Abortion in

San Marino San Marino (, ), officially the Republic of San Marino ( it, Repubblica di San Marino; ), also known as the Most Serene Republic of San Marino ( it, Serenissima Repubblica di San Marino, links=no), is the fifth-smallest country in the world an ...

is legal in the first 12 weeks of gestation for any reason. It is also legal until

fetal viability Fetal viability is the ability of a human fetus to survive outside the uterus. Medical viability is generally considered to be between 23 and 24 weeks gestational age. Viability depends upon factors such as birth weight, gestational age, and the av ...

if the pregnancy poses a risk to the woman's life, if the fetus has an anomaly that poses a risk to the woman's health, or if the pregnancy is the result of rape of incest. In case of risk to the woman's life after fetal viability, the pregnancy may also be interrupted by attempting a live birth.

History

Before 2022, articles 153 and 154 of the Penal Code of San Marino imposed a prison sentence for any woman who procured an

abortion Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. An abortion that occurs without intervention is known as a miscarriage or "spontaneous abortion"; these occur in approximately 30% to 40% of pre ...

, any person who helped her and any person who performed the abortion. Although the law did not explicitly mention any exception, abortions performed to save the woman's life were generally permitted by the legal principle of necessity. A proposal to liberalize abortion law was submitted during 1974 revisions to the Penal Code, but the

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is ...

deferred it indefinitely to permit further debate. After neighboring

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

legalized abortion in 1978, women from San Marino could seek an abortion by crossing the border. In September 2021, a

referendum A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption of a ...

resulted in 77.3% in favor of allowing for the voluntary termination of pregnancy up to the 12th week of gestation, and also thereafter if the pregnancy posed a risk to the woman's life or health or if the pregnancy resulted from rape or incest. The referendum did not immediately legalize abortion, but required the

parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...

to make the relevant changes to the law.San Marino voters overwhelmingly back legal abortion
Associated Press, 26 September 2021. "With the 'yes' votes winning, San Marino's Parliament must now draft a bill to legalize the procedure." On 31 August 2022, the parliament approved the law with 32 votes in favour, 7 against and 10 abstentions. The law was published in the

government gazette A government gazette (also known as an official gazette, official journal, official newspaper, official monitor or official bulletin) is a periodical publication that has been authorised to publish public or legal notices. It is usually establis ...

on 7 September 2022 and entered into force on 12 September 2022.

References

* 9.
LAW no. 127 of 7 September 2022 REGULATING VOLUNTARY TERMINATION OF PREGNANCY
- Republic of San Marino Great and General Council

Law of San Marino

{{SanMarino-stub

History

See also

References