Are sperm donation requirements too strict in 2025?

Sperm banks are crucial for helping more people start families. They make parenthood possible for countless new families across the world. In addition, more and more countries are supporting singles and couples in achieving their dream of parenthood through government-funded assisted reproduction programmes. But as family building evolves with more solo mothers by choice, LGBTQ+ families, and people who don’t fit the “traditional” mould, the system is showing its cracks. The demand for donor sperm has never been higher, yet becoming a donor is harder than ever.

In 2025, we see that both donors and future parents are hitting walls. For men, becoming a bank donor has become increasingly tough and comes with a significant lack of control. For women and couples, qualifying for funded fertility treatment can be just as challenging.

With barriers on both sides, it’s time to ask: Are sperm donation requirements too strict in 2025?

The Numbers Tell a Story

A study conducted by Sheffield University in collaboration with Cryos International analysed over 11,700 men who applied to be sperm donors. They found that only 4% men who apply to donate actually end up having their sperm frozen. Out of 100:

• 55% withdraw from the process due to a change of heart.

• 17% are excluded due to health issues or being carriers of a genetic disease.

• 12% fail the lifestyle screening questionnaire.

• 10% are disqualified based on sperm quality.

In other words, over 95% of men who are interested in donating never make it through. What’s missing from the data is the why: why are over half of potential donors dropping out before even reaching the finish line? Are we asking too much, or not enough?

What It Takes to Become a Sperm Donor

Becoming a sperm donor isn’t as simple as walking in and making a deposit. Here’s what most men face when applying at a sperm bank (requirements vary by country, but these are standard in Europe and the U.S.):

• Semen Quality Analysis:

  Samples are tested before and after freezing. Potential donors with healthy sperm, where not enough sperm cells survive the process of getting frozen, are excluded.

• Family History:

  Donors must provide a complete medical history, often going back to grandparents. If you were adopted, donor-conceived yourself, or lack medical information about a parent or grandparent, you might be disqualified.

• Lifestyle Screening:

  Smoking, drug use, number of sex partners, recent tattoos, and certain travel destinations can disqualify you.

• Medical History:

  Many medical conditions are valid grounds for exclusion, but others are manageable in today’s world and should not exclude healthy donors from being accepted. For example, men with ADHD are routinely rejected, despite ADHD affecting around 11% of U.S. children and 4% of adults.

• Other Sperm Bank Specific Criteria:

  Some sperm banks might add additional criteria, such as height and age requirements.

• Regular donations:

  Most sperm banks want their donors to make regular donations (1-2 times per week), and require abstinence for up to 48 hours before a donation to ensure good sperm quality.

The result? Perfectly healthy men who want to help others build families are excluded because they don’t fit the definition of “ideal.”

Beyond Anonymous Donations

One of the main reasons donors historically chose sperm banks was the promise of anonymity. But in 2025, that promise is shaky at best. With the rise of global DNA testing through Ancestry and MyHeritage, long-term anonymity is virtually impossible. Donor-conceived children are increasingly finding half-sibling networks, sometimes numbering in the dozens or even hundreds.

Through sperm banks, donors have limited control over this number, while private donation allows them to choose exactly how many families to help. It can be daunting to agree to non-anonymous donations when donors don't know how many children will be conceived from their sperm, especially if they might face contact from 50 or more children 18 to 20 years after donating. Known donations expand possibilities beyond traditional family structures. Many aspiring mothers now seek co-parenting arrangements or known donors, allowing their children to have contact with their donor or information about their biological origins.

When Fertility Rules and Regulations Shut Women Out

It’s not only donors who face barriers in the regulated system. In the UK, NHS fertility coverage is famously a “postcode lottery”: depending on your region, you may only qualify if you’re under a certain age or if you’ve already tried several rounds without success. If you don’t meet the criteria, you’re left with private clinics, where costs can soar into the thousands per cycle. Future parents, especially solo-mothers-to-be and LGBTQ+ couples, often find themselves facing barriers to accessing fertility services in both the private and public sectors. If you are a single woman or a lesbian couple, you will need to “prove your infertility” to the NHS with 6 self-funded IUI cycles before even accessing government support for fertility treatments.

In Denmark, one of the most liberal countries for fertility treatment, public funding typically stops once a woman turns 40. On top of that, BMI thresholds are enforced: women above a certain BMI are denied treatment, regardless of their overall health or readiness for parenthood.

For many women, this creates a cruel paradox: you may be healthy, financially stable, and ready to parent, but because you don’t fit a rigid requirement, you’re shut out of the system.

Are We Asking Too Much?

These regulations protect some while excluding others. Sperm donation rules and regulations were built with good intentions: to protect donors, parents, and future children. But in practice, the system excludes too many. By setting rigid barriers around health, age, BMI, lifestyle, etc., we’re narrowing the pool instead of opening doors. And in a world where family looks more diverse than ever, those barriers feel increasingly out of touch.

A New Way Forward

We believe it’s time for a more flexible approach. That means recognising that:

• Donors should have more control and flexibility in how they donate.

• Parents should have more options beyond rigid age, BMI, or financial thresholds.

• Anonymity can no longer be guaranteed, so openness and transparency must be part of the conversation.

Safety and well-being are always a crucial part of the donation process. While we encourage all donors and future parents to familiarise themselves with the recommended health tests and background of the other person, we want to keep an open mind to the men who want to support family building with their donation.

Sperm banks will always have a role. But private donations, known donors, and platforms like Y factor are becoming essential alternatives. The choice of having a child should not be exclusive to the few, because fertility does not determine the ability to be a great parent.