In Switzerland, a pregnancy can be terminated until the 12th week of pregnancy without legal consequences. After that, a doctor must confirm that there are compelling reasons why a termination is required after the 12th week of pregnancy.

In Switzerland, pregnant minors (younger than 18) can terminate a pregnancy without the consent of their parents and without them being informed.

Information on terminating a pregnancy

The more advanced a pregnancy is, the more complicated a termination will be. The earlier you find out that you are pregnant, the more time you will have to make this important decision, meaning that if necessary a termination can be performed without difficulty.

A termination of pregnancy (including in the early stages) must always be done by an appropriately qualified doctor. Attempts to do it yourself can be extremely dangerous. Medication for pregnancy termination (“abortion pills”) offered on the Internet are a bad idea (they are often fake and therefore ineffective and/or harmful). The “morning-after pill” is a form of emergency contraception and only works up to 72 hours after intercourse. It must never be used to terminate a pregnancy.

Pregnancy termination options

Up to the 7th week of pregnancy (i.e. 7 weeks after the start of your last period) a pregnancy can be terminated with medication. You will receive detailed information and support from a specialist doctor to enable this to be done at home.

After the 7th week of pregnancy (i.e. 7 weeks after the start of your last period), a surgical procedure will be necessary. This can be carried out at a specialist doctor’s practice or at a hospital as an outpatient.

Finance

Termination of pregnancy is covered by your health insurance as a standard benefit, minus any excess/annual deductible. If you do not wish your family (e.g. parents) to know about the termination, the health insurer can ensure discretion (talk to your doctor and health insurer about this).

Doctor’s practices that carry out terminations

APAC-Suisse