Surrogacy Guide Mexico

Surrogacy glossary: terms you will meet in Mexico

Short definitions of the terms you will meet. They are general explanations, not legal or medical advice, and meanings can differ by state or clinic.

Short answer. This glossary defines more than 40 terms used in surrogacy in Mexico, including amparo, apostille, COFEPRIS, CRBA, escrow, gestational surrogate, PGT and registro civil. Definitions are general. Ask your attorney or physician how a term applies to your case.

  • Updated
  • Sources cited in the text

Not legal or medical advice. This guide is written by an independent publisher, not by a lawyer or doctor. Surrogacy law abroad is unsettled and changes. Talk to an attorney in the country where the surrogacy will happen and to an attorney in your home state before making any decision.

Amparo
A Mexican constitutional remedy. In surrogacy it is the court route some intended parents use to obtain recognition of parentage and a birth certificate.
Aneuploidy
A condition in which an embryo has an abnormal number of chromosomes. Preimplantation testing can look for it.
Apostille
A certificate that authenticates a public document so another country that belongs to the 1961 Hague Convention accepts it. In Mexico, state documents are apostilled by the state government.
Assisted reproductive technology (ART)
Medical procedures that handle eggs, sperm or embryos outside the body to achieve pregnancy, such as IVF.
Birth certificate (acta de nacimiento)
The official Mexican record of a birth, issued by the civil registry. Who is listed on it depends on the legal route.
Cesarean delivery
Birth through a surgical cut in the abdomen. Surrogacy contracts should say who decides on it.
COFEPRIS
Mexico's federal health regulator. It oversees health facilities and products, and runs a platform called DIGIPRiS for filings. State authorities handle some procedures.
Compensation
Payment to a surrogate for time, effort and risk. It is different from reimbursement of expenses. How it is defined depends on the place.
CRBA
Consular Report of Birth Abroad: the document a U.S. embassy or consulate issues as evidence that a child born abroad is a U.S. citizen.
Egg donor
A woman who provides eggs for another person's treatment. Donors generally do not transmit U.S. citizenship because they are not legal parents.
Embryo
A fertilized egg in its early stages of development, before transfer or pregnancy.
Embryo transfer
The procedure that places an embryo in the surrogate's uterus.
Escrow
An account held by a neutral third party that releases money on agreed dates or events.
Genetic parent
A parent who is biologically related to the child through egg or sperm.
Gestational parent
The person who carries and gives birth to the child.
Gestational surrogate
A woman who carries a pregnancy created with an embryo that is not made from her own egg.
GIRE
A Mexican organization that works on reproductive rights and has documented problems for surrogates, according to press.
HCCH
The Hague Conference on Private International Law, which studied a convention on legal parentage and surrogacy and decided in March 2026 not to start drafting one for now.
Intended parents
The people who will raise the child and arrange the surrogacy.
IVF (FIV in Spanish)
In vitro fertilization: fertilizing eggs outside the body to create embryos.
Jurisdiccion voluntaria (voluntary jurisdiction)
A court proceeding with no conflict between the parties, where a judge reviews a matter. The Supreme Court is reported to have called it a proper route for surrogacy birth certificates when there is no law.
Marginal note (anotacion marginal)
A note added to a civil registry entry. Press reports a court ordering one in a Tabasco case.
Medical tourism
Travel to another country for medical treatment, including fertility care.
Notary (notario publico)
In Mexico, a licensed lawyer who authenticates legal acts. Some surrogacy agreements are ratified before one.
Oocyte
The medical word for an egg.
PGT
Preimplantation genetic testing of embryos before transfer.
Pre-birth order
A court order issued before the birth that names the intended parents. Whether it is available depends on the place.
Procuraduria de Proteccion
A Mexican child protection prosecutor's office. Press says judges must notify it if there is risk of exploitation in a surrogacy case.
Registro civil
The civil registry that issues birth certificates.
Reimbursement
Payment of a surrogate's documented expenses, as distinct from compensation.
SCJN
Suprema Corte de Justicia de la Nacion, Mexico's Supreme Court.
Single embryo transfer
Transferring one embryo at a time. ASRM strongly recommends it for gestational carrier cycles.
Sperm donor
A man who provides sperm for another person's treatment. Donors generally do not transmit U.S. citizenship.
Surrogacy agency
A company that coordinates a surrogacy: matching, contracts, clinic and travel. It is not necessarily a clinic or a law firm.
Surrogate
A woman who carries a pregnancy for someone else. Also called a gestational carrier.
Traditional surrogacy
Surrogacy in which the surrogate's own egg is used. Programs for international parents mostly use gestational surrogacy.
USCIS
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Its Policy Manual explains how it treats children born through assisted reproduction.
Vitrification
A fast-freezing method used to store eggs or embryos.

Keep reading: surrogacy in Mexico, how it works and the legal guide.