Foreign patients top 2 million in South Korea for first time in 2025

April 23, 2026

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South Korea welcomed 2.01 million foreign patients in 2025, surpassing 2 million for the first time, the Ministry of Health and Welfare said. This nearly doubled from 1.17 million the previous year. The surge reflects Korea's rise as a global hub for dermatology and plastic surgery.

The Ministry of Health and Welfare announced on Friday that 2.01 million international patients from 201 countries visited South Korea in 2025. The figure had risen annually since data compilation began in 2009 but fell to 110,000 in 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic. It took just five years to exceed 2 million, fueled by demand for Korean dermatology treatments and the global popularity of K-pop and Korean dramas.

By nationality, Chinese patients made up 30.8% of the total, followed by Japanese at 29.8%, Taiwanese at 9.2%, and Americans at 8.6%. U.S. patients surged 70.4% to a record 173,000 from the previous year.

More than 62% received treatment at dermatology clinics, while 11.2% underwent plastic surgery. Some 87.2% of the patients visited clinics in Seoul.

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April 27, 2026 17:07