Currency and payment planner

Card vs wire vs cash

• Credit-card payment typically gives the strongest dispute rights — chargeback under Section 75 (UK), Visa / Mastercard chargeback (most jurisdictions), or equivalent. Use a card if the clinic accepts it, even at a 2–3% fee.
• Bank wire is hard to reverse. Once sent, recovery depends on the receiving bank’s cooperation. Only use for clinics whose corporate registration you have already confirmed against the registry.
• Cash on arrival avoids exchange-rate slippage but leaves you no audit trail for a dispute and exposes you to physical risk.

Deposit risks

• Treat any “non-refundable in all circumstances” deposit clause as unenforceable in most consumer-law jurisdictions. Reputable clinics carve out medical contraindication, force majeure, and clinic-side cancellation in writing.
• Pay the smallest deposit the clinic accepts. Save the balance for in-country payment after pre-op review confirms the plan hasn’t changed.
• If the clinic insists on full payment up front by wire, treat as a significant risk signal.

Currency volatility over multi-stage procedures

Procedures with multiple visits — implant placement now, crown fitting in 4 months; first IVF cycle now, frozen embryo transfer in 2 months — expose you to exchange-rate movement between stages. Two practical mitigations:

• Ask the clinic to lock the price in your home currency on the day of deposit, in writing.
• Or, pay each stage separately and accept the variance. Don’t prepay subsequent stages unless the clinic offers a firm rate guarantee.

Wire-fraud signals

• Bank details that don’t match the legal entity name on the contract.
• Last-minute “the bank account has changed” emails — a known impersonation pattern.
• Pressure to send a wire urgently to avoid losing a slot.
• Account in a country other than where the clinic is registered.

Always confirm new bank details by phoning the clinic on the number from its registered website (not from the email instructing the change).

Chargeback rights

Card-network chargeback timeframes vary (often 120 days from the transaction or service date, sometimes 540 days for certain dispute reasons). Document everything: the original quote, the discharge summary, the complication, and any clinic responses. Speak to your card issuer’s disputes team early; do not wait until the deadline.