Georgia’s rapidly expanding surrogacy sector has become the focus of new research from the University of Oxford, which examines how international recruitment networks, social media, and informal systems of control shape the experiences of migrant surrogate women.
The study, conducted by Dr. Polina Vlasenko of the University of Oxford’s Centre on Migration, Policy and Society (COMPAS), was published in Mobilities amid continuing debate over the regulation of commercial surrogacy in Georgia. A proposed law in 2023 that would have limited commercial surrogacy to Georgian citizens and residents was rejected.
According to the research, Georgia has become an important destination for international intended parents, with clinics increasingly recruiting women from Central Asia through platforms such as Instagram and TikTok. The study argues that behind the visible medical and legal structures of the industry lies a network of “intermediaries,” including agents, clinic coordinators, and former surrogates, who play a central role in organizing and managing the process.
These intermediaries help women enter the surrogacy market by arranging contracts, travel, accommodation, and financial matters. However, the research suggests that they may also influence many aspects of surrogates’ lives after they arrive in Georgia, including their daily routines, relationships, and interactions with clinics.
The findings are based on fieldwork carried out in Kazakhstan and Georgia between 2023 and 2024, including interviews with more than 100 surrogates, egg donors, medical workers, agents, and intended parents.
One of the study’s key findings is the growing importance of social media recruitment. Many women interviewed said they first learned about surrogacy through online advertisements or posts shared by agencies, clinics, or former participants. Some women who previously acted as surrogates later became recruiters themselves, encouraging others to enter the program.
For some women, the financial motivation is significant. Sholpan, a surrogate from Central Asia, said that although surrogacy has become highly profitable for Georgia’s clinics, it can also provide major financial opportunities for participants.
“I can see that surrogacy is a gold mine for Georgia, but it is also very profitable for surrogates,” she said. “Everyone comes here because they have a problem. Nobody comes just for fun. Back home, 300 dollars is an average monthly salary that feeds an entire family; here, I could have it all to myself, saving a final lump sum for an apartment. They also take care of the housing, tickets, tests, everything.”
However, the study highlights concerns about dependence and control. Many surrogate women are required to stay in Georgia during pregnancy and often live in accommodation arranged by clinics. Researchers found that some women experienced monitoring of their behavior, with reports that clinics and intermediaries encouraged surrogates to report rule violations by others.
The research also describes cases where access to housing and support was connected to recruitment work. Sholpan said that after several unsuccessful embryo transfers, she eventually became pregnant. She later began working as an agent but said a clinic director linked continued housing assistance to her ability to recruit other women.
“He told me: ‘bring other women too’. If you work well for my clinic, I’ll provide you with housing,” she said.
Some interviewees described difficult personal experiences. Aliya, another surrogate, said: “I almost died, and they treat me like cattle.”
Clinic representatives presented a different perspective, highlighting the challenges of managing relationships with surrogate women. Lisa, a clinic manager, said: “They do not like how they are treated. They want to be treated like queens or VIPs. The most difficult part is behaving well with surrogates, not snapping at them.”
The study also shows how personal testimony has become a powerful recruitment tool. Sholpan explained that she uses her own experience to reassure potential surrogates who may fear exploitation.
“I tell them I’ve done the program myself, and nothing bad happened,” she said. “To sell organs or traffic you, they’d need someone young and beautiful, not a forty-year-old woman of ninety kilos like me. You can even video call me. I’ll show you my apartment. When they hear from someone who’s been through it, they start to trust.”
Dr. Vlasenko said Georgia’s surrogacy market has developed in response to growing international demand and a limited local supply of surrogate workers.
“Georgia’s surrogacy hub operates through systems in which intermediaries do more than connect surrogates to clinics,” she said. “They govern emotions, discipline conduct, and supervise communal living.”
The researcher argues that recognizing the role of intermediaries is essential to understanding how the industry functions and how care and control can become intertwined in cross-border surrogacy.
The study concludes that Georgia’s surrogacy sector raises wider questions about regulation, migrant women’s protections, and the balance between reproductive opportunities and ethical safeguards.
Researchers say that better data collection and closer attention to the experiences of surrogate workers are necessary to develop policies that address the realities of this growing international market.
Source: Oxford University
