Moving eggs across the world.....
At Egg Advisor, we know that egg freezing decisions do not stop once your eggs are in storage.
Over time, your life, location, relationships, priorities and plans may all change — and sometimes your eggs need to move with you.
Moving eggs between countries can open up more time, more flexibility and more future options. But it can also feel complicated. There are clinic requirements, paperwork, transport logistics, costs and local rules to understand before making a decision.
That is where Egg Advisor can help. We support clients with personalised, impartial advice wherever they are in their egg freezing journey — including when they are thinking about moving their eggs from one clinic, country or regulatory system to another.
Ali’s story shows what can be possible with the right guidance, careful coordination and a little patience.
When our Chief Egg Officer, Ali, first froze her eggs in Dubai a decade ago, she was buying herself time. Ten years on, she still was not sure whether she wanted children, but equally, she was not ready to let her eggs go.
The problem? Storage limits.
In the UAE, the rules and clinic requirements can be tighter, with limits that may depend on marital status, consent requirements and local regulation. There can also be greater limits on assisted reproduction options and egg donation.
These limits are not really science-led. There is no evidence that frozen eggs degrade over time when they are properly stored. The rules tend to reflect local culture, legal systems and attitudes towards assisted reproduction and family formation.
In the UK, the picture is very different. Since 1 July 2022, eggs, sperm and embryos can be stored for up to 55 years, provided consent is renewed every ten years.
So Ali made the call: move the eggs to London.
She worked with Simon Hedley to make it happen.
We’ll be honest, it was not a ten-minute job.
The paperwork was real
Moving eggs between countries is not really a “country-to-country” thing. It is an agreement between two specific clinics — in this case, a Dubai clinic and a London clinic — deciding to work together on one shipment.
The London clinic also needed clear evidence that Ali’s eggs had been stored to the right standards. Anything less, and they would not accept them into their own lab environment, in case it became a risk factor for everything else stored there.
Getting the two clinics to actually talk to each other took some patient nudging.
The Dubai clinic was not exactly thrilled to lose a long-standing storage customer. The London clinic, understandably, had its own onboarding process and fee. Ali’s came in at around £180, although this varies from clinic to clinic.
The upfront admin costs are not insignificant, and the process needs careful coordination.
Group shipping kept costs down
For the actual move, Ali chose group shipping through our Egg Courier service.
That meant her eggs travelled batched with others heading the same way, rather than booking a dedicated cryogenic shipment just for her.
Same safety standards. Lower price tag.
The eggs arrived in London safely.
They are now sitting quietly in their new home, wondering what comes next.
More room to think — and more options
The longer storage window is only part of why this move mattered.
In the UK, Ali now has paths that simply were not on the table in the UAE, including using donor sperm, or one day donating her eggs to help someone else if she decides she does not want to use them herself.
For now, no decision is being rushed.
That is rather the point.
Moving her eggs gave Ali more time, more flexibility and more space to think about what she might want in the future.
And that is exactly what egg freezing was meant to give her in the first place.
Watch this space.
Thinking about moving your eggs?
Whether you are considering transport because of storage limits, relocation, clinic preference, future treatment plans, or simply because you want to understand your options, you do not have to work it out alone.
Egg Advisor can help you think through the practical next steps, including what to ask your clinic, what paperwork may be needed, what transport options may be available, and what to consider before making a decision.
To enquire about our transport options, email hello@eggadvisor.com.
You can also read more about “Moving your eggs” on our website: www.eggadvisor.com.