In a written answer on 4 August 2026, Commissioner Brunner, on behalf of the European Commission, confirmed that the exploitation of surrogacy is a form of trafficking in human beings under EU law, but declined to commit to including measures against surrogacy in the forthcoming EU strategy to combat trafficking in human beings. The answer, responding to a parliamentary question from 20 ECR and PfE MEPs led by Paolo Inselvini, reiterates that the Anti-Trafficking Directive, as amended by Directive (EU) 2024/1712 of 13 June 2024, covers those who coerce or deceive women into acting as surrogate mothers. Brunner stressed that national rules on surrogacy, including criminal and family law, remain an exclusive Member State competence, and pointed to existing cross-border cooperation under the European Multidisciplinary Platform Against Criminal Threats (EMPACT), which has a dedicated operational action on illegal commercial surrogacy and the exploitation of illegal adoption.
The answer follows a joint hearing on 3 June 2026 of the Parliament’s Committees on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs and on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality, where the EU Anti-Trafficking Coordinator, Diane Schmitt, stated that surrogacy would not be included in the strategy. The MEPs had questioned this stance, noting that the Commission itself, in a news article of 12 July 2024, highlighted surrogacy as one of the new forms of exploitation covered by the legislative revision. Brunner’s answer does not provide a timeline for the strategy’s publication, nor does it outline new initiatives beyond the existing EMPACT framework. It also does not address the question of the sale of children explicitly, instead referring to the general anti-trafficking legal framework.
The Commission’s position reflects a cleavage between EU-level criminal law harmonisation and national sovereignty over family and reproductive matters. While the directive obliges Member States to criminalise the exploitation of surrogacy, the Commission refrains from proposing EU-level measures that would interfere with national rules on surrogacy itself. This leaves a patchwork of national approaches, with some Member States banning surrogacy outright and others allowing it under certain conditions. The answer offers no new enforcement tools, relying instead on existing operational cooperation, which may limit the effectiveness of cross-border investigations into transnational surrogacy networks. For victims, the lack of a dedicated strategy chapter could mean fewer resources for identification and support, while for law enforcement agencies, the EMPACT action provides a platform for intelligence sharing but no binding obligations. The strategy, when published, will be watched closely to see whether it addresses surrogacy despite the Coordinator’s earlier statement.