Taxing Surrogacy

Abstract:     
Tax law collides with the human body at an unexpected juncture: surrogate motherhood. This article considers the income tax treatment of payments received by a woman for carrying a child for another person. In some parts of the United States, surrogacy is legal. In other parts, it is illegal. In all places in the U.S., though, amounts received by a surrogate mother should be (and are) taxable for federal income tax purposes. Anecdotal evidence suggests that surrogates do not comply uniformly with income tax reporting requirements. This article considers the implications of the taxing (or not taxing) surrogacy. It suggests how the government can encourage surrogates’ compliance with applicable income tax laws. The article concludes with notes for further study of the ways in which gender, social policy and tax laws are intertwined.

Number of Pages in PDF File: 14

Keywords: taxation, surrogacy, surrogate, mother, reproductive technology, assisted reproduction, tax, income, gender, women

JEL Classification: K12, K34

Accepted Paper Series