Every dental clinic abroad has a modern website, five-star reviews and a photo of a smiling patient. None of that tells you whether the implant in your jaw will be a Straumann or an unnamed copy, or whether anyone will answer the phone in a year. These are the ten checks we would run on any clinic, including our own partners in Tbilisi, and they take an evening, not a week.
1. Will they plan from your scan before you pay anything?
Send an X-ray or a CBCT and see what comes back. A good clinic returns a written plan from a named surgeon with the number of implants, the system, the visits and one price. A weak one returns a price list and “come for a consultation”. The plan is the product; a clinic that will not produce one remotely will not produce a good one in person.
2. Is the implant brand and model in writing?
Straumann, Bredent, Nobel Biocare, Osstem: named systems with parts any dentist can order in twenty years. “Premium Swiss-type implant” is not a name. Ask for the brand and the model, then ask for the implant passports at the end of treatment. If either request meets resistance, stop.
3. Who is the surgeon, and can you check them?
A name, a qualification, a registration you can look up, and years placing implants. You are entitled to know who will operate; a clinic that answers with “our team of experts” is telling you the surgeon changes with the rota.
4. Do they have a CBCT scanner and do they use a surgical guide?
Ask whether implants are placed guided or freehand, and whether the CBCT is in the building. For full-arch and immediate-loading cases, guided placement is the standard; our digital dentistry guide explains why. A clinic that treats the scan as an optional extra is planning in the dark.
5. Is the price all-in, with the exclusions listed?
Get one number for the whole plan and a list of what is not included. The usual traps: the crown quoted separately from the implant, the surgical guide as an extra, the temporary teeth “if needed”, sedation on the day. Our price list shows what all-in looks like; hold any quote to the same standard.
6. How many trips, and is that written down?
Some plans need two visits (grafts, failed implants, infections). That is fine if it is stated before you book flights and not discovered in the chair. “Everything in one trip, always” is a sales line; “one trip for your case, because your scan shows X” is a plan.
7. Read the reviews for the complaints, not the stars
Every clinic has five-star reviews. Read the two- and three-star ones and look for patterns: follow-up unanswered, price changed on arrival, crowns instead of veneers, a different dentist from the one promised. Check Google, Trustpilot and the country’s own review sites; a clinic with 400 reviews and none below four stars has been curating them. Forum threads from independent patients are worth more than testimonials on the clinic’s own site.
8. What does the guarantee actually say?
Ask for it in writing before you book. It should name the implant brands, state the years for the implant and separately for the bridge or crown, say what is repaired and where, and who pays travel for a repair. A guarantee that covers “the implant for life” but not the bridge covers the part that rarely fails.
9. Who do you contact afterwards, and how fast do they reply?
Test it before you book: send a question at an odd hour and time the reply. After treatment you will want a named coordinator on WhatsApp who gets a surgeon’s answer within hours. A generic info@ address is a warning.
10. Are they honest about what you do not need?
Send a case that does not justify travelling, a single crown for instance, and see whether they say so. A clinic that recommends flying for one crown will recommend twenty veneers for a smile that needs whitening. The best predictor of honesty on the big treatment is honesty on the small one.
Red flags that end the conversation
- A price before a scan.
- No implant brand in writing.
- “Hollywood smile, 20 teeth, 5 days” packages.
- Pressure to pay a deposit to “hold the price”.
- Before-and-after photos that are not their own patients, or stock images of clinics.
Frequently asked questions
How do I know if a dental clinic abroad is legitimate?
A written, scan-based plan from a named surgeon, named implant brands, an all-in price, a guarantee in writing, and a contact who replies. Licensing is necessary but not sufficient; the paperwork tells you more.
Are accreditations like ISO or JCI important?
They show a clinic runs documented processes, which is good, but they are audits of systems, not of the surgeon’s hands. Weigh them below the ten checks above.
Should I visit before committing?
You cannot, practically, which is why the remote plan matters so much. The first appointment in the clinic confirms the plan; if anything differs from what was written, you have not paid yet and can walk away.
The short version
- Plan before payment, brand in writing, surgeon by name, guide and scan, all-in price.
- Trips stated, complaints read, guarantee read, contact tested, honesty on small cases.
- Any clinic, any country: if a check fails, move on.
Run the checks on us. Send a 3D scan on WhatsApp and see what comes back: a named surgeon, named brands, one price, in writing. Free, no deposit.
