Human embryos exports allowed with condition: DGFT

The government on Friday said exports of human embryos, gametes, and gonad tissues are permitted subject to no-objection-certificate from ICMR. Earlier, there was no policy or clarity on exports of these items, according to a source.

“Human embryos/gametes/gonad tissues are free for export subject to no objection certificate from Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR),” the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) said in a notification.

The DGFT said it has amended the export policy of human embryos under chapter 5, schedule-2 (export policy). This chapter deals with products of animal origin. It has inserted a new entry in this chapter, which mentions about human embryos/gametes/gonad tissues.

While gametes are an organism’s reproductive cells, gonads are the primary reproductive organs.

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