Pricing FAQ — what is not included

Headline package pricing at airport-cluster clinics is straightforward in the editorial bands I have documented elsewhere on this site, but the real-world total a transit patient pays at the chair often deviates from the headline figure in ways that surprise the patient when the bill is finalised. The deviation is rarely fraudulent; it is structural, and it reflects the difference between the procedure cost (which the clinic prices transparently) and the operational add-ups that surround the procedure (which the clinic may quote separately, may bundle at the upper tier, or may not mention at all until the chair commitment is made). This page is the editorial pricing FAQ I wrote as Ji-Won Choi after sitting through enough HEIM GLOBAL coordination conversations to recognise the line items that recur as patient surprises. The structure is question-and-answer because that is how the transit patient actually thinks about pricing — not as a budget spreadsheet but as a sequence of practical questions that get asked in the booking thread or, worse, at the chair when the surprise emerges. The bands and figures below are observable ranges across airport-cluster practices and are not specific clinic quotes; specific clinic pricing should be confirmed at booking in writing, with all line items separately identified, before the chair commitment is made.

The headline package and what it nominally covers

The headline package at an airport-cluster transit clinic typically covers a defined protocol depth — 90-minute IV-only, 4-hour IV-plus-microneedling, or 8-hour full-course — at a fixed KRW price that should arrive in the booking confirmation in writing. The package nominally covers the clinical procedure, the bio-active product (exosome vial, growth-factor concentrate, conditioned-media preparation), topical anaesthesia for microneedling protocols, the pre-procedure physician consultation, the post-procedure clinical observation, and the clinic-supplied post-procedure regimen (cleanser, moisturiser, SPF 50, sometimes a recovery serum). The package nominally does not cover: airport pickup and return transfer, additional take-home product beyond the post-procedure regimen, meals or substantive refreshments, any imaging beyond standard photo-documentation, any complication management beyond the standard 14-day remote-review window, and any in-clinic upgrades that the consultation introduces. The vetting standard is that the booking confirmation should explicitly state, line by line, what is and is not in the package — and the transit patient should not accept a booking that ambiguates these categories.

Airport pickup and return transfer — included, add-on, or absent

Airport pickup and return transfer is the line item that most often migrates between included, add-on, and absent depending on the clinic and the package tier. The typical airport-cluster transfer is priced at ₩30,000 to ₩50,000 each way (₩60,000 to ₩100,000 round trip) when quoted as a separate line item; some clinics include this in the package at the upper tier and quote it separately at the lower tier; some clinics include it across all tiers; some clinics quote no transfer at all and expect the patient to arrange Incheon Airport Limousine or AREX rail independently. The editorial standard is full transparency at booking — patients should know before payment whether airport pickup is included, whether it is an add-on that will appear in the final bill, or whether they are expected to self-organise. The transfer fee is small relative to the procedure cost and is not the substantive pricing variable; the substantive variable is whether the clinic discloses the line item before the chair commitment or surfaces it after. Clinics that surface transfer charges after the booking has been locked are clinics that have failed the basic transit-pricing discipline test.

Bio-active product — included in package or quoted separately?

The bio-active product — the exosome vial, the growth-factor concentrate, the conditioned-media preparation — is the most substantive line item in the procedure cost and the second most common surprise charge at the chair. The standard transit-clinic package includes the bio-active product at the single-vial standard depth; some clinics offer dual-vial upgrades, additional product layers, or combined-product protocols at the in-clinic consultation that materially adjust the final bill. The editorial pattern: the consultation reveals 'an opportunity to maximise the response' through an additional vial, a combined product, or a sequenced add-on, with a discretionary upcharge of ₩200,000 to ₩600,000 that was not in the headline package. Sometimes this consultation reveals a genuine clinical opportunity; more often it is consultation-room upselling that the transit patient who arrived on a fixed budget cannot easily refuse without losing face. The vetting standard is to confirm at booking whether the bio-active product depth is fixed at the package tier or whether the consultation may introduce upcharges, and to set a clear budget ceiling in writing before the chair commitment. Clinics with package-pricing discipline do not introduce in-consultation upcharges; clinics that operate consultation-room upselling are clinics where the patient should clarify in writing that the headline package is the final price.

Topical anaesthesia and pre-procedure preparation

Topical anaesthesia is the small line item that occasionally surfaces as a separate charge in clinics that have not absorbed the operational cost into the package price. The standard topical anaesthesia for microneedling protocols is a benzocaine or lidocaine cream applied 20 to 30 minutes pre-procedure, with a typical clinic-side cost of ₩30,000 to ₩50,000 when quoted as a separate line item. Most transit-discipline clinics include topical anaesthesia in the IV-plus-microneedling package and the full-course package; clinics that quote it separately are quoting the procedure cost in a way that understates the actual all-in figure, and the patient should clarify in writing whether anaesthesia is included before booking. Pre-procedure preparation — the cleansing, the consultation, the standard pre-procedure photography — is normally included in the package and should not surface as a line item; clinics that quote separately for pre-procedure preparation are clinics with operational practices the transit patient should question.

Post-procedure regimen — the size and composition of the take-home pack

The post-procedure regimen is the take-home product pack the clinic supplies for the 7 to 14 day at-home aftercare window, and the size and composition of the pack is a substantive line-item variable. The minimal standard regimen includes a gentle cleanser, a barrier-repair moisturiser, and an SPF 50 sunscreen — sufficient for the 7-day post-procedure window. Higher-tier regimens add a recovery serum, an additional moisturiser layer, sometimes a soothing mask, sometimes oral support (vitamin C, collagen peptide). The variation between regimens reflects clinic preference rather than clinical necessity; a minimal regimen is clinically sufficient for the standard transit protocol, and patients should not pay for upgrades that do not change the response profile. Clinics that include a generous regimen in the package are clinics whose pricing reflects a higher all-in figure that is not always justifying the regimen value; clinics that include a minimal regimen and offer the upgrades as transparent add-ons are clinics with clearer pricing discipline. The vetting question at booking: what is in the take-home pack, what does each item cost separately if priced à la carte, and is the upgrade an in-clinic consultation upsell or a transparent package option?

Remote review at day 7 and day 14 — included or extra?

Remote review at day 7 and day 14 is the post-procedure aftercare layer that distinguishes transit-discipline clinics from clinics that treat the chair-time as the end of the relationship, and the pricing question is whether this layer is included in the package or quoted separately. The editorial standard is for day-7 and day-14 photo-documented remote review by the treating physician to be included in the package at all tiers — this is the operational mechanism that compensates for the absence of in-person follow-up that central-Seoul multi-day patients enjoy. Some clinics quote remote review as a separate ₩50,000 to ₩100,000 add-on; some clinics include it at the upper tier only; some clinics treat the messaging channel as an upsell layer with a per-message fee. The editorial position is that any clinic charging for remote review during the standard 14-day post-procedure window has departed from transit discipline, and the transit patient should choose differently. Clarify in writing at booking that the day-7 and day-14 review is included; do not accept a clinic that hedges this commitment.

Complication management — included in standard window, charged outside

Complication management within the standard 14-day post-procedure window is typically included in the clinic's aftercare responsibility — the messaging-channel escalation, the treating-physician photo review, the written clinical recommendation. Complications outside the 14-day window or that require in-person re-treatment introduce a different financial framework: the clinic may charge for the re-treatment session, may waive the charge depending on the nature of the complication and the clinic's policy, or may negotiate at the time the complication is recognised. The editorial standard is a written complication-management policy at booking that documents the in-window commitment (no charge for messaging-channel escalation and remote review) and the out-of-window framework (re-treatment pricing, refund pathway if indicated, escalation to KHIDI as the regulatory backstop). Clinics that decline to commit to the in-window framework in writing are clinics whose aftercare-responsibility framing is not transit-mature; clinics that commit clearly are clinics where the patient knows what the recourse looks like before paying.

Currency conversion charges, card fees, and FX adjustment

Currency conversion is the line item that appears not on the clinic invoice but on the patient's card statement after the trip, and it is the surprise charge that is genuinely not the clinic's responsibility but that the patient should understand before payment. KRW is the transactional currency at all airport-cluster clinics; international card payment converts to the patient's home currency at the card-issuer's daily rate, with a typical FX margin of 1 to 3 percent layered onto the mid-market rate. For a ₩1,200,000 procedure, the FX margin can add USD $10 to $30 to the headline conversion. Card issuers may also charge a separate 'foreign transaction fee' of 1 to 3 percent for cross-border transactions, layered on top of the FX margin. Patients budgeting on the headline conversion in their home currency should add a 2 to 4 percent buffer for FX adjustment and foreign transaction fees; the buffer is not large but it is genuinely additional to the headline conversion, and the patient who budgets to the conversion exactly will be marginally short. The clinic has no role in this layer; the recourse is the patient's card-issuer.

Tip and gratuity — none, and gratuity refusal is the editorial standard

Tip and gratuity are not part of Korean clinical practice and should not appear on the bill; clinics that quote a 'service charge' or that invite gratuity at the chair are operating outside Korean medical-practice norms. The editorial standard is no tip, no gratuity, no 'service fee', no end-of-procedure cash transaction. A clinic that introduces these elements is a clinic with operational practices that do not match Korean medical-practice convention, and the transit patient should treat the introduction of a gratuity invitation as a vetting signal. The booking deposit and the chair payment are the two transactional moments; there should be no third moment. Patients accustomed to tipping cultures (United States in particular) should know that Korean medical practice is not a tipping culture and that declining to tip is the correct response, not a faux pas. The Korean physician's compensation runs through the procedure fee, not through a gratuity expectation.

Frequently asked questions

What is typically included in the airport-cluster package price?

The clinical procedure, the bio-active product, topical anaesthesia for microneedling protocols, the pre-procedure consultation, post-procedure observation, the clinic-supplied take-home regimen (cleanser, moisturiser, SPF 50, sometimes recovery serum), and day-7 and day-14 remote review through the messaging channel. Specific clinics may bundle differently; confirm in writing at booking.

What is typically not included and may surface as a charge?

Airport pickup and return transfer (₩30,000 to ₩50,000 each way when quoted separately), bio-active product upgrades or additional vials introduced in the consultation room, take-home regimen upgrades beyond the minimal pack, meals or refreshments, any imaging beyond standard photo-documentation, complications outside the 14-day window.

Should I expect upselling in the consultation room?

Consultation-room upselling is common but is not editorial transit discipline. Set a written budget ceiling at booking, clarify whether the bio-active product depth is fixed at package tier, and decline upgrades that were not part of the booking. A senior-physician transit-discipline clinic will respect the booking; a consultation-room-upsell operation will not.

What is the FX adjustment I should budget for on top of the KRW price?

Two to four percent above the headline conversion is a reasonable buffer for card-issuer FX margin and foreign transaction fees. The buffer is not the clinic's charge; it is the card-issuer's pricing layer for cross-border transactions in KRW, applied to the patient's home-currency statement after the trip.

Is remote review at day 7 and day 14 always included in the package?

It should be in transit-discipline clinics. Clinics that quote remote review as a ₩50,000 to ₩100,000 add-on or that charge per-message in the post-procedure window have departed from transit discipline. Clarify in writing at booking that the day-7 and day-14 review is included; the editorial recommendation is to choose differently if the clinic hedges this commitment.

What if a complication needs in-person follow-up after I have flown home?

Within the standard 14-day window, the messaging-channel escalation and treating-physician remote photo review is included. Out-of-window complications or those requiring in-person re-treatment introduce a separate financial framework that should be documented in writing at booking — re-treatment pricing, refund pathway if indicated, KHIDI complaint channel as regulatory backstop.

Should I tip the physician or the clinic staff?

No. Korean medical practice is not a tipping culture; tipping at the clinic is not expected and gratuity invitations are not part of standard Korean medical-practice convention. The procedure fee is the complete transactional commitment; declining to tip is correct etiquette, not a faux pas.

How much above the headline package should I budget in total?

For a transit-window booking with airport pickup as add-on (₩60,000 to ₩100,000 round trip), a 2 to 4 percent FX buffer, and a discretionary upgrade margin of ₩100,000 to ₩300,000 if you want to leave consultation-room options open, the practical all-in is the headline package plus ₩200,000 to ₩500,000. Discipline-conscious patients budget tighter; consultation-flexible patients budget looser.