In this guide
The critical difference: licensed clinic vs home insemination
How you use a known donor determines the entire legal picture.
If you use your known donor's sperm through an HFEA-licensed clinic, the same legal protections apply as with any other clinic treatment: the donor is not a legal parent, and your spouse, civil partner or a partner who signed the clinic's parenthood consent forms is the second legal parent. Known donor sperm is screened and quarantined before use, usually for 3 to 6 months depending on the clinic's testing (the HFEA Code of Practice sets a minimum of 180 days, or three months where NAT testing is used). Ask your clinic.
If you are single or unmarried and conceive at home or outside a UK licensed clinic, the donor is normally your child's legal father, with the rights and responsibilities that brings, whatever you agree in writing. If you are unmarried, your partner will not automatically be a legal parent. If you are married or in a civil partnership and conceive by artificial insemination, your spouse is normally the other legal parent unless they did not consent; this does not cover conception through sex. Get specialist legal advice before trying at home.
Donors used outside a licensed clinic, including people met online, will not have had a clinic's health checks, so there is a risk of infections and of passing on conditions such as cystic fibrosis, sickle cell disease or thalassaemia (HFEA).
A written agreement with a known donor that says 'he will have no parental rights' is not legally enforceable in the UK outside the licensed clinic system. Courts look at the welfare of the child, not the terms of private contracts.
The legal agreement you should still have
Even if you use a licensed clinic, where the legal protections are already in place, it is advisable to have a written agreement with your known donor that sets out your mutual intentions. This is not for legal enforcement, but to:
- Document that everyone understood and agreed to the arrangement
- Reduce the risk of future misunderstandings about the donor's role in the child's life
- Provide clarity if circumstances change (for example, the donor later marries and their partner has concerns)
- Form a record for your child about the intention behind their conception
The agreement should be prepared by a solicitor who specialises in family or fertility law. It typically covers the agreed role (or no role) of the donor in the child's life, agreement on identity disclosure, financial expectations, and what happens if either party's circumstances change.
Finding a fertility law solicitor
Specialist fertility law solicitors can be found through:
- NGA Law (ngalaw.co.uk, formerly Natalie Gamble Associates): specialists in donor conception and fertility law
- The Law Society's solicitor finder (solicitors.lawsociety.org.uk) filtered by 'family' and 'surrogacy and fertility'
The conversation with your known donor
Beyond the legal agreement, settle the practical questions before you start:
- What role, if any, does the donor want to play in the child's life?
- How do you plan to describe the donor to your child: donor, biological parent, family friend?
- What happens if the donor forms a new relationship? What does their partner need to know?
- What medical information will the donor provide, and how can your child contact them if they want to in adulthood?
- What happens if either of you changes your mind about the arrangement?
Sources
- HFEA, FAQs relating to unregulated sperm donation (opens in a new tab)
- HFEA, Code of Practice update, October 2021 (guidance note 11, donor screening and quarantine) (opens in a new tab)
- Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008, Part 2 (parenthood) (opens in a new tab)
Last reviewed 13 September 2026. General information, not medical or financial advice. Your clinic and a regulated adviser can advise on your situation.