First Clinic Visit in Korea: A Guide for Foreigners

Before you fly

Send the clinic (or us) your travel dates, what you want treated and photos of the area. Most clinics give a rough plan and price range before you arrive.
List medicines and supplements you take, especially blood thinners, isotretinoin and fish oil. Some must stop days before lasers, injections or surgery.
Prescription medicines that are controlled in Korea, including ADHD stimulants, need advance approval from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety before you bring them in.
For surgery, keep your return date flexible until the surgeon confirms your recovery plan.

What to bring on the day

Your passport. Clinics register foreign patients by passport number, and you need it for card payments above certain amounts.
A card that works abroad, or cash in KRW. Most clinics take Visa and Mastercard.
Records of previous procedures: filler type and date, implant brand, eye prescription, recent blood tests.

Booking and language

Large clinics near Apgujeong and Sinsa stations usually have an international coordinator who speaks English, Chinese or Japanese. Smaller clinics often book by phone or KakaoTalk in Korean. Booking through a coordinator or through us is normal and does not change the clinic's price.

Paying and insurance

Foreigners join Korea's National Health Insurance only after six months of residence. Visitors pay the full fee.
Cosmetic treatments are not covered by insurance for anyone, so the price is the same for Koreans and foreigners. Clinics must publish non-covered fees (비급여), and HIRA collects them.
Cosmetic procedures carry 10% VAT. The VAT refund for foreign cosmetic patients ended on 31 December 2025. Bills to restore it were filed in 2026 and had not passed as of October 2026, so ask whether a quote includes VAT.
Ask for an itemized receipt (진료비 세부내역서) and a medical certificate in English if you plan to claim on travel or home insurance.

Consultation and consent

You see a doctor or a counselor first, then the doctor confirms the plan. For surgery and some injections you sign a consent form; ask for an English copy and for the name of the doctor who will perform the procedure. Korean law requires the operating surgeon to be named, and you can ask whether a different doctor will take part.

Planning around your trip

Lasers, Botox, fillers and skin boosters: one to two days in Seoul is usually enough. Avoid flying within 24 hours of fillers if the clinic advises it.
Lifting devices such as Thermage or Ultherapy: same-day return to normal activity for most people; a little redness or swelling.
Eye and nose surgery: plan 7 to 10 days for stitch removal and a check-up.
Jaw surgery and body contouring: two to four weeks, depending on the procedure.
LASIK and SMILE: a pre-op exam of about two hours, surgery, and a next-day check.

Aftercare once you are home

Ask the clinic for written aftercare instructions and the medicines you were given, with their generic names. Keep the clinic's messenger contact. If something worries you, send photos early.

Medical advertising rules in Korea

Korea's Medical Service Act (의료법 제56조) bans testimonials, guaranteed results and misleading before-and-after claims in clinic advertising. Be cautious with any clinic or agent that promises outcomes or quotes prices far below the ranges in our price guides .

Questions before you visit?

For international patients

Your first clinic visit in Korea