Cosmetic surgery abroad checklist (UK): what to check before you book

This cosmetic surgery abroad checklist is for anyone in the UK thinking about a cheaper operation or package overseas. It follows the guide the British College of Aesthetic Medicine (BCAM) published under its "Vet It Before You Get It" campaign, which tells you to research, ask and verify before you book, and adds what the NHS says about aftercare and flying home. Residents of Great Britain made about 523,000 visits abroad for medical treatment in 2024, 37% of them to Turkey, according to the Office for National Statistics. Below are the questions to ask the surgeon, the red flags, what to bring home, and the published prices that make the trip tempting.

The cosmetic surgery abroad checklist: questions to ask the surgeon

BCAM's Cosmetic surgery abroad guide is meant to be used while you talk to the surgeon who will operate on you. It says to write down their answers and check the important details yourself, and warns that registration, qualifications and hospital licensing matter but do not guarantee a safe outcome. Its questions fall into six areas:

1. Your surgeon and hospitalTheir full name, registration number and surgical specialty, and how you can verify them; how often they do this operation and who will actually operate; their complication and repeat-operation rates; whether the hospital is licensed for this procedure and anaesthetic; who gives the anaesthetic; and what emergency and intensive care is on hand.
2. Is surgery right for youYour options, including doing nothing; a realistic result; the common and serious complications, such as infection, bleeding, blood clots and scarring; what they need to know about your health and medicines; and whether combining procedures adds risk.
3. Time to decideWritten information, a second consultation and time to think before you agree or pay; the cancellation and refund terms, including if you change your mind after arriving; and consent taken by the operating surgeon, with copies.
4. Recovery and travelHow long to stay in hospital and in the country, how they will decide you are fit to fly and reduce your clot risk, whether someone should travel with you, and who looks after you after discharge.
5. If something goes wrongYour named doctor and how to reach them day and night, abroad and at home; where you would be treated in an emergency and who pays; who removes stitches and manages complications back in the UK; and how complaints and claims work.
6. The full cost and insuranceAn itemised written quote and contract, and who you are contracting with: the surgeon, the hospital or an agency; what is included and excluded; and what insurance the surgeon and hospital hold.

The guide is blunt about the result: if you cannot verify the surgeon, understand the risks or confirm your aftercare, do not book. It also says you can change your mind even after travelling; cancellation charges may apply, but paying does not mean you must go ahead.

How to check the surgeon and hospital yourself

Check the surgeon's name, registration and specialist qualifications with the official medical regulator in the country where they practise, and the hospital's licence with the health authority there. Ask for the exact register, the registration numbers and links, then look them up yourself. BCAM says an agency, a facilitator or an accreditation logo is not a substitute, and that social media posts, reviews, influencers and before-and-after photos cannot show whether a surgeon is qualified: photos may be selected or edited, and paid partnerships are advertising.

The NHS adds that standards and qualifications abroad may differ from the UK, and that it can be hard to find out whether a surgeon is fully trained in the procedure you want. It suggests asking what training and qualifications they have, which organisations they belong to, how long they have practised, how many of these operations they have done, and whether they speak a language you understand (NHS). For Turkey, the rules clinics that treat foreign patients must follow are in is surgery in Turkey safe?

Red flags in a cosmetic surgery package

• Hurry. Pressure to pay or book quickly, including limited-time discounts.
• Holiday selling. Surgery sold as a holiday, or results described as guaranteed. The NHS says to be cautious of websites selling cosmetic surgery as part of a holiday, and that a holiday straight after surgery is unrealistic: no alcohol, sun, sightseeing or swimming.
• No names. Refusal to name the surgeon or the hospital before you commit.
• Sales staff only. Consultations only with sales staff rather than the operating surgeon. The NHS says not to pay for a hospital you have never seen or a surgeon you have not met.
• Vague answers. About qualifications, risks, emergency care or follow-up.
• Add-ons. Suggestions to add procedures because they are cheaper together.

Recovery, flying home and what to bring back

Flying and major surgery both raise the risk of blood clots. The NHS recommends not flying for 5 to 7 days after procedures such as breast surgery or liposuction, and 7 to 10 days after facial cosmetic procedures or a tummy tuck; BCAM says these are general guides, not automatic clearance, and to allow time and money for changing your plans. How long people stay after other treatments is in how long to stay abroad after surgery.

Before you fly home, BCAM says to get copies of your discharge summary, operation and anaesthetic records, details of any implants with their identification, your medicines and instructions, test results, wound-care instructions, and follow-up appointments and emergency numbers, in English or translated. Chest pain, sudden breathlessness, coughing up blood, collapse or severe bleeding need emergency help: the local emergency number abroad, or 999 in the UK. A painful swollen leg, fever, worsening pain or a red, weeping wound need urgent assessment.

On the NHS, BCAM says emergency care is there, but routine aftercare or corrective surgery after private treatment abroad may not be available or funded. The NHS says overseas clinics may not provide follow-up, or not to the same standard, and may have nobody in the UK you can go to (NHS).

Prices to compare: what Turkish clinics publish

Price is why most people look abroad. We do not list prices for cosmetic surgery such as breast surgery, liposuction or a BBL, but we do hold the prices clinics publish for two cosmetic treatments, next to a UK price for the same thing:

Prices as each clinic publishes them; conversions to pounds are approximate. A package price is not an itemised quote: use the cost questions above to find out what is included, and what you would pay if recovery takes longer.

The gap is the reason BCAM's last section asks what would happen if you needed emergency treatment, a longer stay or a changed flight, and whether you could afford it. Hair transplant packages are compared in why people go to Turkey for a hair transplant, and veneers in Turkey teeth: veneers vs crowns.

How many people from the UK go abroad for treatment

The ONS estimates that residents of Great Britain made about 523,000 visits abroad for medical treatment in 2024, and about 196,000 of them were to Turkey (ONS). It counts visits rather than people and all treatment rather than cosmetic surgery alone. The Foreign Office's Turkey travel advice says it is aware of 7 British nationals who died in Turkey in 2025 after medical procedures, and that cosmetic surgery, dental procedures and cardiac surgery are the most common procedures for medical tourists there (FCDO, read 1 November 2026). More figures are in our medical tourism statistics.