Surrogacy in Italy: let's try to clarify

An apparently simple definition for a practice with many nuances. The term surrogacy refers to the practice where a woman—often for compensation—chooses to carry a pregnancy for another woman or couple. Simple, right? Not at all. While surrogacy is commonly used by celebrities overseas, like the Kardashian women or Paris Hilton, it's a topic of heated debate in Italy and across Europe. Let's break it down.

Surrogacy in Italy today: The proposal by Fratelli d’Italia

Surrogacy is already a crime in Italy, as decided by Law 40 of 2004, which punishes anyone who "creates, organizes, or promotes the commercialization of gametes or embryos or surrogacy" with imprisonment from 3 months to 2 years, and fines ranging from 600,000 to 1 million euros. Now, under the sponsorship of Fratelli d'Italia deputy Carolina Varchi, a bill aims to extend the crime, making it universal—meaning it could apply to Italian citizens who seek surrogacy abroad in countries where it is legal. This amendment could soon become law.

Is it feasible? Not everyone thinks so

Not everyone accepts or considers this realistic. According to Associazione Luca Coscioni, represented by Filomena Gallo, the law—if passed—would be unenforceable due to the lack of legal basis and because it violates the principle of double criminality, which requires a crime to be recognized as such in both the country where it was committed and the prosecuting country. As reported by nxwss, Professor of Criminal Law Gian Luigi Gatta also questions the practical application of this proposal.

A complex issue with many layers

Criticism of surrogacy comes not only from the right but also from the international left. While Fratelli d'Italia has long supported the traditional family—where a man and a woman have as many children as possible without any "artificial" intervention or third-party involvement—it opposes surrogacy without offering assistance to the young mothers it claims to support. On the left, however, the issue is intersectional and much more nuanced. Here, the debate centers around compensation, making it a matter of classism. Is it fair for a wealthy woman to use a poorer woman's body at her convenience? Should there be different rules based on motives, making surrogacy for medical reasons acceptable, but not for cosmetic reasons? The debate is ongoing, but one thing is certain: the idea of a universal crime seems at least unrealistic.