Short answer
Allah's forgiveness is open to you. Sincere tawbah means regret, stopping and resolving not to return, with dua and good deeds. In the Hanafi school, no kaffarah fast is obligatory for an abortion, but if the fetus had begun to take shape and was aborted deliberately, a payment called ghurrah may be due. The details depend on the facts, so speak to a mufti privately.
Tawbah is required, and accepted, for an abortion done without a valid excuse. Kaffarah (two months of fasting) is not obligatory in the Hanafi school, though it is recommended. Ghurrah, one twentieth of a full diya, is due to the fetus's heirs when a fetus whose features had partly formed is aborted by a deliberate act, and the one who caused it does not inherit from it.
Other madhhabs
- Shafi'i
- Kaffarah is obligatory along with the ghurrah when a fetus is aborted by a deliberate act.
- Hanbali
- Kaffarah is obligatory along with the ghurrah, as in the Shafi'i school.
- Maliki
- Ghurrah is due; kaffarah is recommended rather than obligatory.
Explanation
If you are carrying guilt over an abortion, know first that Allah says: O My servants who have transgressed against themselves, do not despair of the mercy of Allah. Indeed, Allah forgives all sins (39:53). Even after the gravest sins, including taking a life, the Quran says except for those who repent, believe and do righteous work, and that Allah replaces their evil deeds with good (25:70).
Tawbah (repentance) has three parts: real regret, stopping, and a firm intention not to return. Pray salat al-tawbah, make istighfar, give charity and increase good deeds. You do not need to confess to anyone. If the abortion was before 120 days for a reason the scholars accept, such as a serious danger to your health, there may have been no sin at all (see does Islam allow abortion).
Ghurrah and kaffarah. The Prophet ﷺ ruled that when a woman's unborn child was killed by a blow, a ghurrah was due. Hanafi scholars apply this to a deliberate abortion once some of the fetus's features had formed. It is a fixed sum, one twentieth of a full diya, paid to the fetus's heirs, and the person who caused the abortion receives none of it. Who pays it, and whether it is due when the father agreed, are details a mufti will work out. The Hanafi school does not make the two-month fast of kaffarah obligatory here, though fasting it is a good act of repentance; the Shafi'i and Hanbali schools make it obligatory.
Many women also carry grief after an abortion. That is normal, and a counsellor can help. Allah is closer to you than you think, and He loves those who turn back to Him. See does Allah forgive all sins.
Ask a mufti about your own case. This answer explains the general ruling. When the details of your situation matter, as they do here, ask a qualified mufti and give them the full facts. Where to ask a scholar.
The evidence
Quran, Surah Az-Zumar 39:53
۞ قُلْ يَٰعِبَادِىَ ٱلَّذِينَ أَسْرَفُوا۟ عَلَىٰٓ أَنفُسِهِمْ لَا تَقْنَطُوا۟ مِن رَّحْمَةِ ٱللَّهِ ۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ يَغْفِرُ ٱلذُّنُوبَ جَمِيعًا ۚ إِنَّهُۥ هُوَ ٱلْغَفُورُ ٱلرَّحِيمُ ﴿٥٣﴾
Say, "O My servants who have transgressed against themselves [by sinning], do not despair of the mercy of Allah. Indeed, Allah forgives all sins. Indeed, it is He who is the Forgiving, the Merciful."
No sin is beyond Allah's forgiveness for the one who repents.
Quran, Surah Al-Furqaan 25:68-70
وَٱلَّذِينَ لَا يَدْعُونَ مَعَ ٱللَّهِ إِلَٰهًا ءَاخَرَ وَلَا يَقْتُلُونَ ٱلنَّفْسَ ٱلَّتِى حَرَّمَ ٱللَّهُ إِلَّا بِٱلْحَقِّ وَلَا يَزْنُونَ ۚ وَمَن يَفْعَلْ ذَٰلِكَ يَلْقَ أَثَامًۭا ﴿٦٨﴾ يُضَٰعَفْ لَهُ ٱلْعَذَابُ يَوْمَ ٱلْقِيَٰمَةِ وَيَخْلُدْ فِيهِۦ مُهَانًا ﴿٦٩﴾ إِلَّا مَن تَابَ وَءَامَنَ وَعَمِلَ عَمَلًۭا صَٰلِحًۭا فَأُو۟لَٰٓئِكَ يُبَدِّلُ ٱللَّهُ سَيِّـَٔاتِهِمْ حَسَنَٰتٍۢ ۗ وَكَانَ ٱللَّهُ غَفُورًۭا رَّحِيمًۭا ﴿٧٠﴾
And those who do not invoke with Allah another deity or kill the soul which Allah has forbidden [to be killed], except by right, and do not commit unlawful sexual intercourse. And whoever should do that will meet a penalty. Multiplied for him is the punishment on the Day of Resurrection, and he will abide therein humiliated - Except for those who repent, believe and do righteous work. For them Allah will replace their evil deeds with good. And ever is Allah Forgiving and Merciful.
Even taking a life is forgiven with sincere repentance.
Sahih al-Bukhari 6904
Sahih... فقضى رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم فيها بغرة عبد أو أمة ...
"The Messenger of Allah ruled that a ghurrah, a male or female slave, was due for it."
The basis of the ghurrah for a lost fetus.
Where the ruling is recorded
- al-Hidaya, Kitab al-Diyat, Fasl fi al-Janin. Sets out the ghurrah for a fetus and that kaffarah is not obligatory.
- Radd al-Muhtar (Ibn Abidin), Kitab al-Diyat, Fasl fi al-Janin. Discusses a woman who aborts deliberately, with or without her husband's permission.
- Minhaj al-Talibin (al-Nawawi), Kitab Kaffarat al-Qatl. The Shafi'i ruling that kaffarah is due for killing a fetus.
Checked by our team. For a more accurate answer to your own situation, consult a scholar. Quran translation by Sahih International. Hadith Arabic from the standard editions of the six books and the Muwatta, with gradings as recorded there; the English is our own rendering. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.