Ask intended parents what made them hire a solicitor and the answer is rarely the law. It is the bundle — the several-hundred-page file of evidence the court expects, assembled in the right order, indexed and paginated, with certified translations of anything that is not in English.
It is genuinely the most laborious part of the process. It is also, for most straightforward cases, the part that is closest to pure administration. Knowing exactly what goes in it removes most of the fear.
Guidance only, not legal advice — and if your case has a real legal difficulty in it, a bundle assembled beautifully will not fix that.
What a bundle is for
The judge deciding your application has not met you and will typically have your case for a short listed hearing. The bundle is how they get from nothing to a decision. Everything the court needs to be satisfied of has to be in it and findable.
What the court has to be satisfied of is the list in section 54 (or 54A): that at least one of you is genetically related to the child, that you are domiciled in the UK, that you are old enough, that you are married, civil partners or in an enduring family relationship, that the child is living with you, that the surrogate has freely consented at least six weeks after the birth, and that no more than reasonable expenses have been paid. Each of those needs evidence, and the bundle is where the evidence lives.
Above all of it sits the overriding question: the child's welfare throughout their life is the court's paramount consideration.
What goes in it
Think of the bundle in six sections. Court centres differ on presentation, so follow any direction your court gives — but this is the shape.
1. The applications and orders
- Your issued Form C51
- The Forms C52 returned by the respondents
- Any orders already made in the case, most recently first
- The case summary or chronology, if one has been directed
2. Statements and reports
- Your witness statement — the narrative spine of the whole bundle, see below
- The Cafcass parental order reporter's report, when filed
- Any expert or medical evidence
3. Consent
- Form A101A, signed by the surrogate no earlier than six weeks after the birth, witnessed correctly for the country it was signed in
- A101A from her spouse or civil partner, where their consent is required
- Certified translation where the consent was given in another language
4. The child and the birth
- The child's full birth certificate (not the short form)
- Certified English translation of the birth certificate if it is not in English
- Any foreign court order, pre-birth order or parentage judgment, with translation
- Evidence the child is living with you
5. You
- Your marriage or civil partnership certificate, if applicable
- Evidence of domicile — this is not the same as residence and it catches people out
- Evidence of the genetic link: the clinic's confirmation of whose gametes were used, and where necessary a DNA test report
6. Payments
- A schedule of every payment made to or for the surrogate
- Receipts and supporting evidence where you have them
- Your explanation of what each payment was for
The witness statement
Everything else in the bundle is a document you obtained. The witness statement is the one thing you write, and it is what turns a pile of exhibits into a case.
It should tell the story in order: how you came to surrogacy, how you found your surrogate and your clinic, what the arrangement was, what was paid and why, the pregnancy and birth, what has happened since, and your arrangements for the child now. It should address each s.54 condition explicitly, and it should exhibit the documents as it goes.
Two habits make a statement work. Be specific with dates. And do not paper over difficulty — if a payment looks large, explain it; if consent was slow, say why. A judge who finds a problem you have already explained reads it very differently from one who finds a problem you concealed.
Overseas documents: translation, notarisation, apostille
This is where international cases lose weeks, so plan it before you leave the birth country.
Translation. Anything not in English needs an English translation, certified by a qualified translator. In several jurisdictions this must be a court-registered translator — in Colombia and Mexico, a traductor oficial or perito traductor. A translation by a friend, however fluent, will not do.
Notarisation. A private document — including a surrogate's consent — is not a public document and cannot be apostilled as it stands. What makes it eligible is a notary's certificate: the notary witnesses the signature, and the notarial act is the public document.
Apostille. The apostille then authenticates the notary's signature and seal — not the underlying document. Most countries you are likely to use are parties to the Hague Apostille Convention; where a country is not, the longer consular legalisation route applies instead.
Originals. Where wet-ink originals are required, budget real time for international courier both ways, and do not assume you can do this after you have flown home.
Where bundles go wrong
- Short-form birth certificate. It omits parentage details. Get the full version.
- Uncertified translation. Redone, at cost, weeks later.
- A101A signed too early. Consent given before the child is six weeks old is ineffective, and the form has to be signed again.
- A101A witnessed by the wrong person. The rules differ by country — a Cafcass reporter cannot take consent from a surrogate abroad.
- Vague payment evidence. "Expenses" as a single line invites the question you least want asked. Itemise.
- Domicile treated as residence. They are different legal concepts and the court wants the first one.
- Assembled at month five. Every item above has a lead time. Several have lead times measured in weeks and depend on people in other countries.
The honest summary
None of this is intellectually difficult. It is a long list with real deadlines attached, much of it dependent on institutions abroad that work at their own pace. That is precisely why a solicitor's fee for a straightforward case buys document assembly and explanation more than legal argument — and why doing it yourself is realistic, provided you start early enough that a two-week delay in another country is an inconvenience rather than a crisis.
PO Navigator's e-bundle builder covers exactly this: what goes in, in what order, with the witness statement and exhibits built alongside it and your six-month deadline tracked. Start with the free two-minute check to see where your case sits.
See also: where to file · Form A101A explained · what happens at the hearings · all guides
Sources: HFEA 2008 s.54 and s.54A; Family Procedure Rules Part 13. Positions stated here are as at September 2026. General information about the law of England and Wales, not legal advice.