Birth Registration Regulations
made under Section 51 of the
Vital Statistics Act
R.S.N.S. 1989, c. 494
O.I.C. 2007-498 (effective September 20, 2007), N.S. Reg. 390/2007
amended to O.I.C. 2024-76 (effective February 20, 2024), N.S. Reg. 51/2024
Table of Contents
Please note: this table of contents is provided for convenience of reference and does not form part of the regulations.
Click here to go to the text of the regulations.
Citation
Definitions
Birth mother of child
Court may make declaratory order
Parentage—non-surrogacy
Intended parent is parent
Parentage—surrogacy
Intended parent is parent
Court may waive consent requirement
Death of intended parent
Surrogacy agreement not consent
Citation
1 These regulations may be cited as the Birth Registration Regulations.
Definitions
2 In these regulations,
“Act” means the Vital Statistics Act;
“assisted conception” means conception that occurs as a result of artificial
reproductive technology;
“birth mother” means a person who gives birth to a child, regardless of whether the
person’s human reproductive material is used in the child’s conception;
“intended parent” means a person who intends to be a parent of a child conceived
through assisted conception and, for that purpose, makes an agreement with
another person before the child is conceived that
(i) the other person will be the birth mother of a child conceived through
assisted conception, and
(ii) the person will be the child’s parent on the child’s birth, regardless of
whether that person’s human reproductive material is used in the
child’s conception;
“known donor” means a person whose identity is known to the birth mother or
intended parent who provides human reproductive material to be used for the
assisted conception of a child, and who, at the time of the child’s conception,
intends to relinquish the child to the birth mother and any intended parent;
“surrogate” means a birth mother of a child conceived as a result of assisted
conception and who, at the time of the child’s conception, intends to relinquish that
child to an intended parent or intended parents.
3 [repealed]
Birth mother of child
4 A person who gives birth to a child must be recorded as the birth mother of the child.
Court may make declaratory order
5 (1) In this Section, “court” means the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia (Family
Division).
(2) On application by the intended parents in a surrogacy arrangement, the court may
make a declaratory order with respect to the parentage of the child if all of the
following apply:
(a) the surrogacy arrangement was initiated by the intended parents;
(b) the surrogacy arrangement was planned before conception;
(c) the woman who is to carry and give birth to the child does not intend to be
the child’s parent;
(d) the intended parents intend to be the child’s parents;
(e) one of the intended parents has a genetic link to the child.
(3) If the court makes a declaratory order under subsection (2), the court may order
that
(a) the name and particulars of the parents be registered and the name and
particulars of a surrogate mother be removed; and
(b) the surname of the child be registered in accordance with the surname
chosen by the intended parents.
(4) An order made under subsection (3) must contain all of the following:
(a) the full names of the parents of the child;
(b) the date and place of the birth of the parents of the child;
(c) sufficient particulars of the birth of the child to identify the birth record that
is to be changed.
(5) On receipt of an order made under subsection (3), the Registrar must amend the
child’s birth registration as required by the order.
(6) If a child’s birth registration is amended in accordance with subsection (5), every
birth certificate subsequently issued for the child must reflect the amended birth
registration.
Parentage—non-surrogacy
6 (1) This Section and Section 7 apply if a child is conceived through assisted
conception without surrogacy, regardless of who provided the human reproductive
material used for the assisted conception.
(2) Before a child is conceived through a non-surrogacy means of assisted conception
with a donor or donors of human reproductive material, a written agreement must
be made between all of the following people:
(a) the person who will be the child’s birth mother;
(b) any other person who will be the intended parent;
(c) the donor or donors, if known.
(3) The written agreement in subsection (2) must include all of the following
information:
(a) the name of the person who will be the child’s birth mother;
(b) the name of any intended parent;
(c) the name of any donor or donors of human reproductive material, if known;
(d) if applicable, a statement that the known donor or donors agree to relinquish
the child to the child’s birth mother and any intended parent;
(e) a statement that the child’s birth mother and any intended parent will be the
child’s parents.
(4) On the birth of a child born as a result of assisted conception without surrogacy,
the child’s birth mother is the child’s parent.
(5) The child’s birth mother, any intended parent and, if applicable, any known donor
or donors must file a statutory declaration with the Registrar in the form approved
by the Registrar, affirming all of the following:
(a) that the child’s birth mother, any intended parent and, if applicable, any
known donor or donors have entered into a written agreement as specified
in subsections (2) and (3);
(b) that the parties to the written agreement have received independent legal
advice respecting their rights and obligations under the agreement and the
legal effect of the child being relinquished to the child’s birth mother and
any intended parent.
(6) After receiving the statutory declaration described in subsection (5), the Registrar
may amend the child’s birth registration accordingly.
Intended parent is parent
7 For the purposes of Section 4 of the Act, “parent” includes an intended parent upon the
birth of a child born as a result of assisted conception without surrogacy if all of the
following conditions are met:
(a) the written agreement in subsections 6(2) and (3) provides that the intended
parent, in addition to the child’s birth mother, will be the child’s parent;
(b) the intended parent has filed a statutory declaration as required under
subsection 6(5).
Parentage—surrogacy
8 (1) This Section and Sections 9 to 12 apply if, before a child is conceived through
assisted conception, a surrogacy and parentage agreement is made between a
potential surrogate and the intended parent or parents.
(2) A surrogacy and parentage agreement must meet all of the following requirements:
(a) it must be in writing;
(b) it must state that the potential surrogate will be the birth mother of a child
conceived through assisted conception;
(c) it must confirm that on the child’s birth all of the following will apply:
(i) the surrogate will not be a parent of the child,
(ii) the surrogate will relinquish the child to the intended parent or
parents,
(iii) the intended parent or parents will be the child’s parent or parents.
(3) The potential surrogate and the intended parent or parents must file a statutory
declaration with the Registrar in the form approved by the Registrar, affirming all
of the following:
(a) that the person has entered into a surrogacy and parentage agreement as
specified in subsection (2);
(b) that the person has received independent legal advice respecting the
person’s rights and obligations under the agreement and the legal effect of
the child being relinquished to the intended parent or parents;
(c) that one of the intended parents has a genetic link to the child.
Intended parent is parent
9 (1) For the purpose of Section 4 of the Act, “parent” includes an intended parent on
the birth of a child born as a result of assisted conception with surrogacy if all of
the following conditions are met:
(a) the surrogacy and parentage agreement in subsection 8(2) provides that the
intended parent will be the child’s parent;
(b) the intended parent provides a statutory declaration as required in subsection
8(3);
(c) no party to the agreement withdraws before the child is conceived;
(d) after the child’s birth, the surrogate gives written consent to relinquish the
child to the intended parent or parents.
(2) After confirming that all of the conditions set out in subsection (1) are met, the
Registrar may amend the child’s birth registration accordingly.
Court may waive consent requirement
10 For the purpose of the written consent under clause 9(1)(d), the court may waive the
requirement for consent if it is satisfied that one of the following applies:
(a) the surrogate is deceased or incapable of giving consent;
(b) after reasonable efforts by the intended parent or parents to locate the
surrogate have been made, the surrogate cannot be located.
Death of intended parent
11 An intended parent who dies after a child is conceived is the child’s parent if the
surrogate gives written consent to relinquish the child to the personal representative or
another person acting in the place of the deceased intended parent.
Surrogacy agreement not consent
12 Consent in an agreement under subsection 8(2) to act as a surrogate or to relinquish a
child is not consent for the purposes of clause 9(1)(d) or Section 11, but may be used as
evidence of the parties’ intentions for the child’s parentage if a dispute arises after the
child’s birth.
The following regulations are not
yet in force and are not included in the current consolidation: