IVF

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In Singapore, egg and sperm donation is permitted. However, commercial trading of egg and sperm is strictly prohibited in Singapore. So you cannot pay for the egg or sperm, nor can you pay the donor in any form. You can, however, reimburse the donor for his/her expenses incurred (e.g. transport costs). 

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The donor eggs can be sought from relatives or close friends, who might be willing to undergo the egg retrieval process (see Stage 1 and Stage 2 above). Most clinics will require you to find the egg donor yourself. Generally, the egg donor: 

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• should not be related to the husband;

• should be 35 years old or younger; 

• will have to complete a counseling and psychological assessment session; 

• will have to be screened for genetic risks and diseases; 

• will have to confirm that the donation is altruistic, such that she is not paid for the donation. 

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Alternatively, the donated eggs may be obtained from unrelated donors, such as ladies who are already undergoing fertility treatments and have eggs to spare. 

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It is easier to access donor sperm, than donor eggs. Some clinics will ask you to find your own sperm donor (such as relatives or close friends). Others will link you up with overseas sperm banks which have been approved by the Ministry of Health. However, there are some guidelines in place (e.g. there should be no more than 3 live births per sperm donor, to prevent the chance of half-siblings meeting). 

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In Singapore, it is not possible for a single lady to use donor sperm to get pregnant. It is also not possible for the clinics to carry out surrogacy arrangements (whereby another lady carries the child, and is paid for doing so).

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Freezing your Eggs 

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Generally, the quality of the eggs decreases with age, especially after the woman turns 35 years old. Hence, some women wish to extract and freeze their eggs while they are relatively young.

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In Singapore, the position is that you can only freeze your eggs for future use if there is a medical reason for you to do so. For example, you may freeze your eggs before undergoing chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy which may affect the quality of the eggs. 

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At present, “social egg freezing” is still not allowed in Singapore. So unless you have a medical reason for freezing your eggs, you will not be able to freeze your eggs (regardless of whether you are single or married) for use later, when you are ready to have kids. 

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