Social freezing – staying ahead of the biological clock.
Social freezing is deliberate life planning for women: freezing eggs at a young age makes it possible to postpone a desired pregnancy to a later stage of life. And Austria is opening up: from 1 April 2027, social freezing will be possible without a medical indication.
Social freezing is becoming legal in Austria.
The Austrian Constitutional Court has overturned the general ban – here is what changes (as of August 2026).
Until 31 March 2027: medical indication required
Preventive egg freezing is currently only permitted for medical reasons – for example endometriosis, PMOS (formerly PCOS), thyroid or autoimmune conditions, or before cancer treatment. Importantly, such an indication is more common than many women realise.
Constitutional Court ruling of 6 October 2025
The Constitutional Court struck down the blanket ban on social freezing as unconstitutional: it violates the fundamental right to respect for private and family life (Art. 8 ECHR).
From 1 April 2027: social freezing for all women
On this date the repeal takes effect – eggs can then be frozen preventively without a medical indication. Until then, lawmakers may define a framework such as age limits or mandatory counselling. We will keep you updated here.
Book your consultation now – so you can freeze your eggs from April 2027.
Don't wait for the deadline: those who start now have their results, plan and appointment ready the moment the change takes effect. We assess your personal situation (including your ovarian reserve/AMH) and check whether you have a medical indication – in which case freezing your eggs is often already possible today. With our cryopreservation experience since 1991, you are in the best hands.
What is social freezing?
More and more women are taking their fate into their own hands when it comes to becoming a mother. Modern reproductive medicine offers plenty of options: from insemination and IVF to sperm donation, there is a wide range of possibilities.
Social freezing on ORF
Watch the ORF report featuring Priv.-Doz. DDr. Michael Feichtinger and a patient. A recurring topic of heated debate: social egg freezing – freezing young eggs so they can later be thawed, fertilised and transferred to the uterus at the right time. This procedure allows women to choose the individually optimal moment for conception themselves – when the right partner is not yet around, or in order to focus on a career first and become a mother later, with peace of mind.
The egg clock is ticking
"In Austria, the desire to have children has shifted considerably to later in life," says Prof. Dr. Wilfried Feichtinger, reproductive medicine specialist and founder of the Wunschbaby Institut WIF in Vienna. Statistics confirm it: over the past 30 years, family planning has moved substantially later. The problem is well known: the older a woman gets, the lower her chance of having a baby. "Part of the reason is the steadily declining quality of the female eggs as women age," says Prof. Dr. Wilfried Feichtinger.
With age, not only does the likelihood of becoming pregnant decrease – the risk of genetic defects rises at the same time. "While in a 30-year-old woman every second to third egg is chromosomally normal, in a 40-year-old woman this drops to roughly every fifth to sixth egg," the physician explains.
What could be more natural, then, than preserving young eggs? "Social freezing is a widespread measure to stop the biological clock, especially in the USA; in Japan and the United Kingdom, clinics have been practising egg preservation for years," says Priv.-Doz. DDr. Michael Feichtinger, medical director of the Wunschbaby Institut Feichtinger in Vienna.
"It is particularly important to me to raise awareness among the public and among medical colleagues that, as a modern fertility centre, we have long ceased to be responsible only for the immediate wish for a baby – rather, we provide education and support around the fertility of men and women," says Dr. Nazira Pitsinis, medical director of the Wunschbaby Institut Feichtinger at the Baden location.
Especially in the case of oncological diseases, counselling on fertility preservation for young men and women sometimes falls short. One reason is patients' understandable wish to start oncological therapy quickly and without delay. "Through cooperation with oncology departments and continuing education events with medical colleagues, we want to be a strong companion in such difficult life situations in the future," says Pitsinis.
In certain medical indications – premature loss of ovarian function (POF – Primary Ovarian Failure), endometriosis and, not least, cancer – it is possible to vitrify eggs. But also in other, far more common conditions such as endometriosis, PMOS, thyroid disorders and autoimmune diseases, precautionary egg freezing should be considered, especially when family planning is postponed beyond the age of 35. "In general, if you foresee wanting children later in life, we recommend a consultation in order to avoid unpleasant surprises in later years and to rule out additional risk factors for future childlessness," says Priv.-Doz. DDr. Michael Feichtinger.
At his WIF he offers cryopreservation – the freezing of cells, such as fertilised embryos, sperm or testicular tissue, in liquid nitrogen.
Social freezing: what you need to know now.
Is social freezing legal in Austria?
At present, egg freezing is only permitted with a medical indication – such as endometriosis, PMOS, thyroid or autoimmune conditions, or before cancer treatment. From 1 April 2027, social freezing will also be possible without a medical indication: the Constitutional Court overturned the general ban in its ruling of 6 October 2025 (as of August 2026).
Can I already freeze my eggs today?
Often yes: many women have a medical indication without knowing it. Whether this applies to you is something we clarify in a personal consultation – including an assessment of your ovarian reserve (AMH).
How does egg freezing work?
After hormonal stimulation, the eggs are retrieved and flash-frozen by vitrification: the cells vitrify within fractions of a second at minus 197 degrees. It is scientifically well established that freezing does not reduce cell quality.
When is the best time for social freezing?
The younger the frozen eggs, the better the later chances: while roughly every second to third egg of a 30-year-old is chromosomally normal, for a 40-year-old it is only about every fifth to sixth. If you foresee a later wish for children, we recommend an early consultation.
What does social freezing cost?
The costs depend on your individual situation (stimulation, number of cycles, storage duration). We discuss them transparently in your consultation – simply book an appointment.
Why the Wunschbaby Institut Feichtinger?
We have worked with cryopreservation since 1991, run our own IVF and genetics laboratory and accompany you from preventive counselling through to a later fertility treatment – all under one roof, in Vienna, Baden and St. Pölten.
Univ.-Prof. Dr. Wilfried Feichtinger on social freezing.
This interview took place before the Constitutional Court ruling of October 2025 – the liberalisation it called for is now becoming reality.
The 2015 amendment to the Reproductive Medicine Act (FMedRÄG 2015) upheld the ban on social freezing. In your opinion, should it be permitted in Austria?
"Yes, it should. The term 'social' is an unfortunate choice. Because among the young women who have shown interest in cryopreserving their eggs at our fertility institute, there has so far always been at least one medical indication – be it endometriosis, thyroid insufficiency such as Hashimoto's thyroiditis, or PMOS (formerly polycystic ovary syndrome). All of these are conditions that permit the cryopreservation of eggs."
Does social freezing in itself even constitute a reproductive procedure that would have to meet the requirements of the Reproductive Medicine Act (FMedG)?
"Yes, social freezing constitutes a reproductive procedure, because using the cryopreserved eggs requires IVF/ICSI."
Are there any convincing arguments for the ban on social freezing?
"In my opinion, no. Back then, before the FMedRÄG 2015 was passed, experts – including from the field of reproductive medicine – were consulted on the law and its amendments. I was one of those consulted experts. I can only say this much: we, the experts in the field of reproductive medicine, would have permitted social freezing.
This is about politics – about not hurting the conservatives and the church. That is why, in my view, the legislator made concessions and kept social freezing banned."
With regard to social freezing, how would you set the maximum age for the woman? Up to what age limit should the use of cryopreserved eggs be allowed?
"I see the natural menopause as the limit here, i.e. around the age of 50 for the woman.
But it also depends crucially on the partner with whom she then carries out the treatment. A 50-year-old woman with a young, fertile partner will have no problem undergoing treatment. The whole thing is self-limiting, however, because a 70-year-old woman will generally not have a fertile partner."
Critics often argue that social freezing interferes with the natural order and violates a law of nature subject solely to the will of God. What is your view of this "naturalness argument"?
"This criticism comes from the conservatives. By that logic, however, there should be no antibiotics and no coronavirus vaccination either, because these also contradict nature."
How do you see the future of social freezing in Austria?
"I doubt it will ever be like in the USA, where large companies such as 'Apple' or 'Facebook' offer their female employees social freezing at the company's expense.
As a specialist in gynaecology and obstetrics and a reproductive medicine physician, I have no ambition to suggest to teenagers that they build up an egg reserve at the youngest possible age.
Nor can I observe any trend of teenagers or young women in their early twenties engaging with the question of children, let alone with the topic of social freezing. After all, anyone who seriously thinks about having children at 23 is highly unlikely to postpone family planning for that long anyway.
At present, the number of women interested in social freezing in Austria is modest – but it cannot be overlooked."
With regard to feminism, is social freezing the "great equaliser"?
"Honestly, I have never thought of drawing a connection to feminism. But yes: if we can freeze sperm 'in reserve' for men – and have been able to for many years – then women should be allowed to do the same, in the spirit of equal rights."
Flash freezing
For social freezing, eggs should be retrieved as early as possible. "The younger the retrieved eggs, the better," says Priv.-Doz. DDr. Michael Feichtinger. In the so-called vitrification procedure, ten to 15 eggs are first retrieved and then flash-frozen using a special cooling technique in which the cells solidify into a glass-like state within a fraction of a second at minus 197 degrees. It is now largely scientifically established that freezing does not diminish the quality of the cells. "The frozen and thawed egg of a young woman is as good as a fresh one," says the physician.
Think today about your wish for a child tomorrow.
If you foresee wanting children later in life, we recommend a personal consultation.
Or call us: +43 1 877 77 75