How to read a Korean clinic's price quote

Published 17 September 2026 · Last updated 10 October 2026 · 10 min read · By Jae Han

Why two quotes for the same procedure can differ by half: consultation fees, VAT, anaesthesia, aftercare and the difference between an estimate and a settled bill.

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A quote is not a price. It is a list of the things a clinic currently expects to bill you for. Two clinics can quote the same procedure and mean different sets of things, which is why comparing the headline number alone is close to meaningless.

This page covers the lines a complete quote contains, how a figure changes between the first email and the payment desk, and a way of putting two quotes side by side so that you are comparing the same thing. It contains no prices for real procedures; the only figures are round numbers in a worked example.

#Why this site publishes no price ranges

There is no official price list for cosmetic surgery, dental work, laser vision correction or any other procedure that sits outside Korean National Health Insurance. Each provider sets its own fee, the plan is fixed only after the surgeon has examined the patient, and the same clinic quotes different figures for different surgeons and different anaesthesia. So we do not publish a range; a number without a checkable source would only be a guess, and figures on agency and clinic marketing sites are not a substitute. Those sites are paid when you book, their headline numbers rarely say what is included, and they are seldom dated.

What can be checked is the structure of a price: which lines exist, which are taxed, which are posted by law at the clinic and which are only ever known at the cashier. That structure is the subject of this guide, and the procedure pages on this site link back here instead of repeating a range. Where a public body publishes a real figure, such as the VAT rate or the fee for a copy of records, the figure appears with its source and the date it was read.

#How a quote develops

1. Online enquiryYou send photos or records. The clinic replies with a range, often for the procedure alone. Nothing at this stage binds either side.
2. Written estimateOn request, the clinic itemises the range: surgeon, anaesthesia, tests, aftercare, tax. This is the document to compare between clinics.
3. In-person consultationThe surgeon examines you and may change the plan. The figure is then fixed for that plan. Any deposit you paid earlier should be reconciled here.
4. Procedure dayYou sign consent and the final estimate, and pay the balance before or after the procedure, depending on the clinic.
5. SettlementThe cashier issues the itemised receipt. Extras that arose (additional tests, an extra night, more medication) appear here for the first time if nobody mentioned them earlier.

#Lines to look for

Verify before you rely on this: VAT, as read on the Korean Law Information Center on 17 September 2026: Article 30 of the VAT Act sets the rate at 10 per cent. Article 35 of its Enforcement Decree exempts medical services in general but lists the cosmetic ones that are taxed, among them double eyelid surgery, rhinoplasty, breast enlargement or reduction, liposuction, facelift, facial contouring, tooth whitening and laminates, and skin services such as acne, pigmentation, hair removal, hair transplant and anti-ageing treatment. The refund provision for foreign tourists (Article 107-3 of the Restriction of Special Taxation Act) covers services supplied up to 31 December 2025 in the text currently in force. For a 2026 quote, the working assumption is that VAT on a cosmetic procedure is a real cost, not one you recover at the airport. The separate guide on VAT refunds explains how to re-check this.

#The price list the clinic has to post

Verify before you rely on this: As of 10 October 2026, the text of Article 45 of the Medical Service Act on the Korean Law Information Center requires the founder of a medical institution to give notice of the costs of non-covered treatment (비급여 진료비용) so that patients can easily find them, to post the fees it charges for certificates (제증명수수료), and not to charge more than the amounts it has notified or posted.

In practice that price list is usually a booklet, a screen at reception or a page on the clinic website, in Korean. Ask to see it (비급여 진료비 안내 is a phrase staff will recognise) and compare the line for your procedure with the figure in your estimate. HIRA also publishes clinic-by-clinic prices for a set list of non-covered items on its non-covered cost search (비급여 진료비 정보, hira.or.kr/npay), searchable by region and clinic name in Korean. Many cosmetic procedures are not on that list, so a missing entry proves nothing.

#Estimate vs settled bill

Korean clinics generally give a range before they have seen you, and a fixed figure after the in-person consultation. If a clinic gives you a firm price by email without examining you, treat that number as marketing rather than as a commitment, and ask what happens if the surgeon changes the plan on the day.

From my own visits: Korean hospitals print an itemised receipt (진료비 계산서·영수증) that separates the insured portion, the patient portion and non-covered items. Ask for it every time and keep it. It is the document insurers and tax offices want, and it is far easier to obtain at the payment desk than by email from another country three months later.

#A worked comparison

Two invented quotes for the same cosmetic operation. The amounts are round numbers for illustration and do not describe any clinic or any real price level.

Practical note: The exercise is the point, not the numbers. Build one table with the same rows for every clinic, and send each clinic the blank rows to fill in. A clinic that answers every row is giving you a quote. A clinic that answers only the first row is giving you an advertisement. Differences that survive the exercise, such as a more senior surgeon or a longer included stay, are real differences and may be worth paying for.

#Questions worth sending before you fly

Send these by email, not in a chat thread, so that the answers sit under the clinic's name and can be reread at the payment desk. Each one maps to a line in the table above, and each has a bad answer as well as a good one: a clinic that cannot say which surgeon a price belongs to is quoting for a rota it has not yet set, and a clinic that cannot say which day the follow-up falls on has not planned your stay.

1. Does this figure include VAT, anaesthesia, tests, medication and aftercare visits? Please list what is excluded.
2. Which surgeon does this price correspond to?
3. How many follow-up visits are included, and on which days after the procedure?
4. What is the deposit, and under what circumstances is it refundable?
5. If the in-person consultation changes the plan, how is the price recalculated?
6. Can I have an itemised receipt and my medical records in English before I leave Korea?

#What to get in writing

• The itemised estimate, dated, in won, naming the procedure and the surgeon.
• Whether the total includes VAT, with the tax as its own line where it applies.
• The deposit amount, the account or card channel it is paid through, and the refund terms if you cancel, if the surgeon advises against surgery, or if tests rule you out.
• How long the quote stays valid. A price tied to 'this month only' should say so on paper.
• The revision policy: what counts as a revision, who decides, what you pay for (often anaesthesia and facility even when the surgeon's fee is waived), and the time limit.
• What an unplanned extra night or an extra aftercare visit costs.
• Whether an interpreter is included, and for which appointments.
• The clinic's registration as an institution treating foreign patients, with the registration number.

Verify before you rely on this: As of 27 September 2026, Medical Korea's page on the registration system states that registered institutions have been required to carry medical malpractice liability insurance since 2016, and advises patients to check the registration certificate. The insurance belongs to the clinic, not to you: it responds to established negligence, not to a poor result or a changed flight. What it does mean is that an unregistered clinic has skipped a legal requirement before it ever wrote you a quote, which is a reason to stop comparing prices and walk away.

#Common mistakes

• Comparing headline figures between clinics without checking tax, anaesthesia and aftercare.
• Treating an emailed range as the price. It is a range for a patient the surgeon has not examined.
• Paying a large deposit before meeting the surgeon. The NHS advice for cosmetic surgery abroad is not to pay for a surgeon you have not met, and to avoid meetings that involve only sales staff.
• Converting to your home currency at today's rate and forgetting that the bill is in won and the rate on payment day will differ.
• Leaving out the costs that never appear on a clinic quote: pharmacy medication, compression garments or aids, extra hotel nights if recovery runs long, and a changed flight.
• Accepting a verbal discount. If it is not on the written estimate, it does not exist at the cashier's desk.

In the worked table above, Quote A is a fifth cheaper on the headline and one per cent cheaper once VAT, sedation, tests and two extra visits are added. A quote that stays far below the others after that exercise is usually priced for a different surgeon, a different anaesthesia, or a package that only holds if you book on the spot. The NHS advice on cosmetic surgery abroad is not to pay for a surgeon you have not met; a discount that expires at the end of the consultation is asking you to do exactly that.

#Common questions

Why do Korean clinics not publish a price list?

For most elective procedures the plan depends on the examination (which technique, which anaesthesia, how long in theatre), so clinics quote per patient. Procedures outside National Health Insurance are also priced by each provider rather than by a national tariff. What the law does require is the posted list of non-covered fees described above, which is a list of that clinic's own prices, not a market rate. The practical answer is to collect itemised estimates rather than hunt for a list.

Does a Korean clinic quote include VAT?

Some do and some do not, and the quote does not always say. VAT at 10% applies to the cosmetic procedures listed in the Enforcement Decree of the VAT Act; most other medical treatment is exempt, in which case there is no tax line at all. Ask for the pre-tax amount and the tax to be written separately.

Are foreigners charged more than Korean patients?

Short-term visitors are generally not enrolled in National Health Insurance, so for treatment that insurance would cover they typically pay an uninsured rate set by the hospital, which is higher than a resident's co-payment. Cosmetic procedures are outside insurance for everyone and the price is whatever the clinic sets. Quotes for foreign patients may also bundle interpretation, transfers or agency commission. Ask what the quote includes beyond the medical work, and whether the same figure applies if you book directly.

Can the price change after the consultation?

Yes, and that is normal when the plan changes: a different technique, an added procedure, general instead of local anaesthesia. What should not change is the price of an unchanged plan. Ask for a revised written estimate before you consent, and take the time to read it; a clinic that will not give you that time is telling you something.

Is the consultation fee refundable if I decide not to go ahead?

Practice varies. Some clinics charge nothing, some charge a fee that is credited against the procedure, and some charge a fee that stays charged whatever you decide. None of these is improper; the problem is only finding out afterwards. Ask before the appointment.

Is a package quote with hotel and transfers better value?

It is harder to compare, which is not the same thing. Ask for the medical part as its own figure, then price the hotel and transfers yourself. The NHS advises caution with offers that sell surgery as part of a holiday, because recovery needs rest rather than an itinerary. The total cost calculator on this site lets you add stay and travel costs to a medical quote on your own terms.

Planning the trip? Tick off the trip checklist — what to get in writing, what to pack and which documents to collect before you fly home — and keep the Korean phrase cards on your phone for taxis and pharmacies.

This site is an information resource, not a medical provider, agency or broker. We do not arrange treatment, refer patients to specific hospitals, or receive commission from clinics for introductions. Nothing here is medical advice — decisions about treatment belong to you and a licensed doctor.

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