Abortion in Venezuela

Abortion in Venezuela is currently illegal except in some specific cases outlined in the Venezuelan Constitution, and the country has one of Latin America's most restrictive laws.

The punishment for a woman who has an abortion for any other reason is a prison sentence lasting anywhere between six months and two years. While the punishment for a doctor or any person who performs the procedure is between one and three years, harsher penalties may apply if the pregnant woman dies as a result of the procedure. There has been debate over this topic for several years.

The Latin American and the Caribbean region holds one of the highest rates of induced abortion in the world; it is calculated that for every 1,000 live births, there are just over 300 abortions, many of which are illegal and/or clandestine abortions. This mix of legal and illegal abortions is due to the region's diverse policies on abortion and access to reproductive healthcare. There is not a clear statistic for Venezuela-specific abortion rates, possibly due to a great majority of the abortions that occur going undocumented.