Abortion Procedures and Time Limits

There are two types of abortion: medical or surgical. The type of abortion you can have depends on how many weeks pregnant you are. An abortion may be performed up to the time when the foetus could survive outside the mother’s body. This means abortion is allowed up to 24 weeks. After that, an abortion is only allowed in the case of serious medical problems, for instance because the foetus has no chance of surviving after the birth.

Medical Abortion

A medical abortion can be done in a clinic, or sometimes at home if you're less than 10 weeks pregnant. Up to 9 weeks of pregnancy, you can have a medical abortion. This procedure involves two types of medication. First, you will get a pill to end the pregnancy. The second medication causes the uterus to contract and expel the amniotic sac. A single dose consists of several pills. When you have a medical abortion, a doctor prescribes 2 medicines ("abortion pills"), called mifepristone and misoprostol. You then need to:

• take 1 mifepristone tablet
• wait 1 to 2 days
• take misoprostol – misoprostol may be tablets that dissolve in your mouth, or tablets you insert into your vagina

Around 4 to 6 hours after the second medicine, the pregnancy should begin to be passed (come out) through the vagina. If the pregnancy does not come out completely, you may need more medicine. Talk to a doctor or nurse about prescribing an extra dose of misoprostol. If you are less than 9 weeks pregnant, you can ask your GP to prescribe pills for a medical abortion. Not all doctors offer this treatment. Ask at your GP surgery.

Important: Do not buy abortion pills online

You will not know if abortion pills bought online are genuine or harmful. They need to be prescribed by a doctor.

Surgical Abortion

A surgical abortion is usually done after 10 weeks of pregnancy, but can be done before. If you are more than 9 weeks pregnant or if you don’t want a medical abortion, there are other methods. Surgical abortion options include:

• using suction to remove the pregnancy through the vagina – this can be done between 7 to 14 weeks of pregnancy and usually takes about 5 to 10 minutes. Suction abortion (vacuum aspiration) is possible until 13 weeks of pregnancy. The uterus is emptied by suction.
• using forceps to remove the pregnancy through the vagina – this can be done from around week 15, and usually takes 10 to 20 minutes. If you are more than 13 weeks pregnant, abortion must be performed with medical instruments. The instruments are used to remove all pregnancy tissue from the uterus.

Before your operation, you'll have one of the following:

• a local anaesthetic to numb the opening to your cervix (the opening of your womb)
• a general anaesthetic to make you sleep during the operation
• sedation medicine, to keep you relaxed while you're still awake

You can have these procedures under local or general anaesthetic. You'll usually be allowed to go home the same day. If you have a general anaesthetic, you must not drive home, and you should have someone with you for the following 24 hours.

Where to Get an Abortion

You can get an abortion at an abortion clinic, a GP surgery or a hospital. Not every abortion clinic or hospital performs every type of procedure. Ask at the clinic or hospital what treatment options are available to you.

Abortion Procedure Options by Gestational Week