Federal government abolishes compulsory anonymity for sperm donors
In future, Belgian donor-conceived children will be able to find out the identity of their sperm donor. On Friday, the Council of Ministers gave the green light for the abolition of compulsory anonymity for sperm donors. From the age of 12, children will have access to information such as the donor's hair colour and height, and from the age of 16, they will be able to get identifiable information such as the donor's name and nationality.
The donation of egg or sperm cells is currently anonymous in Belgium. As a result, donor-conceived children were often left with unanswered questions. This will soon come to an end. “Many donor children have questions about their origins and they have a right to an answer,” stated health minister Frank Vandenbroucke. “Knowing who you come from is a human right.”
Prospective parents will be informed at the start of the process that donors are not anonymous and that their child will later have access to certain information. During treatment, they can obtain medical data about the donor and, once the child is born, physical characteristics and non-identifiable data can also be added.
In future, donor children will from the age of 12 be able to request non-identifying data such as hair colour, eye colour and height from the Institute for Donor Data, which has been set up for this purpose. Until the age of 16, parents will be notified if their child submits such a request. From the age of 16, identifying data such as name, date of birth and nationality may follow.
The children also have the right to know how many other children were born to the same donor. If it turns out that one of them has also requested this information, they can be put in contact with each other with mutual consent. This is only possible from the age of 16.
The new rules apply to donations made after the law comes into force. For anonymous donations made in the past, donors can decide for themselves whether to break their anonymity. Donors will be invited to do so via a general appeal, but it is not compulsory.
There will be a six-month transitional period during which fertility centres will be allowed to use the remaining anonymous material still in stock. After that, anonymous material may no longer be used, except in exceptional situations such as genetic siblings or ongoing treatments.
Illustration © PHOTO PHOTOPQR/VOIX DU NORD/JULIE SEBADELHA/MAXPPP
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