If you donate sperm can the child find you?

The parents of donor-conceived children can never access identifying information about donors via the sperm bank, but children conceived with the help of an ID Release Donor can enquire about the contact information for their donor once they turn 18. As a result, if you have chosen to be an ID Release Donor, the child will be able to get identifying information and try to find you, if they want. This is not possible for children conceived with the help of a Non-ID Release Donor.

Through DNA services, it may be possible for donor-conceived people to find their donor even though they were conceived with the help of a Non-ID Release Donor. At Cryos we do not help or encourage any donor-conceived children or their parents to seek out information about a Non-ID Release Donor. In short, we take every possible step to ensure the safety of your personal information and confidentiality and to safeguard your anonymity as a donor. Still, with some donor-conceived children, the desire to know more about your genetic origins is so strong that they take steps to learn more about their donor, even if he is a Non-ID Release Donor. Before you choose to be a donor, consider the possibility that, whether you choose to be a Non-ID Release Donor or ID Release Donor, there is a chance that a child conceived with your donation will contact you in the future. If this is not acceptable to you, then you should probably give some more thought to your consideration of becoming a donor.

Can a child contact their sperm donor?

Yes, some donor-conceived children can contact their donor. Children conceived by donations made from ID Release Donors will be able to get the donor’s contact information once they turn 18. And even though information about Non-ID Release Donors is never released by Cryos to any donor-conceived children or their parents, there are ways for these children to learn more about their donors too. Online services specializing in DNA search and heritage research can be used in different ways to learn more about an otherwise anonymous sperm donor and ultimately lead the donor child to his or her donor. However, far from all donor-conceived children have the need or desire to know more about their sperm donor. For many donor-conceived children, knowing that a nice man once helped to give the greatest gift by donating his sperm is enough to satisfy their needs.

If you donate sperm, is it your child?

If you donate sperm, a child born from your sperm donations is not yours. Sperm donors at Cryos are not considered the father of children born from their sperm donations. This means that they will not be seen as the legal parent and as a result cannot be asked for financial support according to Danish law.

Be aware, that if the sperm donation or fertility treatment does not take place at a licensed sperm bank or fertility clinic, other rules may apply. This means that if you agree to donate sperm outside a licensed sperm bank, you may ultimately be considered the child’s legal parent.

Sperm donation and the law surrounding the release of donor information

At Cryos, we have two types of donors when it comes to anonymity: ID Release and Non-ID Release. If a donor chooses to become a Non-ID Release Donor, his contact information will never be released to anyone by Cryos, as this would be illegal. Children born with donations from ID Release Donors can contact us to enquire about the donor's full name, date of birth, and last known address. It is only the child that can enquire about the information, the parents can never access identifying information about the donors.

If you are interested in becoming a sperm donor or reading more about the compensation sperm donors receive after their donations, then follow the links.