The sharp rise in the trend of fertility tourism is a clear indication that there are huge benefits beckoning intending parents to have their fertility treatment done overseas rather than in a their home country.

The following are the benefits of opting for fertility services abroad:

• Overseas fertility treatment is often much cheaper than the ones available at home. Fertility treatment costs in the US and in UK are quite high. In comparison, you can have the same treatment, with the same quality in Asian countries like India, Cambodia, Thailand or Nepal at a much lower price. The cost of fertility treatments in these countries is cheap enough to make the extra spendings on travel and accommodation worth while.

• The second most important aspect that has a huge impact on fertility service programs is the legal scenario. The legislative framework regulating fertility services, particularly cases where surrogacy is involved, is very tricky. The law in many countries has put a ban on surrogacy and egg donation services. In some countries, the legal system confers parenthood to the surrogate mother even if she is genetically not related to the baby. Just carrying the pregnancy confers on her the right as the legal mother of the baby.

• In many countries, the law supports egg donation as a voluntary service without any reimbursement involved. In most such cases, you will have a hard time finding an egg donor who would go to the process of donation simply as a charitable act.
  

• There are countries where the legal and social system supports surrogacy and egg donation and makes sure that the egg donors and surrogate mothers are adequately compensated for the time and effort they put in.
  

• Legal complications in many countries connected with IVF, egg donation and surrogacy compels intending parents to go for legal help which are often costly. A multitude of factors, most of which arise from the legalities, have encouraged intended parents to select countries where they can have the fertility treatment done without any legal hassle. They weigh the advantages of having the treatment done abroad against the decision of having it done locally and end up flying to foreign destinations where the entire venture would be smoother.

• The social scenario too has a bearing on the availability of better fertility treatment in one country in comparison to the other. For example, the profession of a surrogacy may not be socially approved by the country where you reside due to ethical reasons and the local belief system in vogue whereas in a foreign land, this may not be a social taboo. Hence, the availability of surrogate mothers in those countries far outnumbers the figure available at home clearly making the foreign fertility treatment venture beneficial to intending parents.

• The economic status of a country also has an impact on the availability of surrogate mothers. Girls from developing countries, where the economic is mostly based on agriculture, find the profession of surrogacy an easy way to earn a living. Literacy is not a big requisite for this profession; therefore more and more girls with a good reproductive potential are drawn to surrogacy making the country an advantageous destination for intended parents looking for surrogacy services.

• Some countries have facilities to cryopreserve donated eggs and sperm, which could be kept frozen and preserved for future use. This is a huge benefit for intended parents that makes it possible to go through fertility treatments at a time suitable to them.

• Overseas fertility services may also offer the service of Pre-implantation genetic diagnosis (PGD), a screening that can detect genetic diseases and abnormalities. Your home country may not have this facility, since it is not allowed everywhere.