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  4. Vol 5, Issue 1, 2026

Study on the Issue of Parentage Determination in Cross-Border Surrogacy

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DOI: 10.23977/law.2026.050112 | Downloads: 0 | Views: 139

Author(s)

Yiyan Li 1

Affiliation(s)

1 School of Law, Guilin University of Electronic Technology, Guilin, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, China

Corresponding Author

Yiyan Li

ABSTRACT

The determination of parentage in cross-border surrogacy is plagued by the dilemma of "limping parentage," where children face legal uncertainty and rights deprivation due to conflicting laws between the state of birth and the receiving state. This study identifies the dual roots of the problem: fundamental conflicts and ineffective application of domestic laws (regarding surrogacy legality, jurisdiction, and conflict rules), and the widespread non-recognition of foreign birth certificates and judgments, primarily due to the sweeping invocation of the public policy (ordre public) exception. To resolve this, the paper proposes a two-pronged approach. At the transnational level, it advocates for stricter limits on the public policy exception, the structured application of the "best interests of the child" principle, and a shift towards a unilateral liberalization mechanism for judgment recognition. At the domestic level, particularly for China, it recommends establishing conflict rules using the child’s place of birth as the connecting factor and creating a substantive rule system for parentage determination centered on genetic ties, supplemented by the "willingness to parent." Complementary legal reforms are also suggested. This combined approach offers a viable pathway to overcome the current legal impasse and systematically protect the rights of children born via surrogacy.

KEYWORDS

Cross-Border Surrogacy; Parentage Determination; Limping Parentage; Public Policy; Best Interests of the Child

CITE THIS PAPER

Yiyan Li. Study on the Issue of Parentage Determination in Cross-Border Surrogacy. Science of Law Journal (2026). Vol. 5, No.1, 81-86. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/DOI: 10.23977/law.2026.050112.

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