# Seoul Medical Tourism

> Seoul had 1,257 medical institutions registered to attract foreign patients in 2022, which is 62.1% of the 2,023 nationwide.

K-Medical Tourism Institute shows the number of registered institutions in Seoul for every year from 2009 to 2022, using open data from the Korea Health Industry Development Institute. The same page lists the websites of the city government, the Seoul Tourism Organization and the Gangnam Medical Tour Center, with a current link check.

- Data as of: As of 31 Dec 2022
- Canonical URL: https://k-medicals.org/en/data/seoul-medical-tourism-institutions

- Registered in Seoul, 2022: 1,257 (+318 from the year before)
- Share of national total: 62.1% (of 2,023 nationwide)
- Peak year: 2016 (1,646)
- 21 Jul 2026 list: 2,632 (a different kind of source)

## How many registered hospitals and clinics does Seoul medical tourism have?

1,257 in 2022. The 17 regions add up to 2,023 for the same year, so Seoul accounts for 62.1% (1,257 ÷ 2,023).

Under the current law, a registered institution is a hospital or clinic that has registered with its city or provincial governor in order to attract foreign patients. An institution that has not registered may not do so. The figure counts institutions registered in Seoul. It is a different statistic from the number of foreign patients treated in Seoul. The national figure includes the source value of 12 for Gyeonggi, which makes Seoul's 2022 share correspondingly higher.

## How has the number of Seoul medical tourism institutions changed over the years?

It grew from 823 in 2009 to 1,646 in 2016, then dropped to 974 in 2017. After that it was 1,211 in 2019, 920 in 2020 and 1,257 in 2022.

**Registered institutions in Seoul and nationwide** (institutions)

- Nationwide: 2009 1,453 → 2022 2,023
- Seoul: 2009 823 → 2022 1,257

**Registered institutions in Seoul by year** (number of institutions)

| Year | Seoul | Change | Share of national total |
| --- | ---: | ---: | ---: |
| 2009 | 823 | - | 56.6% |
| 2010 | 1,007 | +184 | 55.5% |
| 2011 | 1,159 | +152 | 55.4% |
| 2012 | 1,324 | +165 | 53.0% |
| 2013 | 1,418 | +94 | 52.7% |
| 2014 | 1,415 | -3 | 52.6% |
| 2015 | 1,461 | +46 | 51.9% |
| 2016 | 1,646 | +185 | 52.8% |
| 2017 | 974 | -672 | 58.5% |
| 2018 | 1,136 | +162 | 58.0% |
| 2019 | 1,211 | +75 | 59.0% |
| 2020 | 920 | -291 | 61.0% |
| 2021 | 939 | +19 | 59.2% |
| 2022 | 1,257 | +318 | 62.1% |

The largest one-year fall came in 2017, when the count was 672 lower than the year before. That was the year in which a law in force since June 2016 required institutions already registered to renew within one year. The background is in [Why Korea's Registered Hospitals Fell from 3,115 to 1,664 in 2017](https://k-medicals.org/en/articles/why-registered-institutions-halved-in-2017).

The count fell by 291 in 2020 and rose by 318 in 2022. The national picture for those years is in [What Happened to Korea's Registered Hospitals During COVID-19?](https://k-medicals.org/en/articles/registered-institutions-during-covid).

## How large is Seoul medical tourism compared with the rest of Korea?

62.1% of the national total in 2022, the largest of the 17 regions. The share was lowest in 2015 (51.9%) and highest in 2022.

**Top five regions by registered institutions, 2022** (2022 · number of institutions)

| Region | Registered institutions | Share of national total | Rank |
| --- | ---: | ---: | ---: |
| Seoul | 1,257 | 62.1% | 1 |
| Busan | 181 | 8.9% | 2 |
| Daegu | 163 | 8.1% | 3 |
| Incheon | 104 | 5.1% | 4 |
| Gwangju | 96 | 4.7% | 5 |

Rank and share are calculated across all 17 regions.

That is 6.9 times the count of Busan, the second largest with 181 (1,257 ÷ 181). Figures for all 17 regions are in [Korea Medical Tourism Hospitals by Region](https://k-medicals.org/en/data/foreign-patient-institutions-by-region), and the way Seoul's share has moved is traced in [Six in Ten Registered Hospitals for Foreign Patients Are in Seoul](https://k-medicals.org/en/articles/seoul-share-of-registered-institutions).

## Where can you find Seoul medical tourism figures after 2022?

The yearly statistics stop at 2022. Later numbers can be counted from a list the same institute published as of 21 Jul 2026: 2,632 medical institutions and 1,678 facilitators in Seoul.

**Seoul: 2022 statistics and the 21 Jul 2026 list** (number of institutions)

| Region | 2022 statistics | Medical institutions on the 21 Jul 2026 list | Facilitators on the 21 Jul 2026 list |
| --- | ---: | ---: | ---: |
| Seoul | 1,257 | 2,632 | 1,678 |

The two sources are compiled differently, so no change is calculated between them.

Reading 1,257 in the 2022 statistics and 2,632 on the list as "the number doubled" would be a mistake. The statistics are yearly totals with no stated definition, while the list has one row for each institution whose registration status was "maintained" on that day. Within the list, Seoul's share is 62.8%.

## Which official offices handle Seoul medical tourism?

The Medical Korea list of official websites has 3 entries for Seoul: the Seoul Metropolitan Government tourism division, the Seoul Tourism Organization and the Seoul Gangnam Medical Tour Center. All three addresses opened on 5 Oct 2026.

**Official medical tourism contacts in Seoul** (source dated 29 Aug 2023)

| Organization | Korean name | Address in the source | Link check (5 Oct 2026) |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Seoul Metropolitan Govern-ment Tourism Business Division | 서울특별시 관광사업과 | [www.seoul.go.kr](https://www.seoul.go.kr) | Opens |
| Seoul Tourism Organization | 서울관광재단 | [www.sto.or.kr](https://www.sto.or.kr) | Opens |
| Seoul Gangnam Medical Tour Center | 서울 강남 메디컬투어센터 | [medicaltour.gangnam.go.kr](https://medicaltour.gangnam.go.kr) | Opens |

The source has no Korean names. The Korean names shown were rendered from the Japanese (Chinese-character) names in the source, and department names may have changed since through reorganization.

**Seoul contacts in English, Japanese, Chinese and Russian** (as written in the source)

| English | Japanese | Chinese | Russian |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Seoul Metropolitan Govern-ment Tourism Business Division | ソウル特別市観光事業課 | 首尔特别市政府观光商业部 | Департамент туристического бизнеса столичного муниципалитета Сеула |
| Seoul Tourism Organization | ソウル観光財団 | 首尔观光财团 | Сеульская туристическая организация |
| Seoul Gangnam Medical Tour Center | ソウル江南メディカルツアーセンター | 首尔江南医疗旅游中心 | Сеульский центр медицинского туризма Каннам |

The names in the table are the ones to use when pointing a patient to an office in their own language. Contacts for other regions are in [Medical Tourism Offices in Korea by Region](https://k-medicals.org/en/data/regional-medical-tourism-offices).

## What should you keep in mind when reading the figures on Seoul medical tourism?

The source file does not define its figures. Neither the file nor the portal description says whether a number is the count of institutions holding a registration at year end or the count registered during that year. It is also a different statistic from the number of patients treated.

A large count says nothing about the quality or cost of care in Seoul. The source holds counts of institutions and nothing else. It also has no district-level figures, so the numbers cannot be split into districts such as Gangnam or Seocho.

## Where do the figures on Seoul medical tourism come from, and how were they calculated?

The figures are taken as published from "Medical institutions registered to attract foreign patients, by year and region", a file the Korea Health Industry Development Institute released on the Korean Public Data Portal (data as of 31 Dec 2022). The file lists 17 regions and has no national total, so K-Medical Tourism Institute added the 17 regional values to get the nationwide figures, and calculated shares and changes from the same values.

The 21 Jul 2026 figures are counts by region and institution type from "Registered institutions and facilitators for foreign patients (list)", a 6,921-row list published by the same institute. 33 rows have the word "test" in the institution or representative name. They could not be told apart from real entries with certainty and were left in, so the true number of institutions may be slightly lower.

The list reproduces the names and addresses of the 36 entries in "Medical Korea list of useful websites for medical tourism", published by the Korea Health Industry Development Institute on the Korean Public Data Portal (data as of 29 Aug 2023). The source has no categories or regions; K-Medical Tourism Institute added them. The link check is K-Medical Tourism Institute's own: each address was opened on 5 Oct 2026, with 32 opening, 1 with a changed path, 1 that could not be verified automatically and 2 not responding.

## Frequently asked questions

### In which year did Seoul have the most registered institutions?

2016, with 1,646. The following year, 2017, the count was 974.

### Which regions come after Seoul?

In 2022, Busan had 181 and Daegu had 163, the next two after Seoul.

### Which districts of Seoul have the most registered institutions?

The source is compiled by city and province, so it has no district figures. The only district-level office in the list of official websites is the Gangnam Medical Tour Center.

### How can you check that a hospital in Seoul is registered?

Search for the institution by name in the foreign patient attraction information system run by the Korea Health Industry Development Institute. Registration is made with the city or provincial governor and is valid for three years from the registration date.

### How many registered facilitators are there in Seoul?

1,678 on the 21 Jul 2026 list. A facilitator is a business, not a medical institution, that has registered in order to attract foreign patients.

### Does K-Medical Tourism Institute recommend hospitals in Seoul?

No. K-Medical Tourism Institute publishes figures from open data and the addresses of official offices. It does not recommend hospitals or arrange treatment.

## Sources

- [KHIDI: Medical institutions registered to attract foreign patients, by year and region (as of 31 Dec 2022, in Korean)](https://www.data.go.kr/data/15125603/fileData.do) - Korea Health Industry Development Institute (KHIDI), Korean Public Data Portal, 13 Dec 2023, data as of 31 Dec 2022, no restriction on reuse stated
- [KHIDI: List of registered institutions and facilitators for foreign patients (as of 21 Jul 2026, in Korean)](https://www.data.go.kr/data/3050000/fileData.do) - Korea Health Industry Development Institute (KHIDI), Korean Public Data Portal, 21 Jul 2026, per-institution list, data as of 21 Jul 2026
- [KHIDI: Medical Korea list of useful websites for medical tourism (as of 29 Aug 2023, in Korean)](https://www.data.go.kr/data/15122019/fileData.do) - Korea Health Industry Development Institute (KHIDI), Korean Public Data Portal, 31 Aug 2023, data as of 29 Aug 2023, no restriction on reuse stated