In a historic change to abortion legislation, the Danish government, together with SF (The Socialist People’s Party), Enhedslisten (The Red-Green Alliance), De Radikale (The Danish Social Liberal Party), Alternativet (The Alternative), Liberal Alliance (The Liberal Alliance) and De Konservative (The Conservative People’s Party), have decided to raise the abortion limit from 12 to 18 weeks. This change marks the first major revision of abortion rules in Denmark in over half a century.
The Minister of the Interior and Health, Sophie Løhde (V), stated that there are no health reasons to maintain the current limit, and added that the change is not expected to lead to an increase in the number of later abortions. She emphasized that there will still be a significant margin to the point where a fetus can survive outside the uterus.
As part of the legislative change, the five regional abortion committees will be replaced by a national abortion board, which from July 1, 2025, will have the authority to make decisions on abortions after the 18th week. This initiative aims to harmonize practices across the country, which according to the minister will reduce regional differences in abortion permissions. Furthermore, a new rule will allow young women aged 15 to 17 to have an abortion without requiring parental consent or approval from the Abortion Board.
Minister for Digitalization and Equality, Marie Bjerre (V), pointed out that since the age of consent in Denmark is 15, young women should have the right to make decisions about abortion themselves, even in cases of disagreement with their parents. The new abortion rules will be implemented through an amendment to the health law, with a bill expected to be presented within the next year and come into effect on June 1, 2025. The right to abortion was originally introduced in Denmark in 1973.