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From Ireland · Health check-up · South Korea

Health check-up in South Korea from Ireland: what the trip costs against paying at home

Prices checked 26 October 2026 (Taipei time)

Short answer

For Irish patients, a health check-up in South Korea costs €472–€1,450 at the clinic we checked, or about €1,650 once an example return flight and 2 hotel nights are added.

Clinic price
€472–€1,4501 provider, one package for one person
Example trip
€1,650clinic €472 + flight €1,000 + 2 hotel nights €180
Pay privately in Ireland
Not verified
Wait in Ireland
No official figure found
Time there
Half a day to one day for most packages; packages with endoscopy or several scans can take two days
Rank from Ireland
5 of 6 countries by total trip cost

Figure 1Where the money goes, in EUR

Trip total €1,650

Lowest published clinic price, an example return fare from Ireland and 2 hotel nights at €90. Examples, not quotes.

Figure 2Health check-up: cheapest trip from Ireland, by country

Total trip in EUR: lowest to highest published price plus the same example flight and hotel rules. Click a country for its page for Irish patients.

Published health check-up prices in South Korea

Each row is a price the provider publishes itself, in its own currency, with what it includes. The converted amounts use a fixed European Central Bank rate.

Health check-up prices in South Korea
ProviderPublished priceWhat the price is forSource
Kangbuk Samsung HospitalSeoul₩700,000 to ₩2,150,000about £395–£1,210 · €472–€1,450 · C$740–C$2,270 · $529–$1,620Comprehensive check-up: basic (700,000) to cancer programme with PET-CT (2,150,000)Basic includes gastroscopy, abdominal ultrasound, chest X-ray, blood tests and ECG; no colonoscopy, CT or MRI. Digestive programme with sedated colonoscopy 1,100,000; brain MRI programme 2,000,000. Undated domestic price page; it does not say whether foreign patients pay the same.Kangbuk Samsung Hospital Total Healthcare Centerread 26 October 2026

Prices are copied as published, in the provider's currency. Conversions use the European Central Bank reference rates of 23 October 2026 and are rounded. A provider can change a price at any time: ask for a written quote.

The Kangbuk Samsung prices are from its domestic check-up page, which carries no date and does not say whether foreign patients pay the same. Severance Hospital runs an international health-care centre that takes check-up bookings from abroad and lists sedation for gastroscopy at 156,000 KRW, but we could not find its package prices (Severance).

Against waiting or paying in Ireland

We have not found an official waiting-time figure for a health check-up in Ireland.

Can the HSE pay?

NHS and HSE schemes do not reach South Korea. The NHS S2 route covers state treatment in the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein, and the HSE schemes cover the EU, EEA, the UK and Switzerland. Treatment in South Korea is paid by you or by a private insurer who agrees in advance. NHS S2 route, HSE Treatment Abroad Scheme.

Planning the trip from Ireland

  1. Get a written quoteSend the clinic your referral or reason for a health check-up and ask for an itemised price in writing, with the date and what happens if the result needs follow-up.
  2. Before you goMost packages need you to fast from the night before. Book a morning slot.
  3. Before you goAsk what happens if a test finds something: is a specialist available the same week, and at what price?
  4. Entry rulesCheck the official advice before booking: Irish citizens (DFA travel advice, choose the country).
  5. LanguageKorean; the big Seoul hospitals have international health-care centres with English-speaking coordinators.
  6. After you returnBring the full report to your doctor, not just the summary page.
  7. After you returnTreat a "borderline" or "follow up" note as a reason to see your doctor, not as a diagnosis.

Add your flight and hotel

Put in your real fare from Ireland and your hotel to see the total for South Korea next to every other country.

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Health check-up in South Korea from Ireland: questions

How much is a health check-up in South Korea for Irish patients?

The published prices we found work out at €472–€1,450 at the clinic, from Kangbuk Samsung Hospital. With an example return flight of €1,000 and 2 hotel nights at €90, the trip comes to about €1,650. Your own fares and dates will change the total.

Is it cheaper than paying privately in Ireland?

We have not verified a self-pay price in Ireland for this, so compare the trip total with a written quote from a provider at home.

How long is the wait for a health check-up in Ireland?

We have not found an official waiting-time figure for this in Ireland.

How many days do I need in South Korea?

Half a day to one day for most packages; packages with endoscopy or several scans can take two days. That is our planning estimate, not medical advice; ask the clinic for its schedule in writing.

Will the HSE pay for it?

No. HSE schemes cover the EU, EEA, the UK and Switzerland; South Korea is outside them.

Sources

  1. 종합건진 프로그램 (comprehensive check-up programmes). Kangbuk Samsung Hospital Total Healthcare Center, Seoul. Read 26 October 2026.
  2. Planned treatment: S2 funding route. NHS (nhs.uk). Read 26 October 2026.
  3. Treatment Abroad Scheme. Health Service Executive (HSE). Read 26 October 2026.
  4. Health check-up appointment (International Health Care Center). Severance Hospital, Seoul. Read 26 October 2026.
  5. Euro foreign exchange reference rates. European Central Bank, 23 October 2026. Read 26 October 2026.