Since your surrogacy process takes place abroad, you will pay most of the service providers in a foreign currency: American dollars, Canadian dollars, Euros, etc. Since most of us get our salaries in our local currency (shekels in my case), the fluctuating currency exchange rates are a huge factor in the process since it lasts a long time.
In my case, for instance, we started when the dollar exchange rate with my local ILS currency rate was at 3.85, and finished when it was about 3.4. This means that for every dollar we paid at the end and not at the beginning, we saved 0.45 ILS, which sums to be a lot of money.
Sometimes the exchange rates drop significantly and then people ask me whether it’s a good opportunity to buy foreign currency and have it sit in a bank account, and then transfer as the process progresses. This will give you an obvious advantage since you’re safeguarding the investment. For better or for worse, you’ll know that you have the sum in the right currency.
And what if the currency keeps getting weaker? Then maybe you lose a bit. And if it gets stronger compared to your currency? Then you gained by buying it at the lower rate. But since no one knows what’s going to happen and there are so many variables involved, the only advantage is not the actual gamble, but the fact that you know that you have the amount, and your risks are safeguarded for the rate you bought at.
Take into account that you don’t always know what how much your process will cost, and each time you can buy a portion of the amount.
