Home Office Approved DNA Testing After Fertility Treatments - Surrogacy and in the UK and Worldwide

Cryo Medical Logistics
Jul 8, 2025
4 min read

Updated: Jul 13, 2025

Mistakes and mix-ups are exceedingly rare, but DNA testing offers definitive proof of parentage—critical when children are born through fertility treatments like IVF, surrogacy, and prenatal care. Whether you're seeking peace of mind or urgent verification, our full suite of services—including prenatal DNA tests—ensures you and your baby are protected every step of the way.

🧬 DNA Testing & Surrogacy in the UK: What You Need to Know

As a CQC-registered diagnostics clinic and ISO-accredited healthcare company, Greenplace Healthcare supports families throughout their fertility, IVF, and surrogacy journeys—not just with safe cryo-transport, but with reliable and legally recognised DNA testing services to confirm parentage.

Surrogacy in the UK has seen steady growth since being formally recognised under the Surrogacy Arrangements Act 1985. In fact, the number of parental orders—the legal mechanism that transfers parenthood from a surrogate to the intended parents—tripled from 121 in 2011 to 368 in 2018 (source: UK Government). Surrogacy has also become an important path to parenthood for same-sex couples, individuals with medical conditions, and those unable to carry a pregnancy due to hysterectomy or congenital conditions.

👶 Types of Surrogacy: Traditional vs Gestational

There are two main types of surrogacy:

Traditional surrogacy: The surrogate uses her own egg, fertilised via artificial insemination (either from the intended father or a donor). This means the surrogate is the biological mother.
Gestational surrogacy: The surrogate carries an embryo created through IVF using the intended parents’ or donors’ genetic material. In this case, the surrogate has no biological connection to the baby.

Regardless of the method, in vitro fertilisation (IVF) is typically used to fertilise the egg and implant the embryo into the surrogate’s womb.

🧪 Why DNA Testing Is Crucial in Surrogacy

A DNA test for surrogacy provides scientific proof of the baby’s biological link to one or both intended parents. This is essential in situations where:

You are applying for a parental order under UK law
The surrogate gives birth overseas and you need to prove British citizenship eligibility
You require peace of mind that the correct embryo or donor sperm was used

According to UK law, the surrogate is initially considered the legal mother, regardless of biology. To gain full parental rights, intended parents must apply for a parental order within 6 months of birth. To qualify, at least one parent must be biologically related to the child—something a legal DNA test can confirm with over 99.99% accuracy.

🌍 International Surrogacy & Immigration DNA Tests

If your child is born through international surrogacy, DNA testing may be required by the UK Home Office or Border Force to prove your genetic link before granting a UK passport or entry clearance. Legal, court-admissible testing is essential in these cases.

Our immigration DNA tests meet UKVI and HMCTS requirements, and our samples are collected with full chain-of-custody procedures to ensure they are accepted by authorities.

❓ Will My Baby Have DNA From the Surrogate?

Only if you’re using a traditional surrogate (i.e. her own egg). In gestational surrogacy, the child’s DNA will come entirely from:

You and your partner (if using your own gametes)
You and a donor (if donor egg or sperm was used)
A sperm and egg donor (if neither parent provided genetic material)

In all cases, a DNA test is the only definitive way to confirm biological relationships.

🔬 IVF & DNA Testing: Reducing Uncertainty

IVF is widely used by couples experiencing fertility challenges, with over 75,000 treatment cycles recorded in the UK in 2017 alone (source: Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority – HFEA).

While IVF is highly regulated, it’s not immune to human error. Rare cases involving embryo mix-ups or incorrect sperm samples have been documented. A DNA test following IVF can confirm that the child is genetically related to the intended parents, providing reassurance or supporting legal claims if needed.

🧬 Non-Invasive Prenatal DNA Testing (NIPT)

If you want to confirm paternity during pregnancy, we offer a non-invasive prenatal paternity test as early as 7 weeks post-conception (or 9 weeks after LMP). This test uses:

A cheek swab from the father (or donor)
A blood sample from the pregnant person

There’s no risk to the baby, and the test is over 99% accurate. This is especially useful for surrogacy and IVF cases where certainty is required before birth—such as for immigration or parental order applications.

✅ What Type of DNA Test Do I Need?

We offer two main categories of DNA testing:

Legal DNA tests – Used in court, parental order applications, immigration, or adoption
Peace of mind DNA tests – For private use to confirm paternity/maternity without legal proceedings

All tests are processed in UK-based, UKAS-accredited laboratories, ensuring accuracy and privacy. We also provide prenatal DNA testing, IVF verification tests, and surrogacy-specific parentage reports.

✨ Why Choose Us

ISO- accredited & CQC-registered diagnostics and transport
Comprehensive DNA solutions—from peace of mind and legal testing to early prenatal parentage confirmation
Fully accredited DNA lab, offering UKAS-quality results, court admissibility, and 24-48‑hours turnaround

🧬 Ready to Order a DNA Test for IVF, Surrogacy, or Prenatal Paternity?

Get in touch today to speak to one of our trained case managers. We’ll guide you through everything—from test selection and logistics to legal compliance—ensuring you have full confidence in your journey to parenthood.

Contact us today to book prenatal DNA testing or legal parentage services—and let us help you bring your child home with certainty: