This guide is to help people who are travelling to the United Kingdom (UK) from elsewhere in the world and who want to receive hospital treatment, be monitored, or have tests, while they are here.

Overseas visitors and International patients - what's the difference?
Is emergency care available privately in the UK?
Who travels to the UK for treatment?
Are special travel arrangements needed when going to the UK for medical treatment?
What are the visa requirements for international patients seeking medical treatment in the UK?
How many people travel for healthcare treatment?
What treatments do people travel to the UK for?
Where in the UK do people from foreign countries travel to for treatment?
How much does private medical treatment in the UK cost?
Which UK healthcare providers will treat international patients?

Overseas visitors and International patients - what's the difference?

In the UK healthcare system, non-UK residents seeking treatment are divided into:

Overseas visitors 

  • Those people who have fallen ill while visiting the UK (i.e. on holiday) who require urgent treatment. This type of patient will normally have to pay for their treatment up front or as soon as feasible. 
  • National Health Service (NHS) treatment cannot usually be paid for with international insurance and the patient will need to pay themselves and claim the money back from their insurer. If they are not insured, they will need to meet the costs of treatment themselves. For further information on how the NHS charges overseas visitors, see the UK Government website (gov.uk).

International patients 

  • These are people who have travelled to the UK for planned treatment, or to have treatment while they are visiting for another purpose. 
  • This may include:
  1. Diagnosis or specialist care (including paediatrics) in a hospital or by a consultant/clinician which they can’t get in their home country.
  2. Monitoring for an existing condition while they are in the UK.

International patients may be sponsored by their home country (e.g. paid for by their embassy) or patients can pay for their own treatment (‘self-pay’). Embassies will often pay for a companion, usually a family member, to come to the UK too to help manage the process and assist with aftercare.

Is emergency care available privately in the UK?

Anyone from Europe visiting the UK should have a European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) which gives the holder access to medically necessary, state-provided healthcare during a temporary stay in any of the 27 EU countries, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland or the UK. For more information see the European Commission website.

If you have a serious accident or require emergency treatment at any time while in the UK, you should contact the NHS. To access the NHS in an emergency dial 999 from any landline, public or mobile telephone.

Anyone in the UK can register with a GP and be referred for emergency treatment in the NHS – a universal healthcare system, which is free at the point of delivery. Depending on their country of residence they may receive free treatment (if there are reciprocal healthcare agreements between countries) or they may have to pay.

The private sector in the UK is focused on the delivery of ‘elective’ care (planned operations and procedures) rather than emergency care. Only selected hospitals have an emergency department, such as an intensive care unit (ITU) or high dependency unit (HDU). People thinking of travelling to the UK for treatment should bear this in mind.

The hospital profiles on the PHIN website show whether or not a hospital has these facilities. For help using our website see our guide: https://www.phin.org.uk/about/welcome-to-the-phin-website

Who travels to the UK for treatment?

According to our data, over the past 5 years, the majority (59%) of international patients treated in the UK came from the Arabian Peninsula (Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Yemen). The next highest number was from the Republic of Ireland (7%) – which has an arrangement with the UK Government to use certain hospitals – Nigeria (4%), Cyprus (2%) and the United States of America (2%).

Are special travel arrangements needed when going to the UK for medical treatment?

Some airlines will place restrictions on people travelling for medical treatment, so you should check before booking. There are specialist companies that can support you making your travel bookings.

What are the visa requirements for international patients seeking medical treatment in the UK?

According to gov.uk, you can visit the UK for up to 6 months to:

  • have private medical treatment at a hospital or other medical facility
  • have treatment at an NHS hospital, as long as the care is paid for by your own government under a reciprocal healthcare arrangement

When visiting for private treatment, you must prove that you:

  • have a medical condition that needs private consultation or treatment in the UK
  • have made arrangements for consultations or treatment
  • have enough money or funding to pay for your treatment
  • will leave the UK once your treatment is completed, or when your visa expires
  • are not a danger to public health if you have any infectious diseases, such as leprosy

How many people travel for healthcare treatment?

Around 2.3m people across the globe travel to another country for treatment and 500,000 for cosmetic surgery, according to training and consultancy business, Project RED Solutions.

What treatments do people travel to the UK for?

1 in 5 international patients have a private admission for chemotherapy, drug therapy or a blood transfusion. 1 in 10 international patients have a private admission for chemotherapy. Just under 1 in 10 (9%) international patients had a private admission for a diagnostic procedure (e.g. Heart Scans, Upper GI endoscopy, Bone Marrow Biopsies and MRI scans). Cataracts and Critical Care Admissions make up the rest of the top 10 procedures for international patients.

Where in the UK do people from foreign countries travel to for treatment?

There are more hospitals in London than the rest of the country, which as well as its status as England’s capital and its many attractions mean there is no surprise that most international patients (91%) seek treatment there.

Northern Ireland receives the next highest number at 4%, the majority of whom come from the Republic of Ireland under a Cross-Border Planned Healthcare Scheme.

South East England is the third highest at 2%, partly due to its proximity to London.

Although there are private hospitals in Scotland and Wales, they do not receive many international patients.

How much does private medical treatment in the UK cost?

The cost for treatment in the UK, will vary depending on what you need, and your condition and where and by who you want to be treated.

This is less of an issue if treatment is government/embassy funded, but if you are self-funding, we have a guide that may help. It includes a link to an online calculator that shows consultant’s fees (though not the hospital charges or other costs).

International patients who are self-paying also need to consider the cost of travel and their stay outside hospital while they recover enough to travel home again.

Which UK healthcare providers will treat international patients?

Many private providers in the UK offer services for international patients, including:

You can find details of other hospitals in the UK by using the search tool on our homepage (or at the top of every page).

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