What is 'En Passant'? It’s not an illegal pawn move! | Chess.com Help Center

En passant (French for "in passing") is a special chess rule allowing pawns to capture a pawn that has just passed it.

This is not a bug or a hack but a legal chess move that has been part of the game for over 400 years and an official chess rule since 1880.

Example of en passant

In the example below, Black has just moved his pawn forward two spaces, landing alongside the white pawn. What many beginners don't realize is that White has the option to capture the black pawn as if it had only moved one square instead of two:

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Do I have to capture en passant?

White doesn't have to capture in the scenario above, but if he doesn't, the option won't be available next turn.

Imagine it as if the black pawn is moving past the white pawn. In the moment while it is moving past, White has the chance to attack it, but only in that moment. Once the pawn has successfully moved past (the turn is over), it can't be attacked by en passant anymore!

When en passant is played you will see the icon next to the move in the moves list:

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