When couples struggle with infertility, many of them turn to surrogacy with the use of egg or sperm donors to help them have a baby.

The ethics of donor anonymity has become prominent over the last two decades, and has resulted in the removal of donor anonymity in a number of countries. Sweden was the first country to introduce such a law in 1985, followed by Austria which adopted similar law in 1992. Identifying information on donors is also available in Australia and New Zealand.

In the UK People donating sperm and eggs no longer have the right to remain anonymous, under a new law that came into force in 2005. Children conceived in this way will now be able to identify their genetic parents once they reach 18.

Finally, in 2011 the Washington State adopted the law which requires that anyone who donates eggs or sperm must provide both medical history and identifying information. As in the UK, children born from third-party reproductive techniques will now be allowed to obtain the donor’s information from the fertility clinic once the child becomes 18 years old. However, donors can file a disclosure veto with the clinic that prevents the identifying data from being revealed to the offspring. In such cases it is only the medical history that can be disclosed on request.

Historically, the claim that the anonymity is the best interest of the child conceived by virtue of Assisted Reproductive Technology was a strong argument. By making such changes in legislation, the lawmakers suggest that openness is however better than secrecy whereas it is believed to be important for a donor-offspring to have access to information concerning his genetic heritage. Nevertheless, some experts are concerned that the removal of anonymity will deter donors from coming forward in the future.

As far as surrogacy programs with egg or sperm donation in Ukraine are concerned, the ?Instruction on Procedures for Assisted Reproductive Technologies in Ukraine? provides possibilities for use of both anonymous and known donors.

It is namely stipulated that donors of oocytes could be:
– Relatives or friends of patients according to their voluntary agreement;
– Anonymous donors;
– Patient from other ART cycles that provide the recipient with the remainder of her oocytes upon her written consent.

Requirements for oocytes donors in Ukraine:
? Age from 20 to 32 years;
? At least one healthy baby;
? Absence of visible associated traits;
? Optimal somatic health;
? No contraindications for ovarian stimulation;
? Absence of hereditary diseases;
? No alcohol and drug consumption.

The aforementioned ?Instruction on Procedures for Assisted Reproductive Technologies in Ukraine? further stipulates that sperm donors can be healthy men from 20 to 40 years with confirmed fertility and healthy babies. The sperm donor should also have positive phenotypic character. Thereby insemination can be performed with the sperm of anonymous donor or of someone who is personally known to a woman.