Planning care in India from the UK
For many people in the UK the issue is the waiting list for planned hospital treatment. Here are the latest official figures for England, and what we can arrange if you decide to look at India.
Durgam Cheruvu bridge, Hyderabad, at dusk. Footage still: Hemanth28 on Pixabay.
What the data says
Referral-to-treatment pathways waiting to start consultant-led elective treatment in England at the end of August 2026, about 6.2 million individual patients.
Share of waiting pathways within 18 weeks at the end of August 2026, against the NHS constitutional standard of 92%. The median wait was 12.2 weeks.
Pathways where the patient had been waiting more than 52 weeks at the end of August 2026.
These figures cover England only; Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland measure waiting times differently. Some people on a waiting list look at private treatment in the UK or abroad. Talk to your GP or consultant first, and ask how care would continue on your return.
Sources checked 4 November 2026.
On the ground in India
- Appointment and estimate requests to the hospitals or practitioners you choose
- Visa paperwork guidance and a document checklist
- Airport pickup, transfers and local transport
- Stays near your hospital, for you and the people travelling with you
- Interpreters where available for your language
- Ayurveda, homeopathy or a check-up holiday, if you want one
- A recovery stay and help with your journey home
Practical checks
- Talk to your GP or consultant about the plan, and about follow-up care when you return.
- If you have private medical insurance, ask whether it covers treatment abroad.
- Read the UK Government's foreign travel advice for India.
- Bring copies of your records and a list of your medicines.
Your trip from the United Kingdom, step by step
What most UK patients sort out before they board, and who does each part.
Talk to your own doctor first
Ask whether travel is safe for you, and how they would handle follow-up when you're back.
Get written replies from hospitals
You pick the accredited hospitals. We help you send them your reports and follow up until each one replies in writing. Hospitals reply on their own timelines; we follow up with them, but we don't control how long they take. Our own reply to your enquiry comes within one working day, and it's free.
Fix your dates, then book flights
Book only once the hospital confirms your date. Fly into the international airport nearest your hospital (Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Kochi, for example, all have international flights) and check current routes from the United Kingdom with airlines.
Get your e-Medical visa sorted
Use the official portal only. We give you the checklist and help you request the hospital letter.
Arrive to a plan
Airport pickup, a stay near the hospital, admission support, interpreters and a coordinator you can call.
Quick answers for UK patients
Can someone travel with me?
Will I be able to talk to the doctors?
What will it cost?
What do I bring home?
e-Medical and e-Medical Attendant visas
British passport holders appear on the official e-Visa fee table for the e-Medical and e-Medical Attendant visas (checked 4 November 2026). Apply only on indianvisaonline.gov.in.
The portal lists e-Medical visas as valid for one year from arrival with multiple entries (checked 4 November 2026). Rules change; the Government of India decides every application. We give general guidance only.
Please read
- Care Beyond Borders is not a medical provider and does not give medical advice.
- Talk to your own doctor before planning treatment abroad. Don't stop or change prescribed treatment.
- We don't promise outcomes, prices or waiting times. Estimates come from the provider, in writing.
Heal in India, with the ground arranged
Tell us what you're planning and when.