Am I insured? Not for the cosmetic surgery itself: travel health insurance does not pay for planned procedures in Turkey. If complications appear after you return to Germany, your statutory health fund treats you but must make you share the costs under section 52 of Social Code Book V. Follow-up cost insurance that includes treatment abroad costs a one-off EUR 69 to 259.
Guide values for cover around cosmetic surgery abroad and for an emergency.
Example
Typical range
Follow-up cost insurance, liposuction, one procedure, one year
about EUR 69 one-off
Follow-up cost insurance, breast augmentation with implant, one year
about EUR 249 to 259 one-off
Follow-up cost insurance, breast augmentation with implant, three years
about EUR 479 one-off
Travel health insurance, annual policy, one person (does not pay for the planned surgery)
about EUR 10 to 20 a year
Intensive-care transport to Germany, example Canary Islands
around EUR 75,000
Guide values as of October 2026 from publicly quoted tariffs;
follow-up cost premiums come from a comparison dated February 2023.
The EUR 8,000 in the worked example is a guide value from practice.
We obtain the exact quote for you.
Worked example
Breast augmentation in Istanbul, statutory insurance in Germany, infection two weeks after returning
How the bill differs depending on whether follow-up cost insurance with cover abroad was in place.
Follow-up cost insurance with cover abroad, one year
about EUR 249 to 259 one-off
Treating the infection and removing the implant in Germany
assumed EUR 8,000
Without follow-up cover
cost share set by your health fund, possibly no sick pay
With follow-up cover
complication costs paid by the insurer within the policy terms
Around EUR 250 up front can cushion a risk in the four or five figure range, but only if the tariff explicitly includes treatment abroad.
Why travel health insurance will not pay for the operation
Travel health insurance (Auslandskrankenversicherung) is designed for the unexpected: you fall ill or get hurt on holiday. Treatment that was already planned before the trip is excluded. A cosmetic operation in Istanbul or Antalya is exactly that, because it is the reason you travel.
Whether the policy pays if something goes wrong in Turkey after the surgery depends on the wording of your conditions. Ask your insurer in writing before you book, rather than relying on a phone call.
Complications back in Germany and section 52 SGB V
Your statutory health fund (Krankenkasse) will treat complications after cosmetic surgery. But section 52(2) of Social Code Book V (SGB V) obliges it to make you pay an appropriate share of the costs if the illness was caused by a medically unnecessary aesthetic operation. It can also refuse or reclaim sick pay for that period, fully or in part.
The law sets no fixed percentage; the fund decides case by case. It does not depend on you telling them: under section 294a(2) SGB V, doctors and hospitals must report signs of such a cause and inform you that they have done so.
What follow-up cost insurance covers
Follow-up cost insurance (Folgekostenversicherung) pays for treating complications after an aesthetic procedure, closing the gap that section 52 SGB V opens for people in the statutory system. It is usually a one-off premium paid before surgery and runs for one to five years.
For Turkey one detail decides everything: not every tariff covers procedures abroad. In a comparison published in 2023, only one of three providers explicitly listed treatment abroad. Check that Turkey and your specific procedure are named before you sign.
Procedure
One-off premium, one year
Note
Liposuction, one procedure
about EUR 69
extensions cost extra
Eyelid lift, facelift, ear correction
about EUR 69 to 99
depends on provider
Nose correction and similar
about EUR 89 to 169
check cover abroad
Breast augmentation with implant
about EUR 249 to 259
implant cover separate with some tariffs
Why accident and liability cover do not step in
Under the German model conditions, private accident insurance excludes harm caused by medical treatment or procedures on the body, unless the procedure followed a covered accident. Elective cosmetic surgery is not covered.
Claims against the clinic for a treatment error depend on your contract and the law that applies there. Before surgery, agree in writing who pays for follow-up treatment and corrections, ideally under German law.
When you do not need follow-up cost insurance
If you have private health insurance (PKV), check your own conditions first, because section 52 SGB V applies only to the statutory system. How your private tariff handles the consequences of cosmetic surgery is set out in its terms.
If you could easily pay for a corrective operation yourself, you may decide to go without. And a tariff that excludes treatment abroad is worthless for surgery in Turkey, however cheap it is.
Step by step
Check whether you are in statutory (GKV) or private (PKV) health insurance.
Before booking, find follow-up cost insurance that names Turkey and your procedure.
Ask your travel health insurer in writing whether complications in Turkey are covered.
Agree in writing with the clinic who pays for aftercare and corrections.
Arrange aftercare in Germany before you fly.
Checklist
Follow-up cost insurance taken out before surgery
Turkey named as country of treatment
Your procedure explicitly included
Written aftercare commitment from the clinic
Savings for cost sharing and lost sick pay
Discharge letter and surgery report in English or German
Common mistakes
Assuming travel health insurance pays for the surgery or its consequences
Buying follow-up cost insurance without cover abroad
Forgetting that sick pay can be cut after complications
Organising aftercare only after you are back
Questions and answers
Frequently asked
Does my health fund pay for cosmetic surgery in Turkey?
No.
Procedures without medical necessity are paid privately, whether in Germany or in Turkey.
Who pays if I have complications after returning?
Your health fund treats you but must make you share the costs appropriately under section 52(2)
SGB V,
and it can cut sick pay.
Will my health fund find out the cause was cosmetic surgery?
Yes, that is intended.
Under section 294a(2) SGB V, doctors and hospitals must report signs of it and inform you.
Does this also apply to a hair transplant?
If it is purely aesthetic and not medically necessary, the same rules apply.
Look for follow-up cost insurance that covers treatment abroad here too.
Can I buy follow-up cost insurance after the surgery?
The cover is meant to protect the procedure, so it has to start before the operation.
Check the deadlines before you book.
Does accident insurance pay for a medical error?
No.
Harm caused by procedures on the body is excluded under the German model conditions unless the
