Donor insemination

Donor insemination (DI) is the process of conceiving a baby using donated sperm.

If you are considering DI, it's likely that other assisted conception treatments haven't helped you to conceive. DI may be your best chance of having a baby after many months of trying other routes to parenthood.

Is donor insemination (DI) an option for me?

Your doctor may recommend DI as an option if your male partner has a problem with his sperm, such as having:
  • A low sperm count. You may want to pursue DI in order to avoid invasive or more expensive treatments, such as ICSI and IVF.
  • No sperm, or sperm that is unlikely to result in conception.
  • A known genetic disorder or infection that may be passed on to your baby (NCCWCH 2013:389-90).
  • A severe rhesus problem that would affect the pregnancy if you carried a rhesus positive baby.
DI may not be the answer if you also have fertility problems. Your doctor will check that you are ovulating and may also offer you a tubal assessment. You will get a tubal assessment if your medical history suggests that your fallopian tubes, which carry your egg from your ovary to your uterus, may have been damaged (NCCWCH 2013:392). At least one of your fallopian tubes will need to be free of blockages.

Other circumstances when DI may be recommended are:
  • If you are a single woman who wants to have a baby on your own, or to co-parent with a man who is not your partner. Some clinics may not offer single women treatment (HFEA 2009a, 2009b), so you may need to check out a few before you find one that's right for you.
  • If you are in a same-sex relationship and want to conceive.

How do I begin DI?

If you are considering DI you should be offered counselling (HFEA 2009b, NCCWCH 2013:390) at this early stage. DI has far-reaching implications for everyone concerned, especially the child you may conceive. You will need to think carefully about when and how you will tell your child how they came into the world.

The British Infertility Counselling Association (BICA) offers counselling independent from the clinics that treat you (NCCWCH 2013:390).

You may find the idea of making a baby with a stranger's genes hard to deal with. Your partner may be less comfortable with raising a child without that genetic connection.

Your clinic or counsellor should be able to give you information about local support groups. Talking to other parents who already have children conceived by DI may help you to think through the issues (HFEA 2009c). The Donor Conception Network offers local groups, national meetings and online forums with parents who have experienced DI.

How can I find a donor, and what are the legal implications of DI?

All sperm used for DI in the UK must be regulated by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA). This is to reduce the risk of disease and other problems.

Clinics will match your donor as closely as possible with you and your partner for characteristics such as hair and eye colour, occupation and even interests.

Your child can find out non-identifying information about the donor, such as their physical appearance, once they're 16 years old. Or you can apply on their behalf earlier. No identifying information (such as the donor's name) may be given to your child if they are born as a result of the donation until they're 18 years old.

However, a child conceived through DI can find out identifying information earlier (once they're 16) if they plan to:
  • marry
  • enter a civil partnership
  • have a sexual relationship
All clinics screen donors carefully to reduce the chances of a child inheriting a genetic disorder. Ask your clinic about its criteria for screening donors. In the UK, donors are not paid, but they can claim expenses such as travel, childcare and some loss of earnings.

If you would like to use the same donor for more than one child, tell the clinic from the outset. They will make sure there is enough sperm available and that the donor has given consent for his sperm to be used in this way (HFEA 2009a).

Bear in mind that some donor-conceived adults don't want to dig into the past. They may have no interest in the donor, or in finding out whether they have any half-siblings in other families. Other donor-conceived adults will want to know as much as they can about their genetic history. You will need to be prepared for either scenario and support your child when they make that decision.

The HFEA website offers information and helps people conceived by DI who want to find out more about the donor.

Can my partner be the named father?

Before treatment can take place, the clinic needs to clarify who will be the legal parents of your baby.
  • If you're married or in a civil partnership, your partner will automatically become the legal father or second parent of your child. Your partner's name will appear on the birth certificate, unless they state that consent is not given (HFEA 2009b).
  • If you are in a relationship, but not married or in a civil partnership, your partner needs to give consent for their name to appear on the birth certificate (HFEA 2009b).
  • The legal situation for a gay man who wants to donate sperm and be involved in co-parenting the child can be more complex (Stonewall 2011). See Stonewall's Guide for gay dads for more information.

How is DI carried out?

Donated sperm is usually used as part of an intrauterine insemination (IUI) procedure. Or it can be used for in vitro fertilisation (IVF). During IUI, the doctor places a concentrated dose of the donated sperm in your uterus (womb) at your time of ovulation.

Sperm which is used in DI is frozen for at least six months and then thawed just before it is used. Freezing doesn't harm the sperm. It is washed and prepared before the doctor inserts it into your uterus. Having IUI shouldn't cause you pain or discomfort, though some women experience mild cramps (NHS Choices 2011).

The use of fertility drugs, together with DI, should only be used if you have an ovulation problem, as using them in other circumstances increases the risk of multiple pregnancy(NCCWCH 2013:393). If you are fertile, or you have unexplained infertility, and are ovulating it is recommended that you have a a natural cycle, and use an an ovulation predictor kit to time the DI for when you ovulate.

The number of inseminations you will have in each cycle can vary, as can the method used. After the procedure, your doctor may ask you to rest for a short time. You can take a pregnancy test in about two weeks.

How long does DI treatment take?

Once you have chosen a clinic, staff there will advise you on how soon you may be treated. The National Gamete Donation Trust and the HFEA can help you to find the nearest fertility clinic which offers DI.

The insemination itself is straightforward and takes only about 10 minutes (NHS Choices 2011). But if you are having a stimulated cycle, you will also need to take fertility drugs before you ovulate.

You can have at least six DI cycles before your doctor will recommend moving on to other treatment options (NCCWCH 2013:393).

If you haven't conceived within three cycles, it's recommended that you have an assessment to make sure your fallopian tubes are healthy before continuing with further cycles (NCCWCH 2013:392).

What are the success rates of DI?

The success rates depend on your age. In 2010, the percentage of unstimulated cycles using DI that resulted in a live birth were:
  • 15 per cent for women who are under 35
  • 11 per cent for women who are between 35 and 37
  • nine per cent for women who are between 38 and 39
  • five per cent for women aged 40 and over (HFEA 2012)

What are the advantages of DI?

  • DI may be a good option if your partner produces no sperm at all, or if he carries a genetic disorder which could be passed on to your child.
  • Fertility clinics which practice DI using frozen sperm must keep to strict safety laws. All sperm used by clinics must be screened for infections, such as HIV, hepatitis B and hepatitis C.
  • Sperm should also be screened for inherited diseases such as cystic fibrosis (HFEA 2009c). The sperm is kept in frozen quarantine for six months as part of the screening process, and washed before it can be used (NHS Choices 2011).
  • Buying sperm from sources other than a registered donor is illegal because it may not have been through these robust checks. Unregulated individuals or companies selling fresh sperm for home insemination are breaking the law (HFEA 2009d).
  • A man who donates sperm through a clinic has no legal rights or responsibilities over the resulting children. He will have been made aware of this and have received counselling about this before donating.
  • If you want to use sperm from someone you know, you can choose them to be the second parent on your child's birth certificate. Or you can choose your partner as the second parent.

What are the disadvantages of DI?

  • If you have a stimulated cycle followed by DI, the fertility drugs may make you release more than one egg. This could result in a multiple pregnancy, which may be more likely to result in complications than a singleton pregnancy (HFEA 2009d).
  • Not being the biological parent may affect how your partner feels about the child. Your wider family members also need to come to terms with an addition to the family who is not genetically related to them.
  • You will need to think about how and when you will tell the child about their genetic origins and the many emotional issues that donor conception presents.
  • As the same donor can be used for up to 10 live births, your child should contact the HFEA when they are old enough. This will ensure that your child doesn't have children with someone they are partly related to.
  • Since the law changed to make it possible for donor-conceived children to trace their donors, fewer men have donated their sperm (HFEA 2009e).
  • Some clinics have resorted to importing sperm from abroad. They have to apply to HFEA to do so, and the sperm must meet the same strict legal, medical and ethical standards as those in the UK (HFEA 2009f).
  • A donor may withdraw consent for their sperm to be used at any point in the process. A donor may also withdraw consent after you have had one child and before you have had a chance to conceive another.

You can find a counsellor specialising in fertility issues and treatments through the British Infertility Counselling Association.

To talk about sperm donation with like-minded mums, join our community.

Last reviewed: May 2013


HFEA. 2009a. Using donated sperm in your treatment. Human Fertilisation and Embyrology Authority. [Accessed January 2012]

HFEA. 2009b. Code of practice. 8th edition, revised October 2011. London: Human Fertilisation and Embyrology Authority. [pdf file, accessed January 2012]

HFEA. 2009c. What is donor insemination (DI) and how does it work? Human Fertilisation and Embyrology Authority [Accessed January 2012]


HFEA. 2009d. Donor insemination (DI): the risks. Human Fertilisation and Embyrology Authority [Accessed January 2012]

HFEA. 2009e. FAQs about treatment. Human Fertilisation and Embyrology Authority [Accessed January 2012]

HFEA. 2009f. Importing sperm, eggs or embryos. Human Fertilisation and Embyrology Authority [Accessed January 2012]


NHS Choices. 2011. Artificial insemination - how it is performed. [Accessed January 2012]

Stonewall. 2011. A guide for gay dads. [pdf file, accessed January 2012]

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