Transferring Frozen Embryos and Gametes (Sperm and Eggs) Between Clinics

The transfer process will involve several steps between you, your previous fertility clinic and your Pollin Fertility team. To start, we will need you to complete:

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01. Initiating the Transfer Process

• Once approved by your physician that we may initiate the transfer process, your Primary Care team will connect with you to review the process of transferring your frozen embryos or gametes.

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02. Sign Consent forms

Once we have discussed the transport process, you will receive and sign three consent forms via DocuSign.

• Transfer Cryopreserved Gametes Consent
• Receive Cryopreserved Gametes Consent
• If sperm: Sperm Freezing Consent
• or if eggs: Disposition of Cryo Eggs Consent
• or if embryos: Disposition of Embryos for Couples Consent
• Release of Information Consent (inbound or outbound)

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03. Blood work

• There is mandatory infectious diseases (ID) blood work that we must receive prior to transport. You likely have completed this blood work prior to your embryos and gametes being frozen. We will request records of this from your previous clinic. These ID blood work are valid for 6 months.
• If your ID blood work is out of date or not received by your previous clinic, you will need to update it prior to initiating transportation. Your Primary Care team will advise you what tests are required for your specific case. The results must be back before we accept your embryos/gametes.
• If you wish to defer ID blood work update, then your frozen embryos/gametes will be placed in a quarantine tank with other unknown ID status samples

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04. Contact the shipping company

• At Pollin, we prefer Can-Am Cryoservices or Core-Cryo to retrieve your Frozen Embryos or Gametes and deliver them safely to us at Pollin Fertility. Please follow their directions.
• When you have approval for transport from your previous clinic, let us know, and we will then initiate the next steps.

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Our IVF Lab will not be able to connect with your previous clinic until all the above is completed. Most importantly, your infectious diseases blood work results must be back before communication to transport is initiated. This can take up to 2 weeks.

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Timeline: The timeline for transferring frozen gametes and embryos can vary, and it is important to have realistic expectations. Once all the above have been completed, the shipping/receiving process takes approximately 15 business days (~3 weeks) on average.

Transport Fees: Please confirm with the shipping company directly to confirm costs.

Transferring frozen gametes and embryos between clinics is a well-managed process, and your Pollin Team will guide you at every step. We are here to support you through this journey and help you achieve your family-building goals.