Fertility treatment with sperm donation

Some couples require fertility therapy using donor sperm.

Such a treatment may become necessary if:

No sperm can be found in the ejaculate or testicular tissue (TESE) of the man
in cases of severely impaired sperm quality in the ejaculate or testicular tissue
after several unsuccessful ICSI therapies with severely impaired sperm quality
in some cases of genetical disorders of the man

Please notice that your partner has the same rights and obligations to the child as a parent as with a biological child.

Where does the donor sperm come from?

The donor sperm comes from a sperm bank. Before being allowed to donate sperm donors are thoroughly examined and selected by strict regulations. The donor has to be completely healthy, have good semen quality, no infectious diseases as well as no hereditary diseases in the family.

After all examinations are completed it will be decided if someone can be a sperm donor.

Usually sperm donors will get a small financial reimbursement for each donation.

In any case, the donor sperm will be frozen and in quarantine for 6 months. Then the donor will be re-examined for infectious diseases and only then the semen will be allowed for further usage.

How is a donor selected?

Sperm donors will be selected according to different criteria.

It is important to match the following physical characteristics to the man:

Hair colour
Eye clor
Skin color
Height and weight
Blood type

In some sperm banks, couples can choose the sperm donors with the desired characteristics via their website. Before ordering please clarify with us if we cooperate with your chosen sperm bank and if the donor you selected fullfills the physical requirements for you personally as well as the legal criteria necessary for a treatment in Germany e.g. the donor must not be anonymous.

Course of treatment with sperm donation

Any type of fertility treatment can be performed with a donor sperm.

Possible are:

Insemination (IUI)
IVF or ICSI in the natural or mildly stimulated cycle
classic IVF
classic ICSI

During your visit with a doctor in our clinic we clarify together with you which method corresponds to your wishes and suits you best.

Legal aspects of sperm donation

You will have a detailed consultation in our center about the legal and social aspects of a treatment with sperm donation. Treatment with donor sperm is legally allowed in Germany. The prerequisite is that the sperm donor is non-anonymous, so that the child has the opportunity to learn the name of the biological father.

To safeguard the right of child resulting from donor sperm treatment as well as the rights and obligations of both parents, we may recommend you to have legal, notarised, contract before starting therapy.

Also, a psychological counseling of the couple by BKID certified therapists should take place. In case of need, we are happy to provide you with contacts.

Since 1. Juli 2018 a nationwide sperm donor registry has been established at the German Institute for Medical Documentation and Information (DIMDI) in Cologne. People who have been conceived through a sperm donation can then receive information about the donor from the age of sixteen, if they wish. For younger children, the parents can obtain the information for the child as legal representatives.

Personal data of the donor and the mother (recipient of sperm donation) are included in the registry (name, date of birth, place of birth, nationality, address). The donor may also voluntarily provide additional personal information about the child (for example, appearance, level of education, reasons for the donation). The details of the donor are stored for 110 years.

Costs for sperm donation

Generally neither the public nor the private health insurance companies cover the costs for any fertility treatment with sperm donation. However, we will gladly provide you a written cost estimation after we decided together which treatment option will be the best for you personally.