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Gwangjang Market in Seoul

Photo: Bgag, Wikimedia Commons, CC0

🇰🇷  Treatment in South Korea

The best-known destination for cosmetic surgery, also for dental work and hair. Clinics that attract foreign patients must register with the government, and the government publishes what clinics charge for uninsured treatments such as implants.

Last reviewed · official reputable

Not medical advice. Whether a treatment is right for you is a decision to take with a doctor or dentist who has examined you. Talk to your own doctor before you book.

EU rules

No

Currency

KRW

Language

Korean

Time zone

UTC+9

Treatments in South Korea: Hair transplant · Dentists: implants and veneers · Weight-loss surgery · Cosmetic surgery · Laser eye and lens surgery

Check a clinic or a doctor in South Korea

Clinics

Medical Korea (KHIDI, for the Ministry of Health and Welfare): hospitals and clinics for foreign patients

The official portal for foreign patients, with a hospital search. Check that the exact clinic you are booked into is there.

Doctors: We found no public online register of individual doctors in Korea in English. Ask for the surgeon's specialist (board) certificate in the specialty of your operation, in writing, and check that the clinic is registered for foreign patients.

Dentists: We found no public online register of individual dentists in Korea in English. Ask for the dentist's licence number and, if they claim a specialty, their specialist certificate, in writing, and check that the clinic is registered for foreign patients.

Is the clinic or the agency registered for foreign patients?

South Korea requires hospitals, clinics and agencies that attract foreign patients to register. Search the official list (4,172 medical institutions and 2,722 registered facilitators). Names are in Korean: ask the clinic for its registered Korean name (상호명), shown on its licence and its Korean website.

Source: Korea Health Industry Development Institute (KHIDI): institutions registered to attract foreign patients, updated 2026-09-26, checked 2026-10-26. Being registered does not guarantee the outcome.

Rules worth knowing

  • Hospitals, clinics and agencies that attract foreign patients must register with the government's system; registrations last three years.
  • The government publishes, clinic by clinic, the prices charged for uninsured treatments (dental implants and others) on the HIRA website and the Health e-Eum app.
  • The UK Foreign Office reminds travellers going to Korea for cosmetic surgery or dental work that no procedure is risk-free, and to make sure their insurance covers complications and repatriation.
  • Since September 2023, hospitals must have cameras in operating rooms where surgery under general anaesthesia takes place, and must film the operation (without sound) if the patient asks; doctors can refuse only for a valid reason such as an emergency (Korea Times, on the Medical Service Act amendment). Ask for it in writing: it can help you check against surrogate ("ghost") surgery, where someone other than the surgeon you met operates.
  • The 10% VAT refund that foreign patients could claim on cosmetic and skin procedures ended on 31 December 2025 and was not renewed (Korea Herald, Korea JoongAng Daily). A quote that still promises a VAT refund for foreigners is out of date: ask for the full price including VAT.

Treatments in South Korea

Hair transplant in South KoreaOne trip Dental implants and veneers in South KoreaOne or two trips, by procedure Weight-loss surgery in South KoreaAt least 10 days before flying home Cosmetic surgery in South KoreaAt least 7 to 10 days (by procedure) before flying home Laser eye and lens surgery in South KoreaUp to 7 days (by procedure) before flying home

Cities where many clinics are

Who licenses the clinics in each city, the regional register where there is one, and the airport. We never rank, review or recommend clinics.

Seoul Seoul Special City · ICN Busan Busan Metropolitan City · PUS

Official travel advice

Your own government's advice on South Korea: Ireland (DFA) · France (Diplomatie) · Australia (Smartraveller) · New Zealand (SafeTravel) · Germany (Auswärtiges Amt) · Canada (travel.gc.ca) · United States (CDC travel health) · Sweden (UD, Sweden Abroad) · Norway (UD, regjeringen.no) · Austria (BMEIA) · Switzerland (EDA: choose the country) · Denmark (Udenrigsministeriet) · Finland (UM) · Belgium (SPF Affaires étrangères) · Netherlands (Nederland Wereldwijd) · Singapore (MFA: choose the country)

Sources

Next review due 25 Jan 2027.