The controversial proposal for a certificate of parenthood goes to vote in the plenary of the EU Parliament next week.
Though the measure, which would facilitate surrogacy abroad by Europeans, is unlikely to be approved by member states in the EU Council, pro-family groups point out that even the proposal sets a dangerous precedent.
Last year, the Commission proposed an EU-wide certificate recognizing a parent-child relationship, in principle, to ease the administrative burden for families caught in cross-border situations where legal documents certifying the relationship of a minor to a parent may not be easily recognized between member states.
However, family law is not a competency of the EU, and opponents warn that it could also facilitate surrogacy arrangements made by European families in other countries, force member states to recognize same-sex marriages, and diminish protections for children.
Under the draft directive likely to be approved by the EU parliament at next week’s session, obtaining a certificate of parenthood would only require a simple administrative process. Significantly, the language of the draft eschews the well-understood legal terms of ‘parentage’ or ‘filiation’ for ‘parenthood.’
On two occasions, Justice Commissioner Didier Reynders has acknowledged that this proposal has a direct link with surrogacy.
“The Commission is currently carrying out preparatory work for an initiative on recognition of parenthood among Member States which may also include private international law issues concerning surrogacy,” he wrote in answer to Italian MEPs in 2022.
Most recently, he told the JURI committee, which has a hand in the parenthood certificate proposal, that excluding parenthood through surrogacy arrangements from the certificate would be “contrary to the principle of non-discrimination.”
Though many member states are opposed to the planned certificate and would not approve a regulation requiring its recognition, the certificate could still be available for use, setting a dangerous precedent.
“The Commission seeks to create a European Certificate of Parenthood available on the planned centralised digital European Justice platform. The purpose of this Certificate is undoubtedly to circumvent national legislation on parentage,” the group ‘EU for Family’ wrote in a pamphlet on the issue.
The organization is encouraging citizens to contact their MEPs and ministers of justice to express their opposition to the plan.
