Medical value travel: India’s term for medical tourism

Medical value travel is India’s official term for patients travelling to India for treatment, wellness or traditional medicine. What it covers for you.

Glossary term · Visa & travel

By Nikhil Sharma, Founder · Updated · How we write and check

Definition

Medical value travel (also: MVT, Medical tourism, Health tourism): Medical value travel is the Indian government’s term for international patients travelling to India for medical treatment, wellness or traditional systems of medicine.

Medical value travel, or MVT, is the term the Indian government uses for foreign patients travelling to India for treatment, wellness or traditional medicine. PIB reports that international patients visiting India rose from 1,82,945 in 2020 to 6,44,387 in 2024. The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare runs a digital portal to promote MVT.

What does medical value travel cover?

The Advantage Healthcare India portal describes MVT as foreign patients travelling to India for treatment, wellness or traditional medicine. It covers conventional hospital care and Ayush systems such as Ayurveda.

How does the government support it?

  • The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has developed a Medical Value Travel Digital Portal, Advantage Healthcare India.
  • The portal lets users search by city, hospital, doctor, procedure or MVT facilitator, and includes a grievance mechanism.
  • The Ministry of Tourism has prepared a national strategy and roadmap for medical and wellness tourism, PIB reports.
  • A dedicated Ayush visa was introduced on 27 July 2023 for foreign nationals seeking Ayush treatment and their attendants.

What does MVT mean for you as a patient?

The term mainly appears in government documents, visa guidance and hospital marketing. It does not tell you anything about a specific hospital or doctor. Whatever route you take, check hospital accreditation, the doctor’s registration and the visa rules for your nationality. Get a written plan and estimate before you travel. The treating specialist decides what treatment is appropriate.

How IndiaMedica fits

IndiaMedica is an independent guide and case-management service within this system. Partner hospitals pay us a disclosed referral fee that never changes the patient’s price.

Questions people ask

Is medical value travel the same as medical tourism?

Broadly, yes. The Indian government prefers the term medical value travel. It covers treatment, wellness and traditional medicine. Many international sources use medical tourism for the same idea.

Where can I find official information on MVT in India?

The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare’s Advantage Healthcare India portal is the official MVT portal. PIB publishes government press releases on visas and MVT policy. Check visa rules on the official Indian visa portal.

Sources

General information, not medical or legal advice. Rules change: confirm with the official source. How we write and check.

More glossary

Ayush visa

The Ayush visa is an Indian visa category for foreign nationals seeking treatment, therapeutic care, wellness or yoga under Ayush and other Indian systems of medicine.

e-FRRO

e-FRRO is the Government of India’s web portal through which foreigners in India apply online for registration, visa extension, exit permits and other immigration services.

e-Medical Attendant visa

The e-Medical Attendant visa is an electronic visa for a person accompanying a patient who holds an Indian e-Medical visa.

e-Medical visa

The e-Medical visa is an electronic visa issued through India’s official e-Visa portal to foreign nationals travelling for medical treatment at a hospital in India.

Fitness to fly

Fitness to fly is a doctor’s judgement that a patient can travel safely by air, sometimes confirmed in writing for the airline.

FRRO registration

FRRO registration is the process by which certain foreign nationals record their stay with India’s Foreigners Regional Registration Office or Foreigners Registration Office.

Free Case Review

Send us your reports. We’ll do the rest.

A case manager reviews your reports, shares them with suitable accredited hospitals and comes back with treatment options, the specialists involved and written estimates — free, with no obligation.

Start your case review