Legal conditions

• Written consent by the woman
• Pre-abortion consultation (legal counselling) + pre-abortion laboratory tests + post-abortion consultation
• Mandatory 3-day period between pre-abortion consultation and abortion procedure
• Contraception evoked during at least 1 of the medical consultations.

Specific conditions for minors

• Parent’s (or guardian’s) consent required for minors under 16.

Abortion legislation | Practical conditions | Abortion statistics | Characteristics of women having induced abortion
Fertility and contraception data | Country-specific characteristics 

Mandatory pre-abortion examinations

• Blood group and rhesus factor
• Ultrasound

Involved healthcare professionals

• Surgical abortion: obstetrician/gynaecologist (OB/GYN)
• Medical abortion: OB/GYN, another physician or a nurse under physician supervision.

Other information

• Public Hospitals with OB/GYN services have the obligation to perform abortion, but not all of them perform abortion due to physician conscientious objection. Those who not perform abortion refer the woman to Private Services, under economic support of the National Health System.
• Doctors are not allowed to perform abortion in their private practice

Abortion legislation | Practical conditions | Abortion statistics | Characteristics of women having induced abortion
Fertility and contraception data | Country-specific characteristics 

In 2016, among women who had induced abortion on request:

– 82% were Portuguese
– 30% had at least 1 previous induced abortion
– 57% had at least 1 child.

Abortion legislation | Practical conditions | Abortion statistics | Characteristics of women having induced abortion
Fertility and contraception data | Country-specific characteristics 

Women age at first birth

• 30 years of age (2017).

Overall contraception data

• 94% of sexual active women aged 15-49 used a contraceptive method (2015):
  – 58% used oral contraceptives
  – 14% used male condoms
  – 12% used intra-uterine devices (IUD)
  – 5% used implants

Pre-abortion contraception – Missing data.

Contraception during abortion process

• 96% of women who had abortion on request had a contraceptive method prescribed during abortion process (2015).
• 35% of women who had abortion on request had long-acting reversible contraception (LARC) prescribed during abortion process (2015).
• LARC is usually placed in abortion facilities:

– IUD is placed 2 to 4 weeks after medical abortion, and at the time of surgical abortion
– Implant is placed at the time of mifepristone intake or 2-4 weeks after medical abortion, and at the time of surgical abortion.

Abortion legislation | Practical conditions | Abortion statistics | Characteristics of women having induced abortion
Fertility and contraception data | Country-specific characteristics 

• Abortion is taught during health care professionals’ (HCPs’) medical studies.
• All HCPs have the right to conscientiously object; the women are to be referred to another service. The clinic that objected to providing abortion care services has to pay for the abortion. The Public Hospital where abortion is not performed due to physycians’ conscientious objection must refer the women to a Private Service and the National Health System will support it.
• Surgical and medical abortions are free of charge for resident women, for non-resident women coming from European countries, and for women from other countries having political and diplomatic relations with Portugal.

Abortion legislation | Practical conditions | Abortion statistics | Characteristics of women having induced abortion
Fertility and contraception data | Country-specific characteristics