Can You Be a Surrogate in Florida?

Florida has had its own gestational surrogacy law since 1993, and part of it changed on July 1, 2026. Here's what the law asks of you, how parentage works after the birth, and what the new foreign-party rule does and doesn't mean.

Published October 16, 2026

Yes - gestational surrogacy is legal in Florida, which has had its own statute for it since 1993 in section 742.15 of the Florida Statutes. The law requires a binding and enforceable contract made before the surrogacy begins, requires that contract to name you as the sole source of consent for clinical intervention and management of the pregnancy, and since July 1, 2026 voids any contract in which a party is a citizen or resident of one of the state's designated "foreign countries of concern."

Florida shows up often in the searches that bring women to us, usually as some version of "can I do this here, and what does it pay?" The short version is that Florida is one of the states with a written surrogacy law, and that law has a few specific features worth knowing before you apply. Here they are in plain language.

What Florida's law covers

Section 742.15 covers gestational surrogacy, where the embryo is created through IVF and your own eggs aren't used. If you're still sorting out the difference, our article on gestational vs. traditional surrogacy explains it. The statute calls the intended parents the "commissioning couple," and it says the contract must be binding and enforceable and must be made before the surrogacy begins.

Under the statute, the contract is enforceable only if:

• You are at least 18. That's the legal floor. In practice, agencies and clinics set their own range, typically 21 to 42, and ASRM's Ethics Committee says carriers should be at least 21.
• The intended parents are legally married to each other and both at least 18. The statute doesn't require you to be married.
• A Florida-licensed physician has determined, within reasonable medical certainty, that the intended mother can't carry a pregnancy to term, or that a pregnancy would put her health or the baby's health at risk. That's the intended parents' paperwork, not yours.

The statute's minimums sit underneath the usual screening, not in place of it. Programs typically still look for at least one term, uncomplicated prior pregnancy, a BMI under 32 (a few accept up to 35), and a background check, and ASRM guidance calls for a full psychological evaluation for you and your partner or support person before any contract is signed.

What the contract has to say

Florida doesn't leave the key terms entirely to negotiation. The statute requires the contract to include that:

• You are the sole source of consent for clinical intervention and management of the pregnancy.
• You'll undergo reasonable medical evaluation and treatment and follow reasonable prenatal medical instructions.
• You give up parental rights when the baby is born, and the intended parents accept custody and full parental rights and responsibilities at birth, regardless of any impairment of the child.

The first point lines up closely with ASRM. Its Ethics Committee says a gestational carrier is the sole source of consent for her own treatment, from hormonal preparation and embryo transfer through delivery and aftercare, and that she cannot be compelled to submit to or decline a procedure regardless of the contract.

One detail matters a lot if donor eggs and donor sperm are both involved. The statute says that if neither intended parent is the baby's genetic parent, the surrogate assumes parental rights. ASRM's Ethics Committee says the intended parents should be the legal parents, and that an arrangement under laws that don't provide for that should be approached with caution and only with independent legal advice, so your attorney should confirm how your arrangement is set up before you sign.

What the 2026 change means for you

The new rule points to the list of foreign countries of concern in Florida law, which news coverage of the bill identified as China, Russia, Iran, North Korea, Cuba, Venezuela and Syria. As a surrogate you are a party to the contract, so the practical question is who your intended parents are. If they're citizens or residents of one of those countries, a Florida contract with them would be void, which would leave you without the agreement that's supposed to protect you.

For most Florida surrogates, nothing changes: the rule doesn't affect a match with intended parents who live in the United States and aren't citizens of a listed country. Agencies and attorneys typically confirm citizenship and residency before a match goes forward. If your match involves intended parents abroad, ask your attorney directly how the rule applies before anything is signed.

Pay and expenses

The statute says intended parents may agree to pay only reasonable living, legal, medical, psychological and psychiatric expenses related to the pregnancy and the periods before and after birth. Published agency and attorney guidance describes Florida agreements that include base compensation and a monthly allowance framed within those categories, so how your contract words it is something your own attorney should walk you through.

As for the numbers, first-time surrogates typically earn $60,000 to $75,000 in total compensation and experienced surrogates $75,000 to $100,000 or more, with a monthly allowance commonly $250 to $350 and all medical costs covered, depending on the agency and contract. ASRM's Ethics Committee says compensation should be aimed primarily at your time, inconvenience and risk, and should not be contingent on the birth of a healthy child.

After the birth

Florida has a fast court process for confirming parentage. Under section 742.16, the intended parents file a petition within 3 days after the birth, and they must give notice of the hearing to you, to the treating fertility physician and to anyone claiming paternity. If the court finds a contract that meets section 742.15 and that at least one intended parent is the genetic parent, it enters an order naming the intended parents as the legal parents, and the state issues a new birth certificate naming them while the original is sealed. Court records in these cases are confidential.

Florida's statute sets out a post-birth process rather than a pre-birth order. Our article on pre-birth orders explains the difference, and your attorney can tell you how the court handling your case approaches timing.

Where Borne fits

Our questionnaire asks where you live because state law shapes everything after it. Florida is one of the states we work with, and a couple of states don't allow surrogacy at all. If you're in Florida, we'll talk through how the process works there on your screening call, and the partner agency and your attorney typically handle the contract and court steps with you.