Where is abortion legal in the world

Home News World News. In Depth. Fifty years of legal abortion - and argument Fact Check: Are anti-abortion views in decline? Northern Ireland abortion: Irish vote puts pressure on Theresa May. However, in a few countries, abortion remains the ultimate taboo. Which countries have the strictest abortion laws? Where is elective abortion legal? What about the UK? Will climate change lead to war? Getting to grips with. The most populous state, Sydney, voted to allow abortions up to 22 weeks in , overturning a year-old law prohibiting it.

In , South Australia became the final state to overturn the prohibition of abortions, making the procedure legal across the entire country. Although legal for the first 90 days of pregnancy, acquiring an abortion in Italy is a cumbersome process.

This difficulty was exacerbated during the coronavirus pandemic, when borders were sealed and women could not travel outside the country to find a willing provider. Saudi Arabia. Turkey Although abortion has been legal in Turkey since , the procedure is becoming increasingly difficult to access.

South Korea. South Korea In , South Korea decriminalized abortion across the country. Before this landmark ruling legalizing abortion, an estimated 50,—, dangerous illegal abortions were performed in the country each year. Women caught trying to get illegal abortions were subject to punishments of up to a year in prison. The definitive record of the legal status of abortion in countries across the globe, updated in real time. The laws of the countries in this category do not permit abortion under any circumstances, including when the woman's life or health is at risk.

The laws of the countries in this category permit abortion on the basis of health or therapeutic grounds. These laws are generally interpreted liberally to permit abortion under a broad range of circumstances. The World Abortion Laws Map is the definitive record of the legal status of abortion in countries across the globe.

The map categorizes the legal status of abortion on a continuum from severe restrictiveness to relative liberality. It is updated in real time, reflecting changes in national laws so human rights advocates can monitor how countries are protecting—or denying—reproductive rights around the world. The World Abortion Laws Map includes supplementary tools and resources to assist advocates and policymakers in advancing abortion reform.

These include:. A list of countries categorized by their abortion law can be accessed by downloading a PDF of the map. The categorizations on the map reflect a strict reading of the black letter law in effect in each country. Abortion laws are categorized according to provisions in national statues, legal regulations, and court decisions.

Ministerial guidelines are not utilized in categorizing the legal status of abortion on the map unless they have the force of law. Some of this reform has been incremental, enabling women to access legal abortion only when there is a threat to her life or when pregnancy results from rape.

Abortions take place all over the world, with a few very rare exceptions. In Latin America , the trio of countries with restricted access to abortions in entirety is El Salvador , Nicaragua , and the Dominican Republic. The Vatican City in Europe decided that the country's citizens are not allowed to receive abortions, just like the anti-abortion countries in Latin America. In Europe, the country of Malta is similar to Vatican City in that abortions are illegal, but there's one exception to the abortion law in Malta.

According to the government of Malta, abortions can be performed if they are necessary to save the would-be mother's life. Pregnancies often do not go as planned, in that health concerns or medical emergencies can arise during pregnancy, as well as at birth.

The focus of the government of Malta's exception to their country's abortion law is the instance in which a mother's health might be at risk during pregnancy. An example of this is when a woman becomes pregnant.

Still, the embryo does not grow within the mother's uterus, but rather, either in a different organ or just outside the uterus. Either way, these situations are called ectopic pregnancies, and they are fatal for women if the pregnancies are allowed to endure. Abortion is the only option in this scenario, and in Malta, abortion in this situation would be legal.