2003 JAPAN LAW: SURROGATE BIRTHS
Keywords: Family Law, Surrogate Birth, Surrogate Babies
Copyright 2004. All rights reserved Attorney Roderick H. Seeman
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Reportedly there have only been two surrogate births in Japan, where a fertilized egg is implanted in another woman who bears the child until birth. Both such cases were at a clinic in Nagano Prefecture. The Japan Society of Obstetrics and Gynecology bans surrogate births. The government of Japan is giving serious consideration to banning it in Japan. Thus many Japanese are going abroad to get around these difficulties. But it is still not easy to get by the government. One couple from the Kansai region of Japan was lucky to go to California and have a surrogate birth there. The husband’s sperm was used to impregnate the egg of an Asian American woman and another American woman served as the surrogate mother. The result was twins. California law permitted the couples name to be used as the parents in the birth certificate. The couple obtained US birth certificates and they submitted them to the local Japanese consulate in trying to register the children’s birth. However Japanese regulations requiring that when there is a birth  by a woman over 50 years of age (the Japanese wife of the couple was 53) it must be confirmed. The Japanese Ministry of Justice stated that it could not accept such birth registrations when it was clear that the mother was not Japanese. The children were able to enter Japan on US passports with Japanese visas. Reportedly over 50 children born in this surrogate method have had their birth registrations accepted. The problem here was the age requirement led to an investigation. The Ministry of Justice stated that since it was clear that the Japanese male was the father, the couple should just adopt the children and then they would have no problem granting citizenship. The Ministry of Justice says that under Japanese law the woman who gives the birth is the legal mother.