Assisted dying: How laws differ around the world

Around 400 million people now live in countries which have legalised assisted dying.

Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Spain and Austria have all introduced assisted dying laws since 2015 – when UK MPs last voted on the issue – some allowing assisted death for those who are not terminally ill.

Just last month, France adopted an 'aid in dying' law for adults with incurable conditions causing them unbearable pain.

While most jurisdictions forbid medical help to die, assisted dying laws around the world vary.

Across the US, assisted dying - which some critics prefer to call assisted suicide - is legal in 30 out of 50 states, as well as in Washington DC.

Oregon was one of the first places in the world to offer help to die for some patients, in 1997, and so has nearly 30 years' experience. It has become the model on which other US assisted dying laws have been framed.

In Oregon, assisted dying is open to terminally ill , external , mentally competent adults expected to die within six months - and must be signed off by two doctors. Since 1997 , external , 5,520 people have received a prescription for a lethal dose of medication - with 3,691 deaths.

In a 2025 report , external , 61% of patients who ask for help to die had cancer, 14% had a neurological condition like motor neurone disease and 11% had heart disease. Of the 400 patients who took a lethal dose of medication last year, the vast majority (89%) said loss of autonomy was a key concern, while others cited: