FACTBOX-Organ donation regulations in some major countries

(Reuters) - The European Union's health chief has proposed an EU-wide organ donor card and criticised a Dutch reality TV show in which a dying woman will choose a recipient for her kidneys.

Here are some key facts about laws governing organ donation in some major countries:

* SINGAPORE: The city state's organ donor policy assumes all citizens are willing donors, unless they have registered with the government that they wish to opt out.

* EUROPEAN UNION: Many European countries, including Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Italy, Greece, Norway, Switzerland, Spain and Sweden have laws similar to Singapore's "presumed consent" legislation. In most of these countries, family consent is also sought.

-- Under the "informed consent" laws in Denmark, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom, individuals must make a conscious decision to donate organs after death and indicate their willingness to do so.

-- Spain has the highest recorded donor rate in the world at 35.1 donors per million population.

-- Europe which has a list of nearly 40,000 patients waiting for an organ.

* UNITED STATES: Organ donation in the United States is based on the principle of informed consent.

While federal law lays down the policies, each state has its own Uniform Anatomical Gift Act which provides for a donor card, often part of the state's driver's licences, permitting the removal of organs after death. The cards must be signed by a person over 18 years of age and witnessed by two other adults.