Abortion in Unified Germany (1995) The abortion law for united Germany was passed in 1992. Only a year later, the Federal Constitutional Court ruled that major passages of the law were unconstitutional. As a result, the law had to be reworked in 1994 and 1995. First-trimester abortions have been illegal since 1995, but there is no punishment if the woman received counseling at a state-approved pregnancy counseling agency (so-called counseling regulation).
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page 1 of 2 Paragraph 218 Pregnancy Termination (1) Whoever terminates a pregnancy shall be liable to imprisonment for up to three years or to a fine. Acts whose effects occur before the conclusion of the implantation of the fertilized egg in the uterus shall not qualify as a pregnancy termination in the sense of this law. (2) In especially serious cases, the punishment shall be imprisonment for six months to five years. An especially serious case typically exists if the perpetrator: 1. acts against the will of the pregnant woman; or 2. through gross negligence, puts the pregnant woman at risk of death or serious injury. (3) If the act is committed by the pregnant woman, then the punishment shall be imprisonment for up to one year or a fine. (4) The attempt shall be punishable. The pregnant woman shall not be punished for the attempt. Paragraph 218a Exemption from Punishment for Pregnancy Termination (1) The offense described in Paragraph 218 shall not be deemed fulfilled if: 1. the pregnant woman requests the termination of the pregnancy and demonstrates to the physician, through the presentation of a certificate pursuant to Paragraph 219, Section 2, Sentence 2, that she obtained counseling at least three days before the operation; 2. the termination of the pregnancy is performed by a physician; and 3. not more than twelve weeks have elapsed since conception. (2) A pregnancy termination performed by a physician with the consent of the pregnant woman shall not be unlawful if, considering the present and future living conditions of the pregnant woman, the termination of the pregnancy is necessary, according to medical opinion, to avert danger to the life of the pregnant woman or the danger of grave injury to her physical or mental health, and if the danger to her cannot reasonably be averted in any other way. (3) The conditions described in Section 2 shall also be deemed fulfilled in the case of a pregnancy termination performed by a physician with the consent of the pregnant woman if, according to medical opinion, an unlawful act has been committed against the pregnant woman pursuant to Paragraphs 176 to 179 of the Penal Code*, [and] there are strong reasons supporting the assumption that the pregnancy was caused by the act, and if not more than twelve weeks have elapsed since conception. (4) The pregnant woman shall not be liable to punishment pursuant to Paragraph 218 if the termination of the pregnancy was performed by a physician after she received counseling (Paragraph 219), and if no more than twenty-two weeks have elapsed since conception. The court may dispense with punishment pursuant to Paragraph 218 if the pregnant woman was in exceptional distress at the time of the operation. * These paragraphs deal with the sexual abuse of children and those incapable of resisting, and with sexual coercion and rape – eds.
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