High Court strikes down petition to end sperm donor anonymity

The High Court of Justice has struck down a petition seeking to allow children conceived through sperm donation to learn the identity of their biological father, leaving in place the rule that keeps donors anonymous.

The issue was raised in a High Court petition by the organizations Choosing Family and B’Tzalmo, which oppose anonymous donation, and the court asked to hear the ministry’s position. The panel can either leave the current anonymous-only system in place or allow two parallel tracks, anonymous and non-anonymous; adopting its recommendations would require changes to existing legislation. 

The petitioners argued that the provision guaranteeing donor anonymity violates children’s right to know who their biological parents are.

Israel currently permits only anonymous sperm donation. Under the Public Health Regulations, disclosing identifying donor details is prohibited.

A woman who wants to conceive with a man she knows must present a parenting agreement between them that overrides any other arrangement, meaning there is no route to an identified donation without a commitment to fatherhood behind it. 

Who regulates sperm donation in Israel?

Sperm donation in Israel is not regulated by primary legislation; every donor signs a form confirming the donation is anonymous and that no identifying detail will be passed to the woman purchasing the sample.

Last year, the Justice Ministry published regulations for a database registering egg donations that will also record whether the mother was fertilized with a sperm donation, in which case the donor’s code will be registered.

The move followed a petition filed five years earlier by Choosing Family and B’Tzalmo demanding a registry to prevent marriages between relatives, given that a man can donate at several sperm banks and there was no orderly registration of donors.