Akira,

Sorry, I pressed something in the middle of writing to you!

I would suggest considering and agency. They will provide you with an extra layer of protection and make sure there is conflict of interest on behalf of the clinic – for example wanting to cut corners on treatment. Working through an agency should not be much more expensive. The best agencies have agreements with the clinics so they get discounted rates. The agency can add a lot if it is good.

Please be wary of all contracts. Most of them are not up to international standards and the English can be poor. Make sure you have a lawyer checking them very carefully especially as Ukrainian will be the recognized language in court and legal proceedings if there is a misunderstanding.

If you want to be super safe, see if you can find an international surrogacy agency that works with both your home country and Ukraine. Some (like us) conclude contracts in your home jurisdiction and language.

Again, I can’t stress enough that you need to make sure before you do anything that you can legally and in a realistic period of time, get your child home.

Other than that, feel free to bounce the names of any of the clinics you are thinking of and I will share my experience if I have had any.

I hope I have helped. Susan