Countries like Hungary and Spain are expanding social egg freezing to combat declining birth rates and support women’s reproductive autonomy.
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More women globally are choosing to have children later in life, and egg freezing is presented as a solution for those who do not feel ready during their twenties or early thirties. Countries facing declining birth rates may benefit from popularizing this procedure. Hungary has recently allowed socially based egg freezing, moving beyond previous restrictions that only permitted it for medical reasons like cancer. This change allows anyone to pursue the option if they anticipate a significant decline in fertility later on. Human Reproduction Directorate justifies this by strengthening women’s reproductive autonomy and ensuring future opportunities for childbearing. Spain is also addressing its low birth rate with measures such as supporting egg freezing outside of purely medical necessity, noting a sharp increase in vitrification procedures. Galician province in Spain is expanding the procedure to include conditions like endometriosis and offering it to women aged 30-35 for personal reasons, gradually extending eligibility to younger age groups. Other European countries have implemented similar measures: France allows egg freezing without medical justification between ages 29 and 37, while Italy’s Puglia region offers financial support for non-medical procedures. Egg freezing involves stimulating ovaries for about ten days, collecting eggs via a short surgical procedure, and then vitrifying them—a process that preserves the eggs with high success rates. The optimal age for this procedure is between 25 and 35 years old, with costs in Spain around 2000 euros plus medication expenses.
