Mills & Reeve says searches for “fertility matters at work” have risen 550% over the past five years, as employees and employers deal with more complex questions around IVF, surrogacy, adoption, and other routes to parenthood.
The national law practice said the increase reflects growing demand for practical and legal guidance. Decisions around family-building now intersect more often with workplace policy, leave arrangements, benefits, and line-management support, while legal questions can extend into parentage, immigration, and estate planning.
Infertility affects one in six people globally, according to the World Health Organization. In the UK, IVF births accounted for more than 3% of births in 2023, according to data released last year by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority. Separate research by reproductive healthcare provider Fertifa and charity Fertility Network UK found 38% of people undergoing fertility treatment had considered quitting their jobs.
Rose-Marie Drury, a fertility lawyer and surrogacy specialist at Mills & Reeve, said: “The reality of building families today means the journeys are varied and unique. It’s a significant challenge for businesses and advisers to ensure they understand the practical and legal implications of those who may be considering fertility treatment, surrogacy and adoption or taking different routes to parenthood.”
A 2026 UK Parliament research paper also pointed to changes in other routes to parenthood, with nearly 500 surrogacy parental orders made in 2024, compared with just over 100 in 2011. Up to half of those journeys involve a surrogate based overseas, adding cross-border legal issues to an already complex process.
Drury added: “The rules around legal parentage vary significantly from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. It is not unusual for someone to be a parent in one country but not be recognised as a legal parent in another even where they have an order from an overseas court or birth certificate. This has a huge range of implications from practical day-to-day issues like parental responsibility to immigration and wealth planning. It’s important that anyone advising individuals understands the different routes to parentage and the impact these can have on their advice.”
As more people pursue non-traditional or medically assisted routes to parenthood, employers are being drawn into questions that sit across policy, law, and employee support. The pressure is no longer limited to benefits provision, but extends to how businesses handle leave, communication, and practical guidance at work.
