Australians using surrogacy services in Georgia
 

Advice from the Australian Passport Office (APO) for Australians using surrogacy services in Georgia

 

Before leaving Australia – get prepared.

 

1. Australian couples often find surrogacy in Georgia to be an extremely stressful experience. You need to be prepared.
    
2. Tell us about your travel. Contact [email protected]
    
3. The entire process will likely take longer than you think. Plan for delays.
   
   This means:
    
   • don’t count on being back for family, work, or business commitments.
   • if you take prescription medication, take more than you think you will need.
   • have funds available to extend your stay if needed.
   • mentally prepare yourself for an extended stay in Georgia.
       
4. Don’t take your other children to Georgia. Consider their safety, find another solution.
    
5. Prepare your documents. Ensure you understand which documents you’ll need and in what form (for instance, do they need to be apostilled or translated or notarised). Third country documents (e.g. if your marriage certificate is not from Australia) may be scrutinised closely by the Georgian authorities and may cause delays.  
    
6. Understand what to expect of your surrogacy agency. Often Australian couples highlight a lack of information or lack of sympathy from their surrogacy agency. Realise your agency will be managing multiple births at the same time as yours.
    
7. Similarly, understand your surrogacy contracts, including contracted timeframes. Be cautious of any verbal undertakings made by your surrogacy agency that differ from your contract documents. Have money set aside for legal costs should a dispute arise.  
    
8. Know which government agency does what and whom to contact for what:
   
   For Georgian birth certificates – the Local Government or via your surrogacy agency
   For Australian citizenship – The Department of Home Affairs ([email protected])
   For an Australian Passport - the Specialised Case Management Section ([email protected]) in Australia for assessment and the Australian Embassy Ankara for your passport interview and printing the emergency passport.
   For consular assistance – the Australian Embassy Ankara ([email protected])
   
   We cannot advise on Australian citizenship or Georgian Government processes.
    
9. At least one parent will need to travel to an Australian Embassy to obtain a passport for your child. Your child must stay in Georgia until you return to Georgia with the passport.
    
10. It’s not uncommon for children born through surrogacy to experience medical complications. Have a back-up plan. Medical evacuation is your responsibility. Medical complications could extend your stay in Georgia and the costs of surrogacy.
     
11. Don’t overlook the basics of international travel. You don’t need the additional stress of not having international roaming working on your phone or having your bank cards fail to work.

 

When in Georgia – you are responsible.

 

1. The Australian Government does not have a diplomatic presence in Georgia. There are no Australian officials in Georgia. Consequently, consular services in Georgia are extremely limited.
    
2. Be prepared to wait. Birth certificate, citizenship and passport processes take time. Our embassies will not provide undertakings on when citizenship will be granted or when a passport will be issued. Processing times vary. You can wait outside Georgia should you wish, but this requires leaving your child in Georgia in care.
    
3. Don’t expect special treatment from Georgian authorities. Georgian authorities will issue a birth certificate according to their requirements and timelines; they will not expedite your application simply because you need to leave Georgia. The embassy cannot intervene with Georgian authorities on your behalf.
    
4. You will face language barriers. Australian couples often find it frustrating they cannot engage with medical staff and hospital staff due to language difficulties. Take this into account.
    
5. Be prepared to change your plans. For instance, you may need to travel unexpectedly to Tbilisi due to Georgian authorities’ requirements.
    
6. Don’t book return tickets before you have your child’s passport. Booking tickets without having a passport can result in significant costs to you. Similarly, when to travel from Georgia to an Australian mission for a passport is your decision. We can’t guarantee when a passport will be issued.
    
7. You may meet other couples undertaking surrogacy in Georgia. Every case is different. Do not compare how long it takes for other couples to leave Georgia. Be cautious about taking advice from other couples; only seek advice from official sources. 
    
8. Finally, remember it is your choice to travel to Georgia for surrogacy and you are responsible, including for your safety, the safety of your child, and any legal or medical risks. 

 

Further information

 

• Georgia Travel Advice & Safety | Smartraveller
• Smartraveller international surrogacy advice
• Consular Service Charter
• Australian Passports Office advice on surrogacy
• The Department of Home Affairs
• Privacy  
  
   

Obtaining an Australian Travel Document for your child
 

Below is the list of documents required for us to issueftt an Australian Travel Document. For us to issue any kind of Australian travel document, you need to obtain Australian citizenship for your child first.

The required documentation for Australian travel document (listed below) will need to be submitted to [email protected]

We work in parallel with Home Affairs, and one of our requirements is confirmation that your child has received citizenship by decent (CBD) – more information can be found at on the Home Affairs website here. 

We are unable to assist you with Home Affairs documentation (1195), CBD or any questions regarding the CBD process. If you have any questions regarding the Home Affairs documentation or CBD process, please contact:  [email protected] 

 

Passport process and required documentation
 

Under Australian law, the surrogate mother has parental responsibility for a child she gave birth to regardless of whether she has a biological link, is listed on the child’s birth certificate, or has parental responsibility in the country where the child is born.

In considering issuing an Australian Travel Document to a child in accordance with the Australian Passports Act 2005, we require the consent of all parties with parental responsibility under Australian law.

 

To progress an application, we require:

 

1. A completed Overseas passport application form (PC8) (further guidance below on guarantor) – you can generate the form from www.passports.gov.au – you will need to set up an account first and then answer all the questions. You can save and return to the application as needed. You may leave some data blank if not sure, this can be done by hand at the time of the appointment. For any completing by hand including signatures, only BLACK PEN may be used + block letters (not for signatures of course). Once completed, the application must be printed out in a good quality print.
    
2. Form B4 (Child born through surrogacy) b4.pdf (passports.gov.au)
    
3. Form B5 (Child born through surrogacy – supplementary consent) – Georgian-English version
    
4. The original surrogacy agreement – with a notarised English translation
    
5. Confirmation of Australian citizenship (email provided by Home Affairs will suffice)
    
6. Original Georgian birth certificate - with a notarised English translation
    
7. Copy of Surrogate Mother’s ID (for example, Passport)
    
8. Intended parents ID documents (for example, Passports)
    
9. Confirmation of intended parent’s current residential address in Australia (for example, driver’s licence, utilities bill)
    
10. Two good quality passport photos of the child
     
    • Check the requirements at: Photo guidelines | Australian Passport Office (passports.gov.au) 
    • One photo must be endorsed by the guarantor as instructed in the PC8 form
    • You may wish to keep digital image in case the photo needs to be reprinted
       
11. Application fee

 

For your reference the following links provide further information:

Parental responsibility and consent | Australian Passport Office (passports.gov.au)

Surrogacy | Australian Passport Office (passports.gov.au)

 

Guarantor Section 11 of PC8 and signed passport photos
 

To help us identify the person needing the passport, we need someone else to complete section 11 of PC8 Australian Overseas Passport Application. We also require one photo of your child to be endorsed by the guarantor as instructed in the PC8 form.
 

To qualify as a Guarantor, you must:
 

• Not be related to the Applicant by birth or marriage.
• Not be in a de facto relationship with the Applicant (this includes same sex relationship), nor live at the same address.
• have known the Applicant for at least 12 months or since birth.
• be 18 years or over.
• endorse the back of one photograph by writing ‘This is a true photo of (Applicant’s full name) and signing it.
• possess a current (unexpired) Australian passport that was issued with at least two years validity - complete section 11A

 

Or

 

• be currently employed in one of the approved professional or occupational groups – see below.

 

1. Accountants - members of Association of Accountants, taxation advisers
2. Bank Managers
3. Solicitors, legal advisers, and public notaries
4. Qualified engineers
5. Clerks of Courts
6. Clerks of petty sessions
7. Dentists
8. Registered medical practitioners.
9. Representatives of government or local authorities
10. Judges
11. Marriage Celebrants
12. Pharmacists
13. Police officers with at least five years continuous service
14. Postal managers
15. Public Servants - current full-time employees of Government and local offices who have been employed continuously for at least five years by their current employer    
16. Teachers - full time who have been teaching for more than five years at schools or tertiary institutions.
17. Registered Veterinary Surgeons
18. Registered Nurses
     

If you are unable to obtain the consent of the surrogate, contact us for additional information.

Contact us at [email protected] if anything is unclear and you would like further information.
 

Summary of the process
 

1. If you are considering surrogacy in Georgia, we encourage you to contact the APO for initial advice.
    
2. Following birth of the child, you will need to obtain the Georgian birth certificate.
    
3. You will then need to lodge your application online for Australian Citizenship by Descent (CBD) for your child and prepare for your child’s passport application, including seeking the other supporting documents.
    
4. Once the CBD has been assessed and granted, you should email [email protected] copies of:
    
   • A completed Overseas passport application form (PC8)
   • Supporting documents as described above.
   • All supporting documentation must either be in English or translated. 
      
5. The Specialised Case Management Section (SCM) in APO will then review your application and your supporting documents.
    
6. Once SCM has completed its review of your application and supporting documents, SCM will provide an authorisation for the Australian Embassy Ankara to print your Emergency Passport.
    
7. The Australian Embassy Ankara will then contact you to arrange a time for one or both parents to attend a face-to-face passport interview where you will need to provide the original documents you emailed to SCM.
    
8. You will then travel to Ankara to attend the face-to-face passport interview. During the appointment, you will lodge the original passport application and provide all original documents in hard copy. The interviewing officer at the Embassy will take certified copies of your documents and provide these to SCM. The interviewing officer will verify that the documents you provided to SCM by email are the same as provided at interview.
    
9. Following the interview, the Australian Embassy Ankara will endeavour to print the Emergency Passport as soon as practicable, however, this may a couple of days. You should be prepared to stay in Ankara until this is complete, or alternatively, you can return to Georgia and organise a courier company to collect the passport. The Embassy will contact you when the Emergency Passport is ready for collection.
    
10. If you elected to apply for a Full Validity Passport using the same application form as the Emergency Passport, you will be asked which Australian capital city passport office you would like to collect it from.