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 Stephen Page, multi-award winning surrogacy lawyer and accredited family law specialist at Page Provan, explains MRKH syndrome and the path to parenthood through surrogacy.

In this episode:

• What MRKH (Mayer-Rokitansky-Küster-Hauser) syndrome is, and why women are often not diagnosed until their early teens
• Why surrogacy is often the first and only option considered by women with MRKH, unlike many heterosexual couples who arrive at surrogacy after years of IVF
• Why gay intended parents and women with MRKH often approach surrogacy without the same history of fertility-related trauma as many heterosexual couples
• Why being listened to and understood matters so much for women with MRKH beginning their surrogacy journey
• Why surrogacy offers a genuine path to parenthood for women with MRKH syndrome

For more information or legal help, contact Page Provan Family & Fertility Lawyers at pageprovan.com.au 

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Stephen Page, multi-award winning surrogacy lawyer and accredited family law specialist at Page Provan, shares the data behind surrogacy in Australia.

In this episode:

• How long it takes to find a surrogate in Australia — anywhere from one month to four years, based on real client experience
• Why finding a surrogate is so hard: one fertility counsellor estimates only 1 in 19 surrogates are known to intended parents beforehand, while another estimates closer to 1 in 5
• What the data shows about surrogacy births in Australia — around 85 to 90 gestational surrogacy births a year, according to the Australian and New Zealand Assisted Reproductive Database
• Why overseas surrogacy births are so much more common — 377 Australian citizenship-by-descent applications in the year to June 2025, roughly four times the number of local surrogacy births
• Why this data is driving the Australian Law Reform Commission's review of surrogacy law, and why going overseas is now the norm rather than the exception

For more information or legal help, contact Page Provan Family & Fertility Lawyers at pageprovan.com.au.

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Stephen Page, multi-award winning surrogacy lawyer and accredited family law specialist at Page Provan, breaks down what surrogacy really costs.

In this episode:

• Why surrogacy in Australia typically costs between $50,000 and $100,000, with a ballpark figure of around $75,000 over an 18-month to two-year journey
• Why legal costs vary by state, with more counselling required in NSW and more court documentation required in NSW and Queensland
• Why surrogacy in the United States now costs at least $360,000 AUD, putting it out of reach for most intended parents
• Why Mexico and Colombia have become popular mid-range destinations, with a ballpark budget of around $150,000 including an extended stay after the birth
• Why having a realistic budget from the start is essential, since surrogacy in Australia must be altruistic, not commercial

For more information or legal help, contact Page Provan Family & Fertility Lawyers at pageprovan.com.au

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Bruce Provan, Managing Director and accredited family law specialist at Page Provan, explains how the family court decides parenting cases.

In this episode:

• Why the "best interests of the child" is the paramount consideration under the Family Law Act, and what evidence the court draws on to decide it
• The role of family reports and child impact reports, usually prepared by a psychologist or social worker, and why their recommendations carry real weight
• When an independent children's lawyer is appointed to represent the children, including their obligation to speak with the children directly
• The key factors under section 60CC of the Family Law Act — the child's safety, views, developmental and emotional needs, each parent's care capacity, and significant relationships
• Why the court must also consider the cultural needs and heritage of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children

For more information or legal help, contact Page Provan Family & Fertility Lawyers at pageprovan.com.au

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Stephen Page, multi-award winning surrogacy lawyer and accredited family law specialist at Page Provan, explains surrogacy in Iran, a path taken almost exclusively by Iranian-Australian couples.

In this episode:

• Why surrogacy in Iran, permitted under religious rulings, almost always involves egg donation as well, and why it's pursued almost exclusively by heterosexual married couples
• Why donors and surrogates in Iran are anonymous and paid low, altruistic-style amounts, with parentage established by private agreement rather than legislation
• The documents needed for Australian citizenship by descent, including the surrogate's maternity records, a certificate of genetic affinity, translated agreements, and a DNA test at the Australian Embassy in Tehran
• Why the current closure of the Australian Embassy in Tehran adds real uncertainty to bringing a child home
• Why getting legal advice before starting is essential, given the risk of committing a criminal offence under Australian commercial surrogacy laws

For more information or legal help, contact Page Provan Family & Fertility Lawyers at pageprovan.com.au.

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Surrogacy in Nigeria is growing among Australians of Nigerian heritage — but it comes with serious legal and medical risks that demand careful planning.

Stephen Page, multi-award winning surrogacy lawyer and accredited family law specialist at Page Provan explains.

In this video:

• Why surrogacy in Nigeria remains completely unregulated, and why agencies there require Australian intended parents to use altruistic surrogacy only
• The extreme maternal mortality risk in Nigeria — a lifetime risk of roughly 1 in 19, compared with 1 in 19,000 to 22,000 in Australia — and why choosing a reputable agency and hospital is essential
• Why Nigeria is not a safe or viable option for gay couples or single intended parents
• How intended parents establish legal parentage, including the DNA testing process through the Australian High Commission needed to bring the child home as an Australian citizen
• Why getting legal advice before starting, using single embryo transfer, and putting a parenting plan under the Family Law Act in place are all essential safeguards

📞 Need advice? Contact Page Provan Family & Fertility Lawyers.
 🌐 https://pageprovan.com.au

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Surrogacy in South Africa comes with one big catch for Australians — you can only access it if you're domiciled there.

Stephen Page, multi-award winning surrogacy lawyer and accredited family law specialist at Page Provan explains.

In this video:

• Why South Africa requires intended parents to be domiciled there — not just visiting — before they can access surrogacy, which mainly suits the South African diaspora in Australia
• How South Africa's preconception court order process works, and how it differs from Australia's post-birth parentage order
• Why South African-born children have been recognised as the child of their Australian parents under the Family Law Act since 2013, and how regulations commencing April 2025 affect birth certificate recognition
• Why the Department of Home Affairs may still request a DNA test for Australian citizenship by descent, even where parentage is presumed
• Why South Africa doesn't discriminate by relationship status or sexuality, but does require a genetic link with the child

📞 Need advice? Contact Page Provan Family & Fertility Lawyers.
 🌐 https://pageprovan.com.au

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Egg donation in South Africa — a high-quality, lower-cost IVF option for Australians, but one that carries real legal risk under Australian laws banning commercial egg donation.

Stephen Page, fertility lawyer and accredited family law specialist at Page Provan explains.

In this video:

• Why Australians choose South Africa for egg donation — IVF quality, lower cost, and historic donor shortages back home
• How South Africa's anonymous donor model compares with Australia's open-identity laws, and why it affects bringing embryos home
• Why some South African donor agencies now require consent to future identity disclosure if the law changes
• The legal risk in Australia: commercial egg donation is a criminal offence in most states and territories (all except Victoria and Tasmania), with penalties of up to 15 years' imprisonment
• Why getting legal advice before arranging overseas egg donation is essential

📞 Need advice? Contact Page Provan Family & Fertility Lawyers.
 🌐 https://pageprovan.com.au

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Breaching parenting orders is more common than you'd think — but taking your ex back to court isn't always the best response.

Bruce Provan, Managing Director and accredited family law specialist at Page Provan explains.

In this video:

• What a contravention application involves, and why it needs to carefully set out the exact times, dates and places the order was breached
• The penalties a court can impose for a proven breach — from fines and bonds to, in extreme cases, imprisonment — and why the court still has discretion not to penalise at all
• Why an application to vary the parenting orders can sometimes be a better option than pursuing a contravention, since orders that aren't working may need to change rather than be enforced
• Why some parents who apply for contravention end up with less time with their children than before
• How parenting coordination offers a lower-cost way to fix what's not working, without going to court

📞 Need advice? Contact Page Provan Family & Fertility Lawyers.
 🌐 https://pageprovan.com.au

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Surrogacy in Sri Lanka is available to Australians, but only under two conditions: you must be of Sri Lankan origin, and part of a heterosexual married couple. In this episode of the Australian Family and Fertility Law Podcast, Multi-Award Winning Surrogacy & Fertility Lawyer Stephen Page explores this often-overlooked surrogacy destination, and the legal traps Australians need to avoid along the way.

Stephen explains why Sri Lanka has become attractive for eligible Australian couples — low-cost IVF and legal advice, and relatively fast matching with surrogates — largely a consequence of the country's economic crisis. He then unpacks how parentage recognition has shifted from an adoption-based model, which carries serious criminal risk for Australians, to a birth-certificate model where intended parents are named directly through the hospital. Stephen also details why, even with a legal presumption of parentage under Australian law, the Department of Home Affairs often still insists on DNA testing before granting citizenship.

In This Episode:

• Who is eligible for surrogacy in Sri Lanka as an Australian
• Why Sri Lanka has become a lower-cost surrogacy destination since its economic crisis
• Why adoption-based parentage recognition creates serious criminal risk for Australians
• How intended parents can be named directly on a Sri Lankan birth certificate instead
• How recent Family Law Act changes create a presumption of parentage for children born in recognised countries like Sri Lanka
• Why the Department of Home Affairs may still require DNA testing despite that presumption
• Why legal advice before starting an overseas surrogacy journey can prevent serious criminal exposure

If you're considering surrogacy in Sri Lanka or any overseas destination, get legal advice before you begin your journey:
 https://pageprovan.com.au/

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