1. Comparative European Law on Abortion Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Eighth Amendment of the Constitution – 8 November Leah Hoctor, Regional Director for Europe, Center for Reproductive Rights

3. Women’s access to abortion on request: 36 countries

4. Without restriction as to reason
Is a reason required for access on a woman’s request?
Without restriction as to reason
Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bosnia Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Montenegro, Moldova, Norway, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, Ukraine
Distress
Belgium, Netherlands, Switzerland
Severe Crisis
Hungary
Family or Social
Albania, Italy

5. Is there a standard time limit for access on a woman’s request?
10 weeks
Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Macedonia, Montenegro, Portugal, Serbia, Slovenia, Turkey
Albania, Armenia, Austria (3 months), Azerbaijan, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy (90 days), Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Moldova, Norway, Russia, Slovakia, Switzerland, Ukraine
12 weeks
14 weeks
Romania, Spain
18 weeks
Sweden
Viability
Netherlands

6. Broad socioeconomic or psychological grounds: 4 countries
FINLAND AND ICELAND
Reason: Personal, social, family, or economic situation.
Time limit: 12 weeks (Finland) 12 – 16 weeks (Iceland).
UNITED KINGDOM
Reason: Pregnancy involves risk, greater than if it were terminated, of injury to the physical or mental health of a woman or any existing children in her family. Account taken of a woman’s actual or reasonably foreseeable environment.
Time limit: 24 weeks
CYPRUS
Reason: Continuation of pregnancy would mean that physical, mental, or psychological injury would be suffered by a pregnant woman or by any existing child she may have, greater than if the pregnancy were terminated.
Time limit: No limit

7. Is abortion legal after the timeframe ends for access on request or broad socioeconomic and psychological grounds?
Approach No. 1 and No
A risk to a woman’s life
Exceptional reasons usually include:
A risk to a woman’s health
A fatal or severe foetal impairment
Sexual assault
Exceptional reasons sometimes include:
Socioeconomic reasons

8. Exceptional ground of risk to a woman’s health
No time limit:
Austria, Belgium, Bosnia Herzegovina, Croatia, Cyprus, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Norway, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovenia, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom
Some time
limit:
Albania, Armenia, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Estonia, Georgia, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Moldova, Montenegro, Slovakia, Spain, Ukraine

9. Access for survivors of sexual assault
In 36 countries that allow access on request:
Legal under on request ground, at least in early pregnancy
No explicit ground:
Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Estonia, France, Italy, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom
Explicit ground:
Albania, Bosnia Herzegovina, Croatia, Cyprus, Denmark, Finland, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Latvia, Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, Norway, Portugal, Russia, Serbia, Turkey, Ukraine