Italy Passes Strict Law Banning Couples From Going Abroad For Surrogacy

Topline

Italy’s parliament approved a law Wednesday that makes it illegal to travel abroad to have a baby via surrogacy—which critics say is a way for Italy’s conservative government to target gay couples, while advocates say it protects the sanctity of motherhood.

Key Facts

Surrogacy was already illegal in Italy, but the new law expands on that by threatening people who travel abroad to have a child through surrogacy with jail time and fines, multiple outlets reported Wednesday.

The law is a “pet project” of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who became Italy’s first female prime minister in 2022 and has said she wants to amplify “traditional family” values during her time in office, Reuters reported.

In a statement posted to X, formerly known as Twitter, Meloni said, “The bill making renting wombs a universal crime is finally law,” and called it “a common sense norm against the commodification of the female body and children,” according to a translation from Agence France-Presse.

Italy’s senate approved the bill 84-58.

Chief Critic

Critics of the law say it will be hard to enforce for heterosexual couples—who likely would not face questions if they return to Italy with a baby—meaning the new law will likely only impact gay couples. Alessia Crocini, director of Rainbow Families, a group opposing the law, told The Washington Post, “The people who can’t hide this are gay couples … this is about [targeting]

gay fathers.”

Key Background

Domestic surrogacy was banned in Italy in 2004, and it is banned in a number of other European countries and in parts of the U.S. The law that passed Wednesday was passed last year by the lower house, and at the time one centrist lawmaker equated surrogacy to “the sale of children,” saying, “surrogate maternity is the most extreme form of commercialization of the body,” the Associated Press reported. The anti-surrogacy view of Meloni’s far-right party, the Brothers of Italy party, echoes that of the Catholic church. Earlier this year, Pope Francis said surrogacy was “deplorable,” said it “represents a grave violation of the dignity of the woman and the child” and called for a global ban of the practice. Meloni said in April she believes surrogacy is “an inhuman practice” and that she supports the bill that “makes it a universal crime.”

What To Watch For

If the law holds up against legal challenges. The New York Times reported the law is so far-reaching that it’s not yet clear whether it would beat challenges.

Surprising Fact

Italy is struggling with a low birth rate. Last year marked the 15th consecutive year with a decline in births. In 2023, Italy had 379,000 births, representing a 3.6% decline from the previous year and a nearly 35% decline from 2008, Reuters reported.

Further Reading