Australian Law Reform Commission’s Review of Surrogacy Laws
8 August 2025
On 31 July 2025, the Law Council lodged a submission with the Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) in response to its Review of Surrogacy Laws Issues Paper.
The Law Council’s submission was informed by contributions from several Constituent Bodies, in addition to the National Human Rights Committee, and the Federal Dispute Resolution Section’s Migration Law Committee.
Our submission provided preliminary views on matters relating to:
- human rights issues raised by surrogacy arrangements;
- reimbursing and compensating surrogates;
- requirements and processes for obtaining legal parentage for a child born via surrogacy;
- interactions between migration law and international surrogacy arrangements; and
- potential avenues for harmonisation of surrogacy laws and oversight of surrogacy arrangements.
The Law Council’s submission argued that, in light of the unique legal and ethical issues raised by surrogacy arrangements, it would be appropriate to establish a uniform regulatory approach across all Australian jurisdictions, particularly to minimise jurisdiction ‘forum shopping’. Such an approach must be sufficiently robust to place paramount consideration on the rights and interests of a child born through surrogacy, and to ensure adequate human rights protections for children, surrogates, and the intended parent(s).
The Law Council will continue to engage closely with this Review, noting that the ALRC intends to publish a Discussion Paper in November 2025 that will seek feedback on specific options for reform.
Last Updated on 04/08/2025
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