What is the ruling on abstaining from fasting due to missing suhoor (the pre-dawn meal)? I heard that it is permissible to refrain from fasting in Ramadan after having made the intention to fast the previous night on account of not waking up for the meal. How accurate is this?

Missing suhoor does not constitute a valid excuse for refraining from fasting in Ramadan. It should be noted that enduring the hardship of fasting is among the greatest acts of worship for which Allah has reserved a special reward. Abu Huraira (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, "Every deed of the son of Adam is for him, except for fasting—it is for Me and I shall reward it. The breath of a fasting person is more pleasant to Allah than the smell of musk"
(Bukhari and Muslim).

The meaning of blessings in suhoor 

Suhoor is a recommended sunnah, an encouraged practice, and a source of blessings for the fasting person. Anas Ibn Malik narrated that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, "Partake in suhoor, for indeed it entails great blessings"
(Bukhari and Muslim). The renowned scholar, Taqiy al-Din Ibn Daqiq al-Eid, elucidates in Ihkam al-Ahkam (2/9) that the blessings associated with suhoor can pertain to both spiritual and worldly benefits. Spiritually, this sunnah results in an augmentation of rewards. On a worldly level, it provides physical strength, allowing the fasting person to fast without excessive hardship.   

The ruling on abstaining from fasting due to missing suhoor

While suhoor is recommended, it is impermissible to abstain from fasting on account of missing it except if it causes undue hardship. This would be the case if fasting becomes so challenging that it results in severe harm or illness. In this context, abstaining from fasting is a license given the difficulty it presents, rather than a result of missing suhoor. It is important to note that it is impermissible to forgo an obligatory fast after its designated time has entered and after beginning it without a valid excuse that permits breaking the fast.

Scholarly opinions

This ruling aligns with the opinions of jurists, who have emphasized that refraining from observing an obligatory fast, once intended and commenced, is permissible solely with a legitimate excuse. If someone breaks their fast without a valid excuse, they are deemed sinful and are required to make up the fast. Some scholars have posited that kaffarah (expiation) is required alongside the obligation to make up the fast.

• Imam Ibn Abd al-Barr wrote in Al-Istidhkar (1/77),
  “The entire Muslim ummah has unanimously agreed, and it has been transmitted by the majority [of scholars] that whoever deliberately does not fast in Ramadan, while believing in its obligation, and then repents, is to make up the missed fast day.”
• Imam al-Sarakhsi, a Hanafi scholar, in his work Al-Mabsut (3/69) addresses the situation of an individual who vitiates their fast after its commencement saying,
  “…This matter is grounded in a principle: once the fast is commenced, it is impermissible, in our opinion, to break it without a valid excuse.”
• The Maliki scholar, Abu Abdullah al-Kharshi, wrote in Sharh Mukhtasar Khalil (2/262),
  “Whoever deliberately breaks their fast in Ramadan or breaks a voluntary fast, by eating or any other means, is required to make up the fast. If it occurred in Ramadan, they are to make kaffarah as well.” 
• According to Imam al-Shafi‘i in Al-Umm (1/324),
  whoever begins an obligatory fast—be it the fast of Ramadan, a make up fast, a fast undertaken in fulfillment of a vow, or a fast in expiation in any form—may not break it, as long as they possess the ability to fast, unless they have a valid excuse.

The ruling

It is impermissible to forgo fasting under the pretext of missing suhoor. Anyone who neglects to observe an obligatory fast without a valid excuse is sinful and must make up the unperformed fast day.

And Allah Almighty knows best