Learn Chess
En Passant in Chess: Rule, Examples & FAQ
If you have ever had a pawn vanish off the board right after your opponent pushed theirs two squares, you were on the wrong end of an en passant capture. It's one of the strangest rules in chess for a new player to accept, mostly because it looks illegal the first time you see it. If you're just starting out, our guide on how to play chess covers the basics first. From there, this guide covers the rule itself, why it exists, how it plays out in real positions, a checkmate that only works because of it, and a short quiz at the end so you can check what stuck.
What Is En Passant in Chess?
En passant is a special capture that lets a pawn take an enemy pawn that has just advanced two squares from its starting square, as if it had only moved one. The capturing pawn must be sitting right next to it, on its own fifth rank. The capture is optional, but you only get one move to take it.
How to Play En Passant, Step by Step
Take the position below, where Black has just pushed the d-pawn two squares, from d7 to d5.
White can now use the en passant rule on the next move, as shown by the arrow in the diagram above. It's not forced, it's simply an option on the table.
To take it "in passing," White moves the pawn diagonally to d6, exactly as if it were capturing on a normal diagonal square, and the black pawn disappears from the board. That black pawn on d5 is gone, captured en passant.
It looks unusual the first few times, but it's one of the fundamental rules of the game.
The Conditions for En Passant
En passant only applies in one very specific situation. Every single condition below has to be true at the same time:
- the capturing pawn must be on its own fifth rank, meaning rank 5 for White or rank 4 for Black
- an enemy pawn must be standing on an adjacent file
- that enemy pawn must have just advanced two squares from its starting square
- after that advance, the two pawns must be sitting side by side
- the capture must happen right away, on the very next move
If you play anything else first, you lose the right to capture that pawn en passant for good.
The capturing pawn moves diagonally onto the square the enemy pawn skipped over. The enemy pawn is then removed from the board, exactly as if it had advanced only one square.
And, like every other move in chess, en passant is illegal if it would leave your own king in check. It also stays entirely optional even when all the conditions line up.
En Passant Example with White
Here's a well-known position.
It comes from the French Defense. Black is to move, and pushes the f-pawn two squares, from f7 to f5.
White's pawn on e5 can now capture the black f5 pawn en passant, playing exf6.
There it is.
En Passant Example with Black
Now let's look at a capture from Black's side of the board.
It is White to move, and White grabs some queenside space by pushing the b-pawn two squares.
Black can now capture the b4 pawn en passant with the c4 pawn, if Black wants to.
Just like that.
En Passant Cheat Sheet
Here's a quick reference table to lock the en passant rule in.
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Which piece can capture en passant? | Only a pawn |
| Which piece can be captured this way? | Only an enemy pawn |
| Where did that enemy pawn start from? | Its own starting square |
| How many squares did it just move? | Two squares |
| Where must your pawn be standing? | On its own fifth rank |
| When do you have to capture? | Right away, on your very next move |
| Is it mandatory? | No |
| Where does the capturing pawn land? | On the square the enemy pawn passed over |
When Can You Not Play En Passant?
En passant becomes impossible the moment a single one of its conditions is missing.
You can't make this capture if:
- the enemy pawn only advanced one square
- it did not start from its own starting square
- your pawn is not standing on its fifth rank
- the two pawns are not sitting side by side after the two-square advance
- you already played a different move in between
- the capture would leave your own king in check
The right to capture en passant lasts exactly one move. Miss that window and it's gone for that pawn, permanently.
Why Does En Passant Exist?
Pawns could originally only move one square at a time. The option to advance two squares on their first move was added later to speed up the opening phase of the game.
That change created a loophole. A pawn could now leapfrog past a square controlled by an enemy pawn, sailing right by without ever being exposed to capture.
En passant closes that loophole. It lets the enemy pawn capture it anyway, treating the two-square advance as if it had only been a single step.
The rule keeps the balance between the two-square first move and the opponent's normal capturing rights.
Is En Passant Mandatory?
No, en passant is never forced. Even when every condition is satisfied, a player is always free to play something else instead.
The catch is timing. The decision has to be made right there and then. Play any other move, and the right to capture that particular pawn en passant is gone for the rest of the game.
It's worth weighing the consequences before grabbing it. En passant can open a file, hand you a passed pawn, or wreck the opponent's pawn structure. In some positions it can just as easily expose your own king or give the opponent an open line instead.
How to Write En Passant in Chess Notation
In algebraic notation, an en passant capture is written exactly like any other pawn capture. You give the file the pawn started from, an "x," then the landing square.
Say a white pawn on e5 captures en passant a black pawn that just played d7-d5. That move is written exd6. The white pawn leaves e5 and lands on d6, and the black pawn that had just arrived on d5 comes off the board.
Some players add "e.p." (for en passant) after the move to flag it explicitly, which gives exd6 e.p. That's a helpful clarification, but it's not required in official notation.
The Strategic Value of En Passant
Now let's look at when this rule actually matters in a game.
En passant becomes especially important once a pawn chain locks into place.
Here's a structure that could easily come from a French Defense. If you're still getting comfortable with how each piece behaves, it's worth going over how the pawn moves and captures before you tackle structures like this one.
White's pawn chain runs c3, d4 and e5. Black's mirrors it with e6, d5 and c4. Whenever a chain like this forms, each side gets a space advantage on one wing. Here, White can start pushing the f, g and h pawns to attack on the kingside, starting with a move like f4.
The catch is that Black can't easily stop that pawn by answering with ...f5, because the f5 pawn would immediately be taken en passant by White's e5 pawn.
That's exactly why en passant matters so much here. Notice that capturing it also opens the position for both sides. Two files swing open at once, so it's a decision worth weighing rather than grabbing automatically.
On the other side of the board, Black can look to attack with the a and b pawns. White won't be able to answer with b4 either, since Black's c4 pawn would simply take it en passant and land on b3.
Can You Checkmate with En Passant?
Here's a tricky one. It leans closer to a puzzle than a quick exercise, so take your time and come back to it if you need to.
White to play and mate in one move.
Black has just played e7-e5.
Not so easy, is it?
The obvious tries all fail. If either rook takes on f7, the black king just runs to h8. If White checks with the queen on f6, the king answers by grabbing the knight on h6. And a knight check from g3, to either f5 or h5, doesn't mate either, because the king still has h8.
So Black's castled position looks shaky, yet no single move seems to finish the job.
But the instructions are clear. It is White to move, and mate has to happen right now. There has to be a trick.
That trick is en passant. The only way to mate the black king is to remove the pawn on e5. Is there a move that clears it off the board? Yes, since it just advanced two squares, White can take it en passant. The winning move is 1.dxe6 e.p.
With the e5 pawn gone, White's bishop on b2 suddenly rakes all the way to the black king. There's no escape square, and the f7 pawn can't block the check because it's pinned in place by White's rook.
Checkmate, courtesy of en passant.
Test Your En Passant Knowledge
A few quick questions to see if the rule really stuck.
Related Chess Rules
En passant is just one of the special rules that trip up new players. For castling, stalemate, promotion, and every other special move in the game, our full chess rules guide walks through all of them in one place.
En Passant FAQ
Are you required to capture en passant?
No, en passant is always optional. Even when every condition lines up, a player can choose to play something else instead.
That said, the capture has to happen immediately after the enemy pawn's two-square advance. Play any other move first, and the right to capture that pawn is gone for good.
Can a rook or another piece capture en passant?
No, en passant only works between two pawns. A rook, bishop, knight, queen, or king can never use this rule.
In the same way, no piece other than a pawn can ever be captured this way.
Can Black play en passant too?
Yes, both White and Black can capture en passant.
For Black, the capturing pawn has to be sitting on rank 4, which is Black's own fifth rank counting from Black's side of the board. If a white pawn advances two squares from its starting square and ends up right next to it, the black pawn can capture it by moving diagonally onto the square it passed over.
A black pawn on d4, for example, can capture en passant a white pawn that just played e2-e4.
Can you play en passant several moves later?
No. En passant is only legal on the move immediately following the enemy pawn's two-square advance.
If you move a different piece, push another pawn, or make any other capture first, you lose the right to take that pawn later on.
Can en passant put the king in check?
Yes, an en passant capture can check the enemy king directly, with the capturing pawn attacking the king from its new square.
It can also trigger a discovered check. By leaving its original square and removing the enemy pawn from the board, it can open up a file, rank, or diagonal controlled by another piece.
In rare positions, en passant can even deliver checkmate outright.
Can en passant get you out of check?
Yes, though it doesn't come up often. If the enemy pawn that just advanced two squares is the one giving check, capturing it can remove the threat.
As with any move played in response to check, the resulting position has to fully protect the king. En passant is illegal here too if it would leave your king in check or open up a new line of attack against it.
How do you play en passant on Lichess or Chess.com?
On both Lichess and Chess.com, en passant works exactly like a normal capture. Click or drag your pawn diagonally onto the square the enemy pawn passed over.
For example, if your white pawn is on e5 and a black pawn just advanced from d7 to d5, move your pawn from e5 to d6. The black pawn on d5 will disappear from the board automatically.
Don't try to move your pawn onto the square the enemy pawn is actually sitting on. It goes on the square just behind it. If the platform won't let you make the move, it usually means one of the conditions for en passant hasn't been met. The capture has to happen right after the enemy pawn's two-square advance, and it can't leave your king in check.
Your Move
That covers the en passant rule from every angle. You have the basic mechanics, the conditions, the strategy, and even a checkmate built entirely around it. If you're still working through the fundamentals, our complete guide on how to play chess is the best place to start.