Abortion in Ukraine


Abortion in Ukraine is legal on request during the first twelve weeks of pregnancy. Between 12 and 28 weeks, abortion is available on a variety of grounds, including medical, social and personal grounds, and for any reason with the approval of a commission of physicians.
Prior to 1991, abortion in Ukraine was governed by the abortion laws of the Soviet Union. The laws have not changed since then. Abortion rates have fallen from 109 abortions per 1000 women aged 15–44 in 1986 to 80.9 in 1991, 67.2 in 1996 and 27.5 in 2004., the abortion rate was 21.2 abortions per 1000 women aged 15–44. In 2014 the abortion rate in Ukraine decreased to 14.89 per 1000 women aged 15–44. Abortion rates in Ukraine and Belarus have converged in recent years, creating a large gap with post-Soviet Russia.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky has spoken in favor of expansion of abortion rights.