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Donor Egg IVF in the UK: What Many Patients Don’t Realise When They Begin Their Research

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The UK donor egg shortage many patients still expect, but is no longer the reality at London Egg Bank

Many patients still begin their research expecting lengthy waiting lists for donor eggs in the UK. This perception reflects how donor egg treatment worked historically, particularly when fresh donor cycles were the only option.

Today, London Egg Bank has changed that model.

As the UK’s first and largest dedicated frozen egg bank, London Egg Bank has built a database of more than 300 screened, UK-recruited donors available at any one time.

This level of availability reflects more than 30 years of specialist experience focused entirely on egg donation. While many fertility clinics provide egg donation as one part of their service, London Egg Bank was built specifically around it.

What a frozen egg bank means for your treatment

There is an important distinction many patients do not fully understand when they first begin researching donor egg treatment: the difference between a fresh donor cycle and a frozen egg bank.

In a fresh cycle, a donor is matched to a specific recipient before undergoing stimulation and egg collection. Treatment timing depends on synchronising both the donor’s and recipient’s cycles, which can take time.

With a frozen egg bank, donor eggs have already been collected, vitrified (rapidly frozen) and safely stored until a recipient is ready to begin treatment.
This offers several practical advantages:

  • No waiting list for most ethnicities
  • Immediate access to available donor profiles
  • Greater flexibility in planning treatment
  • Frozen donor eggs now provide well-established clinical outcomes through modern vitrification techniques

Advances in vitrification mean frozen donor eggs are now a well-established clinical approach rather than an alternative to fresh donation.

Over 20,000 eggs in storage and over 300 donors available

Choice and availability can make a significant difference when selecting a donor.

London Egg Bank stores more than 20,000 frozen donor eggs from over 300 active donors.

Donors come from a wide range of backgrounds and ethnicities, helping most patients find a donor profile that feels appropriate for them.

Our searchable online database is available from your first consultation, allowing you to explore donor profiles at your own pace.

Every donor undergoes comprehensive screening, including:

  • Full medical and genetic history review
  • Physical health assessment
  • Psychological evaluation
  • Infectious disease screening
  • Genetic carrier testing

All donors are recruited in-house in the UK and every donation is regulated by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA).

For patients who value the UK identity-release framework, where donor-conceived adults have the option to access identifying information about their donor at age 18, this is often an important consideration.

“We found the online database really helpful. Being able to look through profiles at our own pace, at home, made a stressful decision feel much more manageable.” — London Egg Bank patient

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London Egg Bank is also a full IVF clinic

Many patients are surprised to learn that London Egg Bank is not simply a donor egg bank.

We are also a fully integrated fertility clinic providing complete donor egg IVF treatment under one roof.

Consultations, treatment planning, fertilisation, embryo culture and embryo transfer are all managed by our specialist team.

This avoids the need to coordinate between separate providers.

Why this matters

Our teams work with donor egg IVF every day.

This focused experience supports consistently strong outcomes within donor egg IVF treatment pathways.

Our laboratory is staffed by experienced embryologists who have supported more than 1,500 healthy births from donor eggs.

Who can benefit from donor egg IVF?

Donor egg IVF may be appropriate for patients including:

  • Women with diminished ovarian reserve or age-related decline in egg quality
  • Patients with premature ovarian insufficiency (POI) or early menopause
  • Those who have experienced repeated IVF failure using their own eggs
  • Patients wishing to avoid passing on certain genetic conditions
  • Female same-sex couples
  • Single women
  • Women over 40 where egg quality has become a significant factor

London Egg Bank also has extensive experience supporting patients over 50, with treatment available up to 54 years and 3 months, allowing patients to give birth before their 55th birthday.

Why patients choose the UK, and why they choose London Egg Bank

The UK has one of the world’s most transparent regulatory frameworks for egg donation.

For many patients, this is a conscious, value-driven choice.

The UK’s identity-release framework prioritises the long-term interests of donor-conceived people while providing clarity for everyone involved.

Within the UK, London Egg Bank offers a combination of the country’s largest frozen donor egg database, a fully integrated IVF clinic and more than 30 years of dedicated experience in donor egg treatment.

International patients are also welcome.

Most consultations can take place online, allowing much of the preparation to be completed before travelling to London for treatment.

Frequently asked questions

How long does donor egg IVF take?

Because donor eggs are already available, treatment can usually begin within weeks of your initial consultation once a donor has been selected.

Can I choose a donor who resembles me?

Yes. Donor profiles include information such as ethnicity, eye colour, hair colour, height and build, helping you identify donors whose characteristics are important to you.

What are the success rates?

Frozen donor eggs now provide excellent clinical outcomes using modern vitrification techniques. Your consultant will discuss success rates relevant to your individual circumstances.

Do I need to live in London?

No. We treat patients from throughout the UK and internationally. Most consultations can take place remotely, with only key treatment appointments requiring travel.

Is donor egg IVF funded by the NHS?

NHS funding is limited and subject to local eligibility criteria. Most patients receive treatment privately.

Ready to take the next step?

If you have assumed donor egg IVF in the UK means lengthy waiting lists or limited options, it may be worth exploring what is now available.

At London Egg Bank, you can browse donor profiles, discuss your options with our team and begin treatment when you are ready.

Book a free consultation with a coordinator.

London Egg Bank is the UK’s first and largest dedicated frozen egg bank, regulated by the HFEA and supporting patients from across the UK and internationally.

You can find out more about donor eggs and how the egg donation process works here.
Using Donor Eggs

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Our Terms and Conditions

Conditions of use:

London Egg Bank (LEB) is a registered company in London based at 112 Harley Street.

By reserving a donor at the LEB, you, the recipient of the donated eggs, confirm that you have:

  • attended a consultation with a fertility doctor at LEB or any registered fertility clinic which has a Third-Party Agreement with LEB and have a treatment plan at that clinic.

  • received verbal and written information about your treatment and had the opportunity to discuss the procedures involved in receiving eggs as part of your treatment with your treating clinic.

  • been informed that you have received all the relevant information pertaining to your treatment from your treating clinic, as required by the HFEA Code of Practice.

  • been offered counselling by your treating clinic regarding the implications of the treatment.

  • received a confirmation of the full cost of your treatment.

Ordering and purchasing donor eggs:

  • An order is considered completed when the recipient has completed and returned all required documentation and made payment.

  • LEB will confirm your order when they have received confirmation of your treatment cycle from your chosen clinic, as well as have received your signed consent forms and payment in full.

  • Frozen eggs provided by LEB should be used in treatment within 4 months of the date of dispatch from LEB. This is to ensure that your reserved pregnancy slot is not lost.

  • Please complete and sign the donor characteristics consent form within 5 days or your order will be cancelled, remember to check your junk/spam mail folder. If you have any queries regarding your donor acceptance paperwork, please call 0207 299 9547 between 08.30 – 17.30hrs and a member of staff will be happy to help you.

  • Donor eggs will only be reserved and dispatched after full payment of eggs and transportation if required (see the Refunds and Cancellation policy for further details).

General:

  • Donor Eggs (Eggs) provided by LEB may only be used for embryo creation at the laboratory of one of the registered clinics which has a TPA with LEB.

  • LEB provides Eggs to you for your exclusive personal use, and you confirm that you will only use them as such.

  • LEB Eggs provided to you may not be resold or distributed without LEB’s written permission.

  • All information relating to donors is kept confidential and disclosed only in the circumstances permitted by law. Information on donors comprises sensitive personal data for purposes of the Data Protection Act 2018. LEB will only provide relevant information about your selected donor to you for the purpose of allowing you to select an Egg donor, without breaching the donor’s confidentiality (Data Protection Act 2018) and the relevant requirements of the HFEA Act 1990.

  • LEB’s donor database usually has a large selection of available donors. However, donor availability may be limited at times. LEB provides donor eggs on a first come, first served basis.

  • It is important that you inform LEB of the treatment date that you have agreed with your clinic. The LEB must be informed of any changes to this date immediately.

  • This agreement does not override the terms of paragraph 4A of Schedule 3 to the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990 (as amended) (‘HFEA Act’) which states that the Egg donor may withdraw or vary her consent from the use of her eggs in treatment at any time. This includes if an embryo has already been created using her Eggs. The variation to consent may occur up until the time of embryo transfer and may result in the discard of this embryo(s).

  • In some cases, there may be the possibility of adding extra eggs to the order from the same or a different donor. Please be aware that embryos created from different donors cannot be used in one treatment cycle.

Quality standards:

  • All donors available via the LEB donor database have been recruited and screened in compliance with donation criteria under the European Tissues and Cells Directive (EUTCD), Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) standards and professional guidance.

  • All frozen donor egg samples have been procured, tested, processed, preserved and stored in a manner consistent with EUTCD and HFEA requirements.

  • LEB does not take responsibility for eggs or embryos being accepted by any other external centres.

  • LEB eggs meet all required quality standards. However, LEB cannot guarantee that a pregnancy will be achieved using donor eggs or that any pregnancy or offspring derived as a result of using the egg donor will be free from genetic disorders/defects or infectious diseases. In particular:

    1. it is not feasible to test for ALL genetic markers or infectious diseases and in some cases, there are no available tests.

    2. donor testing is properly administered; however, even where the results return as normal, the tests have limitations and may not be entirely reliable; and

    3. LEB’s recruitment processes (including counselling) rely on the donor providing accurate and correct information about their genetic and general health history. We treat the information provided by the donor in good faith. LEB is not able to independently verify this information. However, to date we are not aware of any inaccurate information being provided by our donors.

Donor confidentiality:

  • Non-identifying information about each donor is displayed on the LEB donor database. LEB is unable to provide any further personal information on donors.

Refunds and cancellation policy:

  • Should you change your mind and wish to cancel your order for any reason, LEB will offer you a full refund within 5 working days of placing an order. 

  • Please note that the egg thaw survival rate and fertilisation rate provided on our patient information materials represent the averages of all patients per stated period of time and age group. We do not guarantee a minimum egg thaw survival or fertilisation rate per patient cycle. 

  • In the rare event that all the eggs (whether from one donor or a mix of two or more donors) do not survive the thawing process, LEB will offer you a new batch of eggs free of charge.

  • Once donor eggs are dispatched from our premises and delivered to a treatment centre not part of London Women’s
    Clinic / JD Healthcare Group, they are non-returnable and non-refundable.

Limitation of liability:

  • LEB shall not be liable for any special or consequential damages that result from the use of, or the inability to use, the materials on this site or the performance of the products, even if LEB has been advised of the possibility of such damages. Applicable law may not allow the limitation of exclusion of liability or incidental or consequential damages, so the above limitation or exclusion may not apply to you.

  • London Egg Bank cannot guarantee that additional eggs will be available at a later date for the purposes of treatment for a sibling pregnancy.

  • Donated eggs (fresh and/or frozen) are not quarantined prior to use. There is therefore a theoretical risk of transmission of infection through the transfer of embryos.