IPD Hospitals in Iran: What the Licence Means, the Official List, How to Check a Facility, and Accreditation

What an IPD licence means

IPD stands for International Patient Department. According to a Ministry of Health announcement republished by Iran's embassy in Nairobi in August 2026, the ministry issues IPD licences to several types of facility: hospitals, limited surgical centres, infertility treatment centres, general and specialised clinics, and dental clinics.

A 2023 study in Health Scope says the ministry established IPDs in 2015 to improve service quality for international patients. Citing 2019 statistics, the same study reports that of 154 hospitals receiving medical tourists, 121 held one-year licences. Check that a facility's licence is valid for your treatment dates.

Where the official list is published

The ministry announcement says the list of IPD-licensed centres is available on the health tourism website iht.behdasht.gov.ir, and advises against referring patients to centres without a valid IPD licence.

It adds that transferring international patients to and from Iran is the responsibility of health tourism companies holding a valid licence from the Ministry of Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicrafts.

The number of licensed centres changes over time. A Tehran Times report republished by Iran's embassy in Ireland in April 2023 quoted the head of the Health Ministry's tourism office as saying about 200 Iranian medical centres had permission to accept foreign patients. In August 2024 a Mashhad health tourism official said 46 hospitals and specialised clinics in that city were licensed. These are dated figures, not a current count.

How to check a facility

1. Ask for the facility's exact registered name and city, and whether its IPD licence covers your treatment.
2. Search for that name on iht.behdasht.gov.ir and confirm it appears in the list of licensed centres.
3. Confirm the treating doctor's specialty and Iranian Medical Council licence number.
4. If a company arranges your trip, ask for its health tourism licence from the Ministry of Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicrafts.
5. For a medical visa, check that the approval letter comes from an authorised medical centre, as Iran's e-visa portal requires.
6. Keep written copies of the quote, the licence details and the treatment plan.

National accreditation and JCI: what the sources say

Iran has its own hospital accreditation programme. An article in the Iranian Journal of Public Health (2015) says the Ministry of Health developed national accreditation standards derived from Joint Commission International (JCI) standards and has used them to accredit hospitals since 2012. National accreditation is a ministry programme and is not the same as JCI accreditation.

A 2020 systematic review in Health Management and Information Science found that the Iranian hospitals studied complied on average with about 68.9% of JCI patient-centred standards and about 69.1% of organisation-centred standards. That measures compliance in research studies, not formal JCI accreditation.

We could not confirm from JCI's own directory which Iranian facilities, if any, currently hold JCI accreditation, so this guide makes no such claim. If a facility says it is JCI-accredited, ask for the certificate and check it on JCI's website. For international patients, the IPD licence is the ministry's own marker of a facility authorised to admit them.

Red flags: brokers and unlicensed intermediaries

The 2023 Health Scope study reported brokers at the border who demand large sums from patients. Take these signs seriously:

• Someone approaches you at the border, airport or hotel offering to recommend a doctor.
• The facility name is missing from iht.behdasht.gov.ir or differs from the name on your invoice.
• You are asked to pay in full in cash before you see a written quote.
• A price is quoted without naming the treating doctor.
• The company arranging your trip cannot show a health tourism licence.
• You are pressed to decide quickly or to switch hospital after you arrive.

Licence, visa and LSevin's role

Iran's foreign ministry e-visa portal describes the T (medical) visa as being for foreign citizens who have already received an approval letter from one of the authorised medical centres. Some nationalities follow different rules, so check yours on the portal or with an Iranian embassy. LSevin does not issue visas.

LSevin coordinates only with IPD-licensed facilities and gives you the facility's name so you can check it yourself on the official list.