Euthanasia claims in the Basque Country have increased by 61% and the average length of the process has fallen to 39.4 days

According to the annual report published this Thursday by the Department of Health of the Basque Government, the number of applications for medical assistance to die in the ACV has increased by 61.2% in 2025. On the other hand, the average time from application to benefit has fallen to 39.4 days, below the 41 days established by law. 

This report confirms the data released last February, when 120 euthanasia applications were registered in 2025 and 78 benefits were made, while 74 applications and 49 benefits were registered in 2024.

Health officials point out that the 61.2% increase in the number of applications in the last year shows that the upward trend observed since the entry into forceofOrganic Law 3/2021 has been consolidated and that "the demand for this benefit is then  and higher" in the CAE.

Clinical complexity

The report states that 107 of the 120 applications were granted because they met the requirements of the law to apply for the necessary assistance to die, i.e.about 90% of the  applications, the highest rate since the introduction of the euthanasia law. However, the "clinical complexity of many cases" is revealed, since 31 people died after submitting their application during the process, 21 of them files after reaching the Guarantee and Evaluation Commission.

According to Department of Health sources, a totalof 468 applications have been made since the entry into force of the Act, of which 315 have been received and analysed and 211 have been completed, while the remaining applications have not reached the Commission due to patient withdrawal or death during the process.

Profile of applicants

The euthanasia report in the Basque Country also highlights a number of important changes, including the increase in the use of the Advance Wills Document (DVA), which accounts for 20.8% of applications.

On the other hand, the average age of euthanasia applicants is 75 years, almost two thirds of whom received palliative care in advance, mainly due to chronic and incapacitating diseases (58.3 per cent), over and above serious and incurable diseases (41.7 per cent).

By territory, 22 applications  were registered in Álava, 45 in Bizkaia and 53 in Gipuzkoa, with 15, 26 and 37 benefits respectively.

At the organizational level, the Euthanasia Information System of the Basque Country (EISS) was established and the Technical Euthanasia Unit was established in June 2025. These instruments make it possible to fully monitor applications and support the uniform application of the law throughout the Basque health system.