Wa alaykum assalam warahmatullah wabarakatuh.

In the Name of Allah, the All-Merciful, the Mercy-Giving.

All praise is due to Allah. Peace and blessings be upon His Messenger Muhammad.

Basically, it is not permissible to abort pregnancy at any stage unless for a legitimate reason and within very restricted limits. If the pregnancy is in the first stage, which is within a period of 40 days, and abortion will ward off an expected harm, then it is permissible. Thus, abortion at this stage for fear of being unable to raise children or to bear the costs of their education, or because the couple feel that they have enough children is not permissible.

During the second and third periods (40 days each), it is not permissible to abort pregnancy unless a trustworthy medical committee has decided that such pregnancy poses a real threat to the mother’s health or life. In this case, it is permissible to abort it once all means to ward off that danger have been exhausted.

After the third stage — that is, after the elapse of four months — it is not permissible to abort pregnancy unless a group of trustworthy medical specialists decide that keeping the fetus in his mother’s womb will endanger her life. That should only be done after all means to keep the fetus alive have been exhausted.

Obviously, child-spacing is not a legitimate reason to justify abortion, even in the first stage.

Almighty Allah knows best.