Other Countries
European Union General
EU breifing paper : Euthanasia legislation in the EU
Colombia
In Colombia, both euthanasia and medically assisted suicide are legal and protected as a fundamental right to die with dignity. While the country lacks formal statutory legislation, the Constitutional Court has progressively decriminalized and regulated these practices since 1997 through a series of landmark rulings.
Cuba
Cuba formally recognized the right to a dignified death, including euthanasia, in its updated Public Health Law passed by the National Assembly. However, the procedure is not yet legally available. The Ministry of Public Health must still draft and approve specific regulations to operationalize it.
The “Public Health Law” (165/2023)
Ecuador
Active euthanasia is legal in Ecuador following a landmark February 2024 ruling by the Constitutional Court. The court struck down penalties for physicians performing the procedure, provided the patient grants informed consent and suffers from an intense, incurable, or irreversible disease or bodily injury.
Iceland
Medical assistance in dying (MAID) and euthanasia are strictly illegal in Iceland. According to Article 213 of the Penal Code and Article 23 of the Patients' Rights Act. Advocacy groups like Lífsvirðing (the Icelandic Right to Die Society) have been pushing for legislative change. In early 2024, the Liberal Reform Party (Viðreisn) introduced the first-ever draft bill in the Icelandic Parliament (Alþingi) to legalize medically assisted dying for individuals experiencing enduring and unbearable suffering from incurable illnesses. However, the bill remains in the proposal phase, and MAID is not yet a legal option.
The advocacy group has a website in Icelandic :https://www.lifsvirding.is/
Italy
Active euthanasia remains illegal in Italy, but physician-assisted suicide is legally permitted under specific circumstances established by the Italian Constitutional Court. Due to the lack of national legislation, the process operates in a legal gray area, governed primarily by court rulings and a growing number of regional laws.
Constitutional Court (2019): Italy’s Constitutional Court effectively legalized assisted suicide under strict conditions (patients must have an incurable, irreversible illness causing intolerable suffering, and rely on life-sustaining treatment, while remaining mentally competent).
Regional Progress (2025): The central-left region of Tuscany became the first in Italy to pass sub-national legislation regulating medically assisted suicide. It mandates that ethics commissions review requests within 30 days and provides medical services within 10 days of approval
Advocacy group : Luca Coscioni Association
Israel
Under the Terminally Ill Patient Act, Israel does permit passive euthanasia. This law allows mentally competent adults (aged 17 and over) to sign Advance Directives to decline life-prolonging medical treatments or request that their conditions not be aggressively treated in their final months.
This Article, The Israeli terminally ill patient law of 2005 gives more detailed analysis of the legal situation in Israel
LILACH: The Israel Society for the Right to Live and Die with Dignity is an Israeli non-profit organization dedicated to protecting patient autonomy and preventing suffering at the end of life.
Luxembourg
Assisted death, encompassing both physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia, is legal in Luxembourg. It is strictly regulated by the Law on Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide (passed in 2009), and requires a formal, voluntary request by the patient under very specific medical conditions.
End of life arrangements are covered by three laws and general information on the regulations can be found HERE
Mexico
Assisted Dying is strictly illega. In 2023, new federal bills were introduced to allow assisted dying under strict conditions, but none have been enacted.
This article A Time to Die: Mexican Life Debates and the Paradox of Choice in Palliative Care gives context
Media: As her kidneys fail and time runs short, this activist fights to decriminalize euthanasia in Mexico
Norway
Assisted dying is completely illegal in Norway but passive euthanasia is allowed. Patients have the legal right to refuse life-sustaining treatment. Doctors may also legally withhold or withdraw life-prolonging treatment if it is deemed futile or against the patient's explicit wishes.
This article, Norwegians’ attitudes towards legalising assisted dying provides more information
Advocacy Group for legalisation af assisted death: Foreningen Retten til en Verdig Død ( Google translate available )
Portugal
Medically assisted dying is legally recognized in Portugal but remains practically suspended. While the Assembly passed Law 22/2023, ongoing constitutional reviews have stalled the regulatory process, requiring the parliament to amend specific procedures and hierarchy rules before any procedures can occur.
This article, Not intrinsically unconstitutional: the Portuguese constitutional court, the right to life, and assisted death sheds some light on the issues
Sweden
Medically assisted dying is strictly illegal.
This Paper, Assisted dying in Swedish healthcare: a qualitative analysis of physicians’ reasoning about physician-assisted suicide provides some context.
Uruguay
Uruguay’s assisted death law—the "Dignified Death" (Ley de Muerte Digna) Law No. 20.431—legalizes euthanasia for mentally competent, terminally ill adults.