Italy criminalizes surrogacy abroad.
On 16 October 2024, the Italian Senate approved a ban on surrogacy outside the country. The new law criminalizes the use of surrogacy abroad by Italians. Such actions will be classified as a "universal crime". According to the Italian Government, the new law is aimed at protecting the dignity of women. In Italy itself, surrogacy has been illegal since 2004.
"In the case of surrogacy, the woman does not donate an organ, but gives birth to a child. In this way, she becomes an incubator, the connection between mother and child is broken," - Senator Gianni Berrino.
The government of Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has expanded the ban to punish Italians who use it in countries where the procedure is legal, such as some states in the United States.
The approved text of the bill amends Article 12 of the Law of 19 February 2004 No. 40, which in paragraph 6 provides:
Anyone who, in any form, sells, organises or advertises the sale of gametes or embryos or the subrogation of motherhood shall be punished by imprisonment from three months to two years and a fine from 600,000 to 1,000,000 euros.
In the new version, a provision is added to the specified paragraph, according to which:
If the acts referred to in the said paragraph, with reference to the subrogation of motherhood, are committed abroad, the Italian citizen shall be punished according to Italian law.
Political analysts saw the new law as a way for Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni to assert her conservative credentials, already a radical opponent of surrogacy and gay adoption. Italy currently ranks low in Europe when it comes to civil liberties.