Concierge fertility · United Kingdom
Egg donation in the UK, for donors and for recipients.
One page, two audiences. Honest answers on HFEA rules, the £750 compensation cap, identity-release, the ten-family limit, and what recipients should actually expect on wait times, matching and live-birth rates.
Why patients choose us
- 01
HFEA-licensed clinics only
Every UK clinic in our network holds a current HFEA licence. No unlicensed brokers, no overseas short-cuts sold as UK care.
- 02
Donor and recipient, both sides honest
We walk donors through the ten-family limit, identity-release and the £750 cap — and walk recipients through wait times, matching realities and success rates.
- 03
Independent, and free
We are paid by no clinic, so the recommendation is impartial and costs you nothing.
Indicative pricing
What egg donation costs — for recipients, and what it pays for donors.
UK ranges from HFEA-licensed clinics. Donors are not charged — screening is funded by the clinic; compensation is capped at £750 by law.
In short
A recipient frozen donor egg cycle: £6,500–£11,000. Donor compensation: £750, per cycle, by law.
| Item | Indicative range | Typical timeline | Scope |
|---|---|---|---|
| Recipient — fresh donor egg cycle | £8,000–£14,000 | 2–3 months | One cycle |
| Recipient — frozen donor egg cycle | £6,500–£11,000 | 4–8 weeks | One cycle |
| Recipient — egg-sharing cycle | £3,500–£6,500 | 2–3 months | One cycle |
| Donor — screening and workup | No cost to donor | 4–6 weeks | Before cycle |
| Donor — compensation (HFEA cap) | £750 per cycle | One cycle | On completion |
| Implications counselling (either side) | £120–£220 | 60 min | Same week |
Prices vary by clinic and by whether medications, HFEA fees and freezing are bundled. Imported donor eggs, PGT-A and extra frozen transfers usually sit outside the headline figure. We come back with a firm, itemised quote within one working day.
The problem
Two audiences, one badly explained subject.
Donors are handed marketing, not consent-grade information. Recipients are given headline success rates without the wait times, the matching realities, or the honest difference between fresh and frozen. We put both sides on the same page.
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Thinking of donating?
Understand the ten-family limit, identity-release, the £750 cap, and what the screening actually involves — before you sign consent.
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Considering donor eggs?
Get the real live-birth rate for your age, the true wait for your phenotype, and whether egg-sharing or imported eggs fit better.
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Same-sex couple or single parent by choice?
Egg donation into surrogacy is a legal and regulated UK route — we set out the sequencing and the parental order.
The journey
From first enquiry to pregnancy test — both sides, in order.
One coordinator alongside you from first message to review — whether you are the donor or the recipient.
Phase 1 · Before the cycle
Screening, matching, counselling
Phase 2 · The cycle itself
Stimulation, collection, transfer
Phase 3 · After
Pregnancy test, handover
- 01
Before
You tell us which side you are on
A short, confidential form. Whether you are considering donating eggs, or hoping to receive them — and where in the UK you are.
- 02
Before
We come back with a route
Within one working day: which HFEA clinics fit, indicative timelines, and — for recipients — a candid view on matching for your ethnicity and phenotype.
- 03
Before
Screening and implications counselling
HFEA-mandated screening (bloods, AMH, karyotype, CF carrier, infection screen) and a session of implications counselling for donors and recipients alike.
- 04
The cycle
Donor stimulation and collection
10–12 days of stimulation injections, monitored by scan and bloods. Egg collection under sedation — a 20-minute day-case procedure.
- 05
The cycle
Recipient endometrial preparation
Oestrogen then progesterone to build and time the lining. Synchronised with the donor for fresh, or planned around a frozen cycle.
- 06
The cycle
Fertilisation and transfer
Donor eggs fertilised with sperm from the recipient’s partner or a donor. A single embryo is usually transferred; any suitable extras are frozen.
- 07
After
Pregnancy test and follow-through
Blood pregnancy test at day 10–14. Early scan at 6–7 weeks, then handover to routine antenatal care. Donors have a post-cycle review.
Typical end-to-end: 2–3 months for a fresh cycle. Frozen donor eggs can start in 4–8 weeks.
When it helps
When donor eggs are the right route.
The clinical situations that most often lead to donor-egg IVF, plus the one donor red flag that means walking away.
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Premature ovarian insufficiency
Menopause before 40, or a very low ovarian reserve on AMH and antral follicle count.
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Repeated IVF failure with own eggs
Two or more good-quality cycles without a pregnancy, particularly where egg or embryo quality is the flagged issue.
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Age-related decline
Most commonly for women in their early forties, where own-egg success rates fall sharply and donor eggs restore them.
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Cancer treatment and gonadotoxic therapy
Chemotherapy or radiotherapy that has damaged the ovaries, without prior fertility preservation.
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Genetic condition to avoid transmitting
A heritable condition where the safer route is a donor egg rather than PGT-M on own eggs.
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Same-sex male couples and single fathers
Donor eggs, donor or partner sperm, and a UK surrogate — a legally regulated route to parenthood.
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Turner syndrome and gonadal dysgenesis
Where the ovaries have never produced eggs, egg donation is often the first-line option.
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Donor red flag: pressure or payment
If someone is offering more than the £750 HFEA compensation, or pressuring you to donate — walk away. It is not a legal UK donation.
Route options
Fresh, frozen, known, shared — which route fits.
Each UK-legal route to egg donation, what it involves and who it suits.
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Fresh donor egg cycle
Donor and recipient cycles are synchronised. Eggs are collected, fertilised and an embryo transferred within days — highest success rates.
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Frozen donor egg cycle
Eggs from a UK or imported HFEA-approved bank are thawed and fertilised when the recipient is ready. Faster to start, slightly lower yield.
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Known donor (family or friend)
A sister, friend or relative donates specifically for you. Same HFEA screening and counselling; the legal framework is identical.
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Egg-sharing
A woman having her own IVF donates half of her eggs and pays a reduced fee. Sharer and recipient are matched by the clinic.
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Anonymous UK bank donor
A donor from the clinic’s waiting list or the National Gamete Donation Trust. Non-identifying details now, identity releasable to the child at 18.
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Imported donor eggs
From EU or US banks that meet HFEA standards on identity-release and the ten-family limit. Widens choice, particularly for BAME recipients.
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Double donation (egg and sperm)
Where both partners need donor gametes, or for single women. Extra counselling is required, and the child has two identity-releasable donors.
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Donation into surrogacy
Donor eggs used with a UK surrogate, most often for same-sex male couples or women who cannot carry a pregnancy.
Our vetted UK network
A small panel of HFEA-licensed clinics, we picked them.
HFEA-licensed clinics across London, the South East, the Midlands and Scotland. Not listed publicly — introductions are made privately, once we understand your case.
Selection criteria
How we choose every fertility clinic in our network.
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HFEA-licensed clinics with a current inspection rating we have read
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Published live-birth rates per embryo transfer, not just per cycle started
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BAME donor recruitment programmes for recipients who need matched phenotypes
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Implications counselling with a BICA-accredited counsellor for donors and recipients
Standards and risks
The HFEA rules, and the honest risks — both sides.
The regulatory framework and the real-world risks that donors and recipients should read together, before consenting to anything.
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Donor age cap under 36
HFEA rules and clinic practice cap egg donors at 35 at the point of donation. Success rates for the recipient fall sharply after that.
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The ten-family limit
A UK donor’s gametes may create children in a maximum of ten families. It applies across the country and across all clinics.
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Identity-release from 2005
Any child conceived from a UK-registered donor after April 2005 can apply to the HFEA at 18 for identifying information about their donor.
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£750 compensation, not payment
The legal ceiling for a UK egg donor is £750 per cycle, plus reasonable expenses. Anything more is unlawful and disqualifies the cycle.
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OHSS is the main donor risk
Ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome affects a small percentage of stimulated cycles. Modern antagonist protocols and agonist triggers have made severe OHSS rare.
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Egg collection is a real procedure
A 20-minute transvaginal collection under sedation. Small risks of bleeding, infection and, very rarely, ovarian torsion — all discussed at consent.
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Recipient endometrial prep matters
Oestrogen builds the lining; progesterone times the window. Skipping doses or mistiming progesterone is the commonest reason a good embryo fails to implant.
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BAME donor shortage is real
The UK is short of Black, South Asian, East Asian and mixed-heritage donors. Waits can be 12–24 months, or imported eggs may be the practical route.
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Red flags
Severe abdominal pain, breathlessness or fainting after collection — go to A&E. Fever or heavy bleeding after transfer — call the clinic the same day.
Reading your cycle notes
Your donor-egg cycle notes in four parts. Read the last one first.
Whichever route was used, the note the clinic sends you keeps to the same shape — for donors and recipients alike.
A quiet reminder
Fertility language is precise and can read coldly — we translate it for you.
If you would like us to talk you through the note before your review, just ask.
- 01 Header
Cycle type and donor identifier
Fresh or frozen, UK-recruited or imported, anonymous or known — plus the HFEA donor code that stays with any child conceived.
- 02 Technique
Stimulation, collection and lab work
The stimulation protocol used, the number of eggs collected, how many fertilised, and the grading of any embryos.
- 03 Findings
Embryo transferred and any frozen
Which embryo was transferred (day 3 or day 5, grade), and how many suitable extras were frozen for future attempts.
- 04 Impression
Test date, medication plan, review
Read this first: when to test, which medications to continue and for how long, and what happens at the early pregnancy scan.
Recognised by major UK insurers
UK private medical insurance rarely funds donor-egg IVF itself — cover usually stops at investigations. We confirm what your policy will and will not pay for before you commit.
Frequently asked
Everything donors and recipients ask us.
Quick answers on success rates, compensation, anonymity, waiting times, and the difference between fresh and frozen donor eggs.
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For recipients — how successful is egg donation in the UK?
HFEA data puts the live-birth rate per embryo transfer at roughly 40–50% for women under 40 using donor eggs, and the numbers hold up well into the mid-forties — the donor’s age drives the odds, not the recipient’s.
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For donors — how much can I be paid to donate eggs in the UK?
UK law caps compensation at £750 per donation cycle, plus reasonable expenses (travel, childcare, loss of earnings) with receipts. Any clinic offering more is operating outside HFEA rules.
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Am I anonymous if I donate eggs in the UK?
Non-identifying details are given at the time. Any child conceived from your donation after April 2005 can apply at 18 for your name, date of birth and last known address. This is identity-release, not open contact — and it applies to every UK donor.
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What is the ten-family limit?
A UK-registered donor’s eggs can be used to create children in a maximum of ten families. There is no cap on the number of children within one family. Once ten are reached, no further donations from that donor can be used.
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How long does the donor screening take?
Four to six weeks. It includes bloods (infection screen, hormone profile including AMH), a karyotype, cystic fibrosis carrier testing, a family and genetic history, and a session of implications counselling before you can consent.
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How long do recipients wait for a matched donor?
For white European recipients on frozen donor eggs, typically 1–3 months. For fresh cycles, 3–6 months. For Black, South Asian, East Asian and mixed-heritage recipients, 12–24 months is common — imported eggs often shorten the wait.
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Can I donate eggs to a specific friend or family member?
Yes — this is a known or directed donation. The HFEA screening and counselling requirements are identical, and the legal parentage rules still apply: the birth mother is the legal mother regardless of the egg source.
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Fresh vs frozen donor eggs — which gives better odds?
Fresh cycles have a small edge in live-birth rate per transfer, but frozen cycles are quicker to start, avoid synchronisation, and give access to a wider donor pool. For most recipients the practical trade-offs matter more than the marginal statistical gap.
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What is egg-sharing and is it right for me?
A woman having her own IVF donates half of her collected eggs in exchange for a reduced fee. It suits younger women (under 36) with good ovarian reserve who want IVF and are comfortable with the identity-release rules. It is not for everyone — counselling is mandatory.
Related treatments
Looking for something else?
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Egg collection and transfer
The IVF procedure itself, step by step.
Learn more -
Egg sharing
Reduced-fee IVF in exchange for donating half your eggs.
Learn more -
Embryo donation
Receiving a donated embryo rather than donor eggs.
Learn more -
All tests and procedures
Every test and procedure we arrange.
Learn more
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