TEHRAN – Iran is primarily visited by medical tourists seeking to undergo cosmetic surgery, the director of the health tourism organization director said on Wednesday.

Travelers from Iraq, Afghanistan, Oman, Azerbaijan, and Bahrain constitute the higher share of Iran’s medical sector, Diako Abbasi said.

“Revenues from medical tourism fetched over $1 billion [per annum] up to the coronavirus outbreak,” the official said.

In addition to cosmetic surgery, international patients typically choose Iran for organ transplants, ophthalmology, and infertility treatment, he said.

Available data compiled by the Health Ministry suggest the Islamic Republic hosts an average of one million medical tourists per annum.

Shiraz, Mashhad, Yazd, Tabriz, Urmia, Ahvaz, Ramsar, Ardabil, Kermanshah, Tehran, Isfahan, and Sanandaj have been the most desired destinations for medical tourists, Abbasi said.

Medical tourism in Iran, according to some experts, is a win-win opportunity both for the country and foreign patients, as they are offered affordable yet quality treatment services and the country gains considerable foreign currency.

The Islamic Republic is known in the world as an affordable destination for health tourism, and the government is making a great effort to attract more medical tourists in the years to come.

Credible surgeons and physicians, cutting-edge medical technologies, high-tech medicine and diverse specializations, super affordable procedures, and finally its hospitable people, are considered Iran’s trump card when it comes to medical tourism.

About one million medical tourists, mainly from the neighboring countries, arrive in Iran annually, Mohammadreza Tarjoman, who presides over the Health Ministry’s tourism office said in April. A selection of 200 Iranian medical centers has permission to accept foreign patients, he added.

Iran has set goals to exceed its yearly medical travelers to around two million in [calendar year] 1404 (March 2025-March 2026).

AFM