31 August .. Administrative Court to Deliver Judgment in Lawsuit Seeking to Enable a Prisoner’s Wife to Undergo IVF Treatment

On 27 June 2026, the First Circuit of the Administrative Court (Council of State) reserved for judgment, at its session scheduled for 31 August 2026, a lawsuit filed by the Egyptian Center for Economic and Social Rights (ECESR) on behalf of a female citizen against the Minister of Interior, the Assistant Minister of Interior for Human Rights, and the Director of the Community Protection Sector in Minya Governorate, in their official capacities.

The lawsuit seeks the annulment of the negative administrative act consisting in the respondents’ refusal to permit the claimant to obtain the biological samples and medical examinations required from her husband in order to complete an in vitro fertilization (IVF) procedure at her own expense.

It is noteworthy that, in a landmark report constituting an unprecedented legal precedent, the State Commissioners Authority of the Administrative Court recommended that the claimant be recognized as entitled to obtain the biological samples and medical examinations required from her husband, who is serving a 15-year sentence of aggravated imprisonment and is detained at the Minya Correctional and Rehabilitation Center, to enable her to undergo IVF treatment at her own expense.

In its report in Case No. 41283 of Judicial Year 79, issued in April 2025, the State Commissioners Authority emphasized that the Egyptian Constitution recognizes the family as the foundation of society and places upon the State the duty to preserve its cohesion, stability, and values. The report further recalled the constitutional principles that there shall be no crime or punishment except pursuant to law; no penalty shall be imposed except by virtue of a judicial ruling; and no punishment shall be imposed except for acts committed after the law has entered into force.

The Authority further relied on established jurisprudence of the Supreme Administrative Court and the Supreme Constitutional Court, which affirms that personal liberty occupies the highest rank among the constitutional rights guaranteed to citizens as a natural right. These rights include the right to marry and the derivative right to found a family and raise one’s children. Consequently, persons deprived of their liberty must be treated in a manner that preserves their inherent human dignity.

The report also relied on Dickson v. the United Kingdom, one of the leading judgments of the European Court of Human Rights concerning prisoners’ reproductive rights. The Court held that prisoners do not automatically forfeit their fundamental rights by virtue of their imprisonment and that facilitating access to assisted reproductive treatment would neither create security concerns nor impose any significant administrative or financial burden on the State.

In that case, Kirk Dickson, who was serving a life sentence for murder, and his wife, Lorraine Dickson, applied to the British authorities for access to assisted reproductive treatment to enable them to have a child. The request was refused. However, the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights subsequently held that the refusal to grant them access to fertility treatment constituted a violation of Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which guarantees the right to respect for private and family life.

The State Commissioners Authority also relied upon the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (the Nelson Mandela Rules), formally adopted by the United Nations General Assembly, to reaffirm the State’s responsibility to provide prisoners with healthcare equivalent to that available in the community, including access to necessary healthcare services free of charge and without discrimination on the basis of their legal status.

The Authority further relied on Presidential Decree No. 536 of 1981, approving the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), adopted on 16 December 1966. It noted that Article 6 recognizes every human being’s inherent right to life, which must be protected by law, and prohibits the arbitrary deprivation of life.

The report also referred to Article 9 of the Covenant, which guarantees every individual the right to liberty and security of person and prohibits arbitrary arrest or detention, providing that no one shall be deprived of liberty except on such grounds and in accordance with such procedures as are established by law. It further cited Article 10, which requires that all persons deprived of their liberty be treated with humanity and with respect for the inherent dignity of the human person.

The Authority also relied on Article 23 of the Covenant, which recognizes the family as the natural and fundamental group unit of society and entitles it to protection by society and the State. It further recognizes the right of men and women of marriageable age to marry and to found a family.

In addition, the Authority relied on Law No. 396 of 1956 on the Regulation of Correctional and Rehabilitation Centers, as amended by Law No. 14 of 2022, emphasizing prisoners’ rights to humane treatment, family visits, healthcare, and access to the medical examinations and laboratory tests necessary for their treatment.

The Authority concluded that, since the Law on Correctional and Rehabilitation Centers guarantees prisoners the right to healthcare—including obliging the competent administrative authorities to transfer prisoners, where medically necessary, to hospitals outside the correctional facility for appropriate treatment—permitting the prisoner’s wife to complete the medical procedures required for her husband’s treatment and to obtain the biological sample necessary for IVF is fully consistent with the objectives of both the Constitution and the law.

While welcoming this historic report, the Egyptian Center for Economic and Social Rights expresses its hope that the Court will adopt the Authority’s recommendations in light of the legal reasoning and conclusions set out therein.

The Egyptian Center for Economic and Social Rights, together with the law office of attorney Ihab El-Garhy, instituted proceedings before the Administrative Court in Cairo against the Minister of Interior, the Assistant Minister for Human Rights, and the Director of the Community Protection Sector in Minya Governorate, in their official capacities, on behalf of a female citizen. The action seeks the annulment of the negative administrative act consisting in the respondents’ refusal to permit her to obtain the biological samples and medical examinations required from her husband, who is serving a 15-year sentence of aggravated imprisonment, in order to complete IVF treatment at her own expense.

According to the statement of claim, the applicant, a resident of Fayoum Governorate, has been married to the imprisoned man since 2014. The couple enjoyed a stable married life but experienced infertility. After several unsuccessful attempts to conceive, the applicant underwent a successful IVF procedure that resulted in a triplet pregnancy. However, following her husband’s arrest in January 2015 and his subsequent pretrial detention in several criminal cases before being sentenced to fifteen years’ imprisonment in 2022, she suffered a miscarriage as a consequence of the severe psychological distress she endured, shattering the couple’s hopes of becoming parents.

The claim further states that the applicant’s prospects of conceiving continue to diminish due to her advancing age; she is now 36 years old. Moreover, her medical condition renders natural conception impossible. In addition, she will not be reunited with her husband before 2037, when he is scheduled to complete his sentence, making IVF her only realistic opportunity to become a mother.

The applicant submitted a formal request to the Minister of Interior and the competent officials seeking authorization for the medical procedures necessary to facilitate IVF, affirming that she would bear all associated costs and that the requested procedure would not contravene any provision of law. The competent authorities failed to respond to her request, compelling her to seek legal representation from the Egyptian Center for Economic and Social Rights and institute the present proceedings.

The claim further argues that the request entails no legal impropriety but rather seeks access to a medically necessary procedure consistent with legislation guaranteeing prisoners access to essential healthcare services.

It should also be noted that Egyptian law contains no express statutory provisions permitting conjugal visits for prisoners. Consequently, incarcerated persons are deprived of their fundamental marital rights, including the opportunity to have children through natural means. Although Islamic legal opinions (fatwas) have affirmed that prisoners should not be deprived of this right, the regulation of conjugal visits remains subject to the discretion of the competent authorities.

In 2017, the Al-Azhar Global Center for Electronic Fatwa confirmed that there is no prohibition under Islamic law against IVF procedures, emphasizing that the preservation of lineage constitutes one of the fundamental objectives (maqāṣid) of Islamic law.

Accordingly, the Egyptian Center for Economic and Social Rights reiterates its call for a review of policies affecting prisoners’ rights and urges the authorities to ensure that prisoners are able to exercise their fundamental human rights, including the right to found a family, in a manner consistent with international human rights standards.