Abortion in Liechtenstein

Abortion in Liechtenstein is illegal in most circumstances with limited exceptions in cases where the life of the pregnant woman is at risk, or serious damage to her health which cannot otherwise be prevented, or where the pregnancy has resulted from a sexual offence. Religion in Liechtenstein is mainly Roman Catholic, which is reflected in the faith of the ruling Princely House of Liechtenstein and in the country's laws and culture around pregnancy.

Law

Last modified in 2015, Liechtenstein law allows any woman to obtain a physician-performed abortion. However, physicians in the country can only perform abortions under very limited circumstances. Therefore, to stay within the law most women must travel abroad for the procedure. Of note, the age of consent in Liechtenstein is 14.
The Criminal Code of Liechtenstein states that:
The above acts shall not be punishable if the termination of pregnancy is:

necessary to avert serious danger to the life or serious damage to the health of the pregnant woman that cannot be averted otherwise ;
the pregnancy is the result of a sexual offence or the pregnant woman was under-age at the time of conception ; or
undertaken to save the pregnant woman from an immediate danger to life that cannot be averted otherwise, under circumstances not permitting medical assistance to be obtained in time.

Sections 97 and 98 of the Strafgesetzbuch, respectively, prohibit termination of pregnancy without the consent of the pregnant woman and grossly negligent intervention in respect of a pregnant woman, including the promotion of abortion. Liechtenstein has a high quality health service.

Proposals

In a double referendum on abortion in November 2005, 81% of voters rejected a For Life proposal to prohibit all abortion – "The supreme task of the state is the protection of human life from conception to natural death and to promote the overall welfare of the People" – while 80% approved the counter-proposal from the Landtag to be included in the Constitution of Liechtenstein:

The dignity of man is to be respected and protected.
No one shall be subjected to inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.
Everyone has the right to life.
The death penalty is prohibited.

A proposal to legalize abortion, in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy or when the unborn child was disabled, was defeated in a further referendum held in September 2011. The opponents, which included Prince Alois, got 500 votes more and eventually settled at 52.3 percent compared with 47.7 percent. Prince Alois had previously threatened to veto the proposal if it passed.
In April and November 2012, the Landtag considered but did not advance proposals to relax abortion laws.
Until an amendment of the Criminal Code in 2015, the exception for rape was limited to cases where the victim of the rape was aged under 14 years old.

Statistics

Women in Liechtenstein who choose to have an abortion must cross the border, to either neighboring Switzerland or Austria, to have the procedure carried out legally or to obtain advice in relation to abortion. In 2011, it was estimated that approximately 50 women a year had abortions, either illegally in Liechtenstein or abroad in either Switzerland or Austria.