Why it can be hard
You are asked to produce a sample to a timetable, often in an unfamiliar room, knowing the timing matters. Pressure like that makes it harder for many men, not easier. Finding it difficult is common, and it says nothing about your fertility.
It helps to agree a back-up plan with the clinic beforehand, so the day does not rest on one attempt.
Before the day
Your clinic will give you written instructions. Read them early, because the rules vary between clinics.
- Abstinence: clinics ask you not to ejaculate for a set number of days before the sample, commonly somewhere between 2 and 7. Follow your clinic's window; going longer is not better, and some clinics will not accept a sample outside it.
- Ask whether you need a semen analysis before treatment starts. It helps the lab decide between standard IVF and ICSI.
- Ask whether you can freeze a back-up sample in advance. The HFEA lists difficulty producing a sample on the day as one reason to freeze sperm beforehand.
- Ask whether you can produce at home, and if so how quickly the sample must reach the lab. Limits vary: some clinics ask for it within 30 to 45 minutes, others accept up to 90.
On the day
For IVF, you are usually asked to come in and produce your sample while your partner's eggs are being collected, so it can be prepared in the lab the same morning.
- The sample is produced by masturbation into the container the clinic gives you. Use only that container.
- Do not use lubricant or an ordinary condom; both can damage sperm. Some clinics can give you a sperm-safe lubricant if you ask.
- Collect the whole sample. If any is lost, tell the lab rather than saying nothing; they can take it into account.
- Most clinics have a private room. Ask in advance what it is like and what is allowed, so there are no surprises.
If it does not happen
Tell the embryologist or nurse as early as you can. They will have dealt with it before, and the sooner they know, the more options there are. A frozen back-up sample is the simplest one, which is why it is worth arranging in advance.
Where sperm cannot be produced by ejaculation at all, it can sometimes be collected surgically and used with ICSI. That is a planned procedure, not a same-day fix, so talk to the clinic about it ahead of time if you think it could be needed.
Sources
- HFEA, In vitro fertilisation (IVF) (opens in a new tab)
- HFEA, Sperm freezing (opens in a new tab)
- Cambridge University Hospitals NHS, Instructions for production of semen samples (opens in a new tab)
- UCLH NHS, Semen analysis information (opens in a new tab)
- HFEA, Infertility surgery for men (opens in a new tab)
Last reviewed 8 October 2026. General information, not medical or financial advice. Your clinic and a regulated adviser can advise on your situation.