Decriminalizing Paid Surrogacy in Canada: Intended Parents’ Perspectives

Abstract This article explores what intended parents think about the Assisted Human Reproduction Act —a federal law that criminalizes paid surrogacy in Canada. Canadian scholars have long debated the merits of the AHRA’s prohibitions and, in recent years, lawmakers have proposed decriminalization. However, interviews with Canadian intended parents reveal that few support decriminalizing paid surrogacy in the absence of regulations and policies that provide protection for surrogates and intended parents. This piece will interest scholars and law and policymakers advocating for evidence-based responses to surrogacy. It challenges longstanding assumptions that decriminalizing payment—and leaving provinces to decide whether to introduce regulations—would support family building through surrogacy.