Abortion in Canada: Always Legal, Not Always Accessible

Abstract

In Canada, abortion is not a criminal offence. There are no legal restrictions on abortion, including no restrictions with respect to gestational age or on the reasons for which a pregnant person may choose to have an abortion. As lawful medical procedures, abortions fall under provincial jurisdiction over health and there is some regulatory variability between provinces. Information about abortion access is similarly affected by provincial jurisdiction over education. Prior to decriminalization, advocacy on abortion access was national in scope, but since 1988, most activism has been focused on access and funding and has been provincial or even local.