Dental tourism in Hungary – How it all began
Initially, the Austrians began to come to Hungary for dental treatment in 1970s. They were satisfied with the prices and treatment results so Hungary’s reputation about high quality dental care spread rapidly. Foreigners who came for treatment, typically preferred dental clinics in the western part of the country close to the Austrian border because they arrived by car. With the advent of low-cost flight companies Budapest based dental clinics, specializing in the treatment of foreigners, have come into view. Budapest is in the heart of Europe, it is only 2.5 hours by plane from any European city. Dental treatments in Budapest have improved with the advancement of technology, but prices are still at least 40-70% cheaper than of those in Western Europe or USA and Australia.
Due to the favorable prices and good quality Budapest remains a popular destination for dental tourism. After Hungary became part of the European Union, savings on dental treatments could be further increased. It is because not only prices are more competitive there but refund for dental care in Hungary is available for lots of foreign patients.
Refund for dental care in Hungary
How much Irish patients can save in Hungary
For Irish patients, a 20% tax credit can be applied for dental care in Budapest.
Some examples of major treatments that are refunded: crowns, veneers, implants, bridges, root canal treatment and oral surgery like wisdom tooth extraction and bone grafting.
To qualify for the refund, the clinic will fill out a ’MED2 form’ for you to apply for a 20% tax relief. You can include this amount in the heath expenses claim and it is needed to keep the MED2 form in your records.
Refund for French patients
In case of French patients, Social Security provides refund for dental care in Hungary. Each supported treatment has a value determined by the French State and the patient receives reimbursement calculated from this value, no matter how much one paid for that particular treatment.
Here are some examples of supported treatments by Social Security: crowns, bridges, root canal and fillings. It does not include dental implants which is a favourite treatment of dental tourists. Reimbursement from the Social Security is very limited, but having private health insuarnce the amount of refund may go even up to 100% of the treatment value.
Refund process for French patients: Patients may request reimbursement information from Social Security before beginning treatment. To do so, the treatment plan received from the clinic must be sent to Social Security, who will provide the amount of the expected reimbursement.
After treatment to qualify for reimbursement, you will need the following documents:
– panoramic x-ray before and after treatment
-’soins reçus à l’étranger’ filled out by the clinic
– treatment records issued by the clinic
– paid invoices of your dental care
Documents listed above are needed in original, copies are not accepted.
Social Security may ask for more documents like airline tickets or lodging bills, which are worth keeping as well.
After settlement of all invoices our clinic prepares all your documents you need for reimbursement. If your dental care consists of more than one visit, then forms necessary for reimbursement will be filled out by our clinic, after every single visit.
If you have private health insurance they may also cover the cost of your dental care fully or partly, but it depends on the policy your insurance holds. Our clinic will also fill in all the paperwork you need to get your private insurance reimbursement. So, you can increase your savings in Budapest by refund for dental care in Hungary.
