Australian gay couple first in Queensland to receive surrogacy services from Indian women

Unpaid altruistic surrogacy was decriminalised in Queensland in February – allowing gay people to be the legal parents of a surrogate child and the right to be listed as parent on the child’s birth certificate. An Australian gay couple are reportedly paying two Indian women $300 a day for carrying their babies. They are believed to be the first gay dads in Queensland to pay Indian women to carry their children, with the total bill costing up to $80,000 – equivalent to more than 10 years’ wages for each of the women.

Prior to this, Queensland was the only state where altruistic surrogacy was a criminal offence, which led to a three years’ jail term or $10,000 fine. India and the US are the two most popular destinations for commercial surrogacy, where contracts for pregnancy are legal.