Woman prosecuted for brokering surrogacy

The suspect, surnamed Chen, admitted that she was paid NT$100,000 (US$3,100) to help the Taiwanese man have a child through surrogacy, which is illegal in Taiwan, police said.

Chen, who is from Hsinchu in northern Taiwan, was arrested recently and has been charged with brokering a surrogacy in contravention of Taiwan's laws, police said.

They said Chen made arrangements for a Thai woman to be implanted in Cambodia last July with two embryos created by in vitro fertilization using the man's sperm and eggs from another Thai woman.

The egg donor was paid THB$160,000 (US$4,587) to THB$180,000, while the surrogate was paid a lump sum THB$1.15 million and was also given a monthly payment of THB$35,000 during her pregnancy, the police said.

They said the surrogate was in Thailand for most of her pregnancy but traveled to Taiwan in early March on a tourism visa and was staying at a hotel in Hsinchu until March 31, when she gave birth to a baby boy at a hospital there.

The hospital staff, noticing something unusual in the relationship between the Taiwanese man and the mother, reported the matter to the National Immigration Agency, police said.

During an investigation by the police, the man admitted to the surrogacy arrangement, saying he wanted to carry on his family line.

Under Taiwan's Artificial Reproduction Act, neither the man nor the surrogate is liable to prosecution, but the Taiwanese woman who made the arrangement may face a prison sentence of up to two years and/or a fine of NT$200,000 to NT$1 million if she is convicted.

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