welcome and serve individuals and families from many different backgrounds while remaining grounded in the values that guide our agency.
Do you work with LGBTQ+ intended parents?
Yes. We are committed to treating every person with dignity, kindness, and respect. We welcome the opportunity to help any and all loving individuals and couples pursue their hope of building a family.
Do you work with single or unmarried intended parents?
Yes. We are happy to work with qualified intended parents regardless of their marital or relationship status. We will carefully evaluate the legal, medical, financial, and practical considerations of each individual journey before moving forward.
Will we meet and mutually choose our gestational surrogate?
Yes. We will recommend potential candidates based on our knowledge of both you and the gestational surrogates in our program, but the decision to match is always mutual. You and the prospective surrogate will have an opportunity to meet, ask questions, discuss important expectations, and determine whether everyone feels comfortable moving forward together.
We encourage intended parents and gestational surrogates to maintain respectful, consistent communication throughout the journey. Depending on location, personal preferences, and medical-provider policies, intended parents may also attend important appointments and be present for the birth. Many intended parents and surrogates develop meaningful relationships that continue long after delivery.
Can we use our own eggs or sperm to create embryos?
When medically appropriate, intended parents may be able to use their own eggs, sperm, or both to create embryos through in vitro fertilization. These decisions should be made in consultation with a qualified reproductive endocrinologist. Dakota Surrogacy can connect you with experienced fertility clinics that will evaluate your individual circumstances and explain your treatment options.
Will you help us find an egg or sperm donor?
Dakota Surrogacy does not directly recruit or match egg and sperm donors. However, we maintain relationships with qualified professionals and reputable donor programs and would be happy to provide referrals to organizations that can assist you.
Do you coordinate the legal process?
Yes. Independent legal representation is essential to protecting the rights and responsibilities of both the intended parents and the gestational surrogate. Each party must be represented by separate, qualified legal counsel. Dakota Surrogacy will help coordinate this process and ensure that you are matched in a state where the necessary legal steps can be completed based on your individual circumstances.
Once a match is established and the gestational surrogate receives medical clearance, the attorneys will negotiate and finalize the gestational carrier agreement. Legal clearance must be issued before fertility medications begin or an embryo transfer occurs.
Depending on the applicable state laws and the circumstances of the journey, the parentage process may include a pre-birth order, post-birth order, acknowledgment or judgment of parentage, adoption, or another court proceeding. Intended parents may also be required to complete or update estate-planning documents before the embryo transfer, including documents naming a guardian who could care for the child if the intended parent or parents were to die. Your attorney will advise you regarding the documents and legal procedures required for your journey.
What is the likelihood that our gestational surrogate will become pregnant?
Success rates depend on many factors, including embryo quality, the age of the egg provider when the embryos were created, genetic testing, the gestational surrogate’s medical history, the fertility clinic’s protocols, and other individual circumstances. Although gestational surrogates are carefully screened and fertility treatments continue to advance, no agency or clinic can guarantee that an embryo transfer will result in pregnancy or live birth.
Your fertility clinic is the most appropriate resource for discussing the anticipated success rate associated with your embryos and treatment plan.
Can we work with a gestational surrogate we already know?
Yes. If a family member, friend, or another person you know has offered to serve as your gestational surrogate, Dakota Surrogacy can help coordinate the journey. A previously identified surrogate must still complete the necessary agency, medical, psychological, legal, insurance, and background-screening requirements.
Our role is to help everyone enter the arrangement with clear expectations, appropriate independent support, and the professional safeguards needed for a healthy and collaborative journey.