Poland's parliament votes to ease abortion ban, setting up clash with president

Two liberalisation bills pass the Sejm but face a veto President Karol Nawrocki has pledged to deliver

By LineZotpaper

Published21 October 2026

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Poland's lower house of parliament approved two bills on Tuesday night that would soften one of Europe's strictest abortion regimes, a breakthrough for Prime Minister Donald Tusk's coalition that is expected to end in a presidential veto.

WARSAW, The Sejm passed a bill to decriminalise helping a woman obtain an abortion with 217 votes in favour, 213 against and three abstentions. A second bill, restoring the right to terminate a pregnancy for severe fetal abnormalities, passed with 233 votes to 203 and one abstention. Both now move to the Senate, where they seem poised to pass, but their eventual fate rests with President Karol Nawrocki, an ally of the nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) party, who said before his election in 2025 that he would not sign legislation easing abortion rules.

The first bill would end criminal penalties for assisting or encouraging an abortion performed outside legally permitted grounds, an offence that currently carries up to three years in prison. It would also protect doctors, nurses and midwives from prosecution when they terminate a pregnancy because of a threat to the woman's life or health or strong indications of a serious, irreversible fetal condition.

The second bill would restore terminations when doctors identify a severe and irreversible fetal abnormality or an incurable illness threatening the fetus's viability. It would set deadlines for hospitals to provide lawful abortions and require written explanations for refusals.

"The state trusts women. A woman who terminates her own pregnancy is already exempt from criminal punishment. It's time to stop punishing everyone who loves us, worries about us and respects our choices," Katarzyna Kotula, the government's equality commissioner and a Left lawmaker, said on X.

Sejm speaker Włodzimierz Czarzasty said the president would be hurting people by refusing to sign the legislation. "If he wants to hurt women, he will hurt them. I think women will see that and hear that."

Neither bill goes as far as allowing abortion on request up to 12 weeks of pregnancy, which Tusk's Civic Coalition promised in the 2023 election campaign. The multi-party government includes more conservative partners, and some lawmakers from the Polish People's Party and Poland 2050 voted against the bills.

Women's rights groups urged caution. "What does this mean for women who need abortions now? Nothing, because none of these projects would help them," the Legalna Aborcja (Legal Abortion) NGO said on X. Education Minister Barbara Nowacka acknowledged the change was incremental but said she would always vote for every change, even the smallest one, that brings Polish women closer to full rights over their own lives.

Poland currently permits abortion where a pregnancy threatens a woman's health or life or results from a criminal act. The near-total ban took its current shape in October 2020, when the Constitutional Tribunal, dominated by PiS-appointed judges, struck down the fetal abnormality ground. That ruling took effect in January 2021, prompted mass protests and contributed to PiS's loss of power in the 2023 election. A July 2024 attempt to decriminalise assistance with abortion was rejected by 218 votes to 215 after most Polish People's Party lawmakers joined the right-wing opposition.

The proposals had lingered in a parliamentary committee for two years before Tuesday's vote, surfacing as campaigning heats up 12 months before the next general election, slated for late 2027. Overriding a presidential veto would require a three-fifths majority in the Sejm that Tusk's coalition does not have.

Analysis

Why This Matters

Poland's abortion law is among Europe's most restrictive, and the 2020 ruling that effectively ended terminations for fetal abnormalities made reproductive rights a defining national issue, one that helped drive the previous government from power.
The two bills would remove prison threats for people who help women obtain abortions and restore a legal ground for severe fetal abnormalities, directly affecting doctors, midwives and women across the country.
The vote sets up a political clash between Tusk's coalition and President Nawrocki with parliamentary elections due in late 2027, and the issue is already part of the campaign.

Background

Poland's current law allows abortion only when a pregnancy threatens the woman's health or life or results from a criminal act such as rape or incest. The near-total ban took its present shape after the Constitutional Tribunal struck down the fetal abnormality ground in October 2020, a ruling effective from January 2021 that triggered huge street protests. Reversing the restrictions became a defining promise for Tusk's pro-European camp, which formed government after the 2023 election but governs with more conservative partners who have blocked full liberalisation. In most other EU countries abortion is available on request in the first trimester, a contrast that has made Poland's restrictions a recurring focus of European debate.

Key Perspectives

Tusk's coalition: The government argues the state should trust women and stop punishing those who support them. It framed the vote as progress while acknowledging it falls short of the 12-week access promised in 2023.

Women's rights organisations: Legalna Aborcja and allied groups say the reforms are too narrow and change nothing for women needing abortions now, since neither bill expands access on request or removes the obstacles within the existing law.

President Nawrocki and Law and Justice: The president has pledged to veto the legislation. Overriding him requires a three-fifths majority the coalition does not have, so the bills may stall unless a compromise emerges.

Conservatives in the coalition: Lawmakers from the Polish People's Party and Poland 2050 split from their partners, showing that even within government ranks there is no agreement on going further, including the earlier failure of a decriminalisation bill in July 2024.

What to Watch

Whether the Senate passes the bills unchanged and how quickly they reach President Nawrocki's desk.
Whether the president vetoes outright or seeks amendments, and whether any coalition conservatives would back an override attempt.
How the abortion issue plays in the campaign ahead of the general election slated for late 2027, the context in which the bills resurfaced.

Sources

Poland’s government votes to ease abortion laws in challenge to conservative president · Politico Europe

Checked

11 claims in this story checked against 1 source: 8 supported.

Show each claim

SupportedThe Sejm voted to ease Poland’s abortion restrictions.Politico Europe: “Poland’s lower chamber of parliament approved two bills that would loosen the country’s strict abortion restrictions Tuesday evening”
SupportedThe vote sets up a clash with President Karol Nawrocki.Politico Europe: “The measures, which are likely to be vetoed by opposition-aligned President Karol Nawrocki”
Not in the sourcesPoland has one of Europe’s strictest abortion regimes.Politico Europe
Partly supportedNawrocki has pledged to deliver a veto on the bills.Politico Europe: “President Karol Nawrocki, an ally of the nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) party, said before his election in 2025 that he would not sign legislation easing abortion rules.”
SupportedThe bills are expected to end in a presidential veto.Politico Europe: “The measures, which are likely to be vetoed by opposition-aligned President Karol Nawrocki”
SupportedThe bill to decriminalise helping a woman obtain an abortion passed with 217 votes in favour, 213 against and three abstentions.Politico Europe: “ending criminal penalties for helping women with abortion passed with 217 votes in favor, 213 against and three abstentions.”
SupportedThe bill restoring the fetal-abnormality ground passed with 233 votes in favour, 203 against and one abstention.Politico Europe: “The other bill won a slightly clearer majority of 233 for, 203 against and a single abstention.”
SupportedKotula said: “The state trusts women. A woman who terminates her own pregnancy is already exempt from criminal punishment. It's time to stop punishing everyone who loves us, worries about us and respects our choices.”Politico Europe: ““The state trusts women. A woman who terminates her own pregnancy is already exempt from criminal punishment. It’s time to stop punishing everyone who loves us, worries about us and respects our choices,” Katarzyna Kotula, Poland’s government equality commissioner and a lawmaker from the Left, said on X.”
SupportedCzarzasty said: “If he wants to hurt women, he will hurt them. I think women will see that and hear that.”Politico Europe: ““If he wants to hurt women, he will hurt them. I think women will see that and hear that.””
SupportedLegalna Aborcja said: “What does this mean for women who need abortions now? Nothing, because none of these projects would help them.”Politico Europe: ““What does this mean for women who need abortions now? Nothing, because none of these projects would help them,” Legalna Aborcja (Legal Abortion) NGO said on X.”
Partly supportedThe near-total ban took its current shape in October 2020, when the Tribunal struck down the fetal-abnormality ground.Politico Europe: “In October 2020, the Constitutional Tribunal, dominated by judges appointed under the PiS government, struck down the additional ground for serious fetal abnormalities, which one of the bills passed tonight restores. The ruling, effective from January 2021”