Original Article Exploring Indian Surrogates’ Perceptions of the Ban on International Surrogacy Sarah Huber 1 , Sharvari Karandikar 1 and Lindsay Gezinski 2 Abstract This study examined surrogate women’s perceptions on the Indian ban on international surrogacy. In-depth interviews were conducted with 25 surrogate women at a fertility clinic in Gujarat, India. Three themes emerged: (1) perceptions of the ban; (2) impact of the ban on surrogates, international couples, and fertility clinics; and (3) long-term economic results of surrogacy. Women stated that international surrogacy should not be banned, because it provides substantial economic benefits. They also noted that the ban affects childless couples and clinics by cutting off a source of income. This research provides recommendations for social work action. Keywords artificial reproductive technology, India, international social work, surrogacy, surrogate mother Until 2014, India was the primary global destination for commercial surrogacy. Over the past two decades, the Indian transnational surrogacy industry had grown into a thriving enterprise, as repro- ductive tourists (largely from the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom) sought out the low costs, modernized medical infrastructure, lax regulations, and abundance of surrogate mothers offered in India (Chang, 2009). Reproductive tourism, an aspect of general, medical tourism, is defined as the “traveling of [intended parents] from their country of residence to another country in order to receive a specific treatment to exercise their personal reproductive choice” (Ferraretti, Pennings, Gianaroli, Natali, & Magli, 2010, p. 261). It is estimated that over 25,000 children have been born to Indian surrogates, primarily for intended parents (IPs) from high-income nations (Shetty, 2012). The varying legal status of surrogacy between countries challenges international ethical norms and regulations (Crockin, 2013). It is well recognized by scholars that potential harms to all parties involved can be avoided through government regulation, rather than illegalization (Ekberg, 2014; Wilkinson, 2016). Yet, almost 15 years after India first legalized commercial surrogacy, the Indian Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, through its Department of Health Research, passed the 1 College of Social Work, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA 2 College of Social Work, The University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA Corresponding Author: Sharvari Karandikar, College of Social Work, The Ohio State University, 1947 College Road, Columbus, OH 43210, USA. Email: karandikar.7@osu.edu Affilia: Journal of Women and Social Work 2018, Vol. 33(1) 69-84 ª The Author(s) 2017 Reprints and permission: sagepub.com/journalsPermissions.nav DOI: 10.1177/0886109917729667 journals.sagepub.com/home/aff