Understanding Korea's Medical Tourism Registration Numbers for Aesthetic Procedures

Social media posts promoting aesthetic procedures in Korea frequently feature a recurring phrase: 'Korean government-registered foreign patient attraction business operator,' accompanied by a registration number starting with 'A' and followed by year and regional codes. Accounts targeting Japanese and Chinese speakers often highlight this number as a mark of trustworthiness. However, there is a scarcity of information explaining precisely what this number verifies and, crucially, what it does not.

2.01 Million Foreign Patients Visited Korea Last Year, 62.9% for Dermatology

According to data released by the Ministry of Health and Welfare on April 24, 2026, the number of unique foreign patients who visited Korean medical institutions in 2025 reached 2.01 million (2.72 million patient visits). This marks a 71.8% increase from 1.17 million in 2024 and is the first time the annual figure has exceeded 2 million since statistics began in 2009. By medical department, dermatology accounted for 1,313,000 patients (62.9%), followed by plastic surgery with 233,000 patients (11.2%), with these two fields making up approximately 74% of the total.

By nationality, China and Japan comprised 60.6% of the total, with Taiwan following at 186,000 patients (9.2%). Taiwan saw a particularly sharp increase of 122.5% year-on-year. Regionally, Seoul was dominant with 1.76 million patients (87.2%), but Busan (up 151.5%) and Jeju (up 114.7%) also saw significant growth, indicating a spread beyond the capital area. The government attributed this surge to factors such as China's visa-free policy, VAT refunds for aesthetic and plastic surgery, and the global spread of Hallyu (Korean Wave) content.

The Registration Number: A Record of Meeting Legal Requirements

The legal basis for this is the 'Act on Support for Overseas Expansion of Healthcare and Attraction of Foreign Patients.' Article 6 of this law mandates registration for entities seeking to attract foreign patients. There are two types of registrants: medical institutions that provide actual treatment (attracting medical institutions) and businesses that connect patients (attracting businesses), commonly known as agencies or coordinators. Many social media accounts displaying registration numbers fall into the latter category.