How to Choose the Right Egg Donor Agency

Starting your surrogacy journey and wondering how to choose the right donor agency? Donating your eggs is a beautiful gift! If you have a generous heart and a willingness to commit, you could help someone else start the family they’ve dreamed of. Finding the right donor agency means finding one that prioritizes your health, offers fair compensation, provides clear and open communication, protects you, and supports you.

Choose an agency that:

• Has clear, honest, and open communication.
• Gives detailed information about compensation, reimbursements, medical screenings, and medications.
• Will protect and support you through the entire process.
• Respects you and truly values your role in helping create a family.

Egg Donor Requirements

First, you should determine what the qualifications for joining the agency’s egg donor program are. At Family Source, you must:

• Be 20 and 30
• Have a BMI of 18-28
• At least have your GED, though higher qualifications will improve your
• Know at least half of your family medical history
• You need to be okay with injections
• Need to have had normal pap smear results within the previous two years
• Not be using birth control, drugs, or nicotine

There are a few practical matters, too. You must be able to dedicate the time and energy to being an egg donor. Getting to and from appointments will take up much of your day. You’ll also need reliable transportation, which may mean you’ll have to think about whether location matters.

Flexibility is a big thing, too. Will you be okay with whether the Intended Parents want an open, semi-open, or closed agreement?

Are you patient? You may not be chosen right away. And when you are, will you follow through and be dependable?

Most of all, you must be 100% genuine about wanting to help people start a family.

Questions to Ask Potential Agencies

Once you’ve decided that you qualify, you’ll need to know what to look for in an agency. Every agency is different, and you should interview them just as they would interview you.

Some good questions to ask might be:

What payment should I expect to receive and when?

Donating your eggs takes a lot of time and commitment, and an agency should reimburse you fairly. At Family Source Consultants, eligible candidates will receive at least $10,000 per egg donation cycle. This amount will vary based on prior experience. Donors who are 100% Chinese or Taiwanese receive $12,000 for their first donation.

Also, ask WHEN you’ll be paid. In most cases, agencies will hold the money in escrow and pay it to you in set portions throughout the donation process. This should all be confirmed in a legal document before the donation process begins.

Are all my expenses reimbursed?

Donors receive reimbursement for other expenses incurred during the donation process, such as:

• Travel (including ground transportation and airfares)
• Hotel accommodations
• Meals
• Medical fees

This is all paid for by the Intended Parents but handled by the agency. If you have a support person accompanying you, their expenses may be covered, too.

What type of screening will I have to go through?

Every donor must undergo a series of tests to check that she is in good physical and mental health.

• The physical exam will assess your heart, lungs, abdominal area, and pelvis.
• FDA tests will check for certain diseases and your medical history.
• Your reproductive health will be examined via ultrasound of your uterus and ovaries.
• An antral follicle count will assess your egg reserve and rule out any problems like cysts or masses.

What type of medications will I have to take?

Donors are required to take a range of fertility medications that help your body to mature more eggs at once. These medications also help to synchronize your cycle with the recipient.

Be sure to ask about the medications you’ll be taking and when. An agency should advise you of the exact schedule you’ll have to follow and any side effects you may experience.

Will my identity and privacy be protected and how?

The matching process should be very careful and sensitive to both parties. If you choose a closed or semi-open egg donation agreement, you should expect that your identity will be withheld from any potential IPs. Ask each agency about their privacy policy and make sure that it is airtight.

After I donate my eggs, what happens next?

Your agency should advise you on how to look after yourself following the retrieval process, any special precautions you may have to take, and any legal matters.

Tips for After You Sign with an Egg Donor Agency

Being part of a high-quality egg donor database will increase your chances of being matched with the right recipients. The more information an agency requires from you, the more accurate their matching process will be.

You may be asked to submit photos from different stages of your life and provide information about your:

• Level of education
• Occupation
• Hobbies
• Skills
• Religious beliefs
• Cultural heritage

All of these details build your donor profile and help you stand out and increase your chances of being chosen.

Stay in touch

Regular contact with your agency is a must – and it goes both ways. The agency should keep you informed of what to expect and when, just as you should keep them updated on any changes to your own life. The agency needs to be able to contact you at any time, both during the donation process and afterward.

Keep updating your photos

Photos representing your physical appearance should be as accurate as possible. Put yourself in the Intended Parents’ shoes: they want to know what their future offspring may look like!

Learn More About Egg Donation with Family Source Consultants

Still have questions? Get in touch with our amazing team at Family Source Consultants. We know the egg donation process inside out – as many of our team members have been donors themselves. We’d love to hear from you!

Related Blogs

• 5 Common Questions About Becoming Egg Donor
• 5 Reasons Why People Need Egg Donors
• Completing your Egg Donor Application: What to Expect
• How Much Can an Egg Donor Make?
• Rewards of Being an Egg Donor