How to write a deposit and cancellation policy
Published 23 October 2026Reviewed 23 October 20268 min read
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Why do you need a written policy?
In a health tourism contract the patient often comes from another country, pays in advance, and until treatment day you reserve flights, a hotel and treatment time. When the patient cancels or fails to arrive, some of those reservations cannot be recovered. If you do not write the rule down in advance you negotiate every case, and if two patients in the same situation are treated differently, you get complaints.
In the text of the Health Tourism Regulation we read there is no provision on refunds or cancellation for patients. So the frame is drawn by your contract, consumer legislation and your payment provider's rules.
What should the policy cover?
- Purpose of the deposit
- What to writeWhat the deposit secures (treatment slot, flight and hotel bookings) and how it is part of the total price
- WhyThe patient knows what they are paying for
- Amount and due dates
- What to writeThe deposit amount and when the balance is due
- WhyIt must match the payment schedule
- If the patient cancels
- What to writeA refund table by date range
- WhyNo one is surprised
- If you cancel
- What to writeFull refund if treatment cannot go ahead, an alternative date and what happens to travel costs
- WhyFairness both ways
- Medical reasons
- What to writeWhat happens if the doctor judges treatment unsuitable or the pre-assessment results rule it out
- WhyThe most common dispute
- Costs you cannot recover
- What to writeFlights, hotels and other third-party payments already made; deduction against documents
- WhySo the deduction is not arbitrary
- Force majeure
- What to writeDefine events such as cancelled flights, natural disasters or official restrictions, and the result
- WhyEvents beyond your control
- Changing the date
- What to writeHow many times and with what notice it is free
- WhyRescheduling instead of cancelling
- Refund method and time
- What to writeBy what means, within how long, at whose cost
- WhySets the patient's expectation
- How to notify
- What to writeIn writing, to which email address; who tells whom and when
- WhyProof of the date
A refund table for patient cancellation (blank example)
Fill in the days and shares according to your own unrecoverable costs. This table is a layout example, not a recommendation.
- More than [A] days before
- Share of deposit refunded[all / … %]
- NoteNo unrecoverable payments to third parties yet
- Between [B] and [A] days before
- Share of deposit refunded[… %]
- NoteThe reserved slot and some flights/hotel are partly committed
- Fewer than [B] days before
- Share of deposit refunded[no refund / … %]
- NoteTheatre time and bookings are committed
- Not attending on treatment day
- Share of deposit refunded[no refund]
- NoteDefine a no-show (how many hours after the appointment)
Decide in advance what happens in each situation
- The patient changes their mind
- The question to answerUntil what date, and what share is refunded?
- The patient wants to postpone
- The question to answerRight to a free postponement and its length; who pays any difference?
- The doctor judges treatment unsuitable
- The question to answerIs the deposit refunded, and is a pre-assessment fee deducted if there is one?
- The patient cannot come because of a flight problem
- The question to answerIs it force majeure, and is proof required?
- The patient is feverish or unfit on treatment day
- The question to answerA postponement on the doctor's decision; who bears accommodation and flights?
- You cancel the appointment
- The question to answerA full refund, a new date, or are the patient's costs covered?
- Treatment stops part-way
- The question to answerPayment for the part done; refund of the rest
The withdrawal right in distance contracts
The Distance Contracts Regulation (Mesafeli Sözleşmeler Yönetmeliği) says a consumer may withdraw from a distance contract within 14 days without giving a reason and without paying a penalty; for service contracts the period starts on the day the contract is made (art. 9). The seller must refund all payments collected, by the means the consumer paid with, within 14 days of the withdrawal notice reaching it (art. 12). If the consumer was not properly informed about withdrawal the period is extended (art. 10).
Article 15 lists contracts in which, unless the parties agree otherwise, the consumer cannot withdraw. They include services with a specific date or period such as accommodation, carriage of goods and car hire (art. 15/g), and services whose performance begins with the consumer's approval before the withdrawal period expires (art. 15/h). Among the contracts outside the regulation in art. 2 are package tours and passenger transport; in the text we read, health services are not listed as outside it.
How do you write the policy, step by step?
List the costs you cannot recover
Write down the theatre time you reserve for a treatment, doctor time, flights and hotels already paid, and the date from which each can no longer be recovered.
Set the date ranges
Two or three ranges are enough, built around the dates when unrecoverable costs increase; a very fine table is hard to manage and to explain.
Write the refund share for each range
Decide in numbers and show one example: “If you cancel more than [A] days before treatment …”.
Put the exceptions in their own section
Give separate rules for postponement for medical reasons, force majeure and your own cancellation; do not clutter the main table.
Write it plainly in the patient's language
Have it translated into the patient's language; use tables and short sentences. Show the translation to your lawyer for legal validity.
Show it before payment and keep the acceptance
Do not bury the policy away from the quote; do not ask for payment before the patient accepts, and record which version they accepted.
How does the policy work in Klinikbook?
Klinikbook does not write the policy for you and does not refund money; it shows the text you write with the quote and records what happens.
A terms text comes ready in the workspace
A new workspace starts with cancellation and refund terms; you edit the text in the quote settings to match your own policy.
The quote shows the deposit and balance dates
The quote shows the deposit, the balance and due dates; the patient accepts it in the portal. The accepted version cannot be changed, and later edits do not alter an earlier version.
The payment schedule follows the due dates
Reminders go to the patient as a deposit or instalment approaches and when it is overdue; you record refunds and cancellations.
Measure no-shows and cancellations
Appointment reminders and the no-show count are tracked as described in the no-show guide.
Frequently asked questions
Can I keep the deposit entirely?
That depends on your contract and the legislation that applies. Writing that the deposit is non-refundable may not be sufficient or valid on its own; show the text to a lawyer. Withdrawal-right rules for distance contracts may also apply.
Does the 14-day withdrawal right apply to health tourism?
The Distance Contracts Regulation gives a 14-day withdrawal right in distance contracts. Health services are not in the list of exclusions we read; but whether the patient counts as a consumer, which law applies and whether the exceptions (for example arts. 15/g and 15/h) fit your case are questions for a lawyer.
Can I deduct what I paid for flights and hotels?
In the policy, write in advance which items you will deduct and that you will show documents for the deduction. Ask a lawyer whether the deduction is valid and whether its amount is reasonable.
What happens to the deposit if the doctor judges treatment unsuitable?
Write it as a separate rule: whether you refund when treatment cannot go ahead for medical reasons is your decision; if you charge a pre-assessment fee, say so clearly.
How do I get the patient to accept the policy?
Show it with the quote before asking for payment, and record the acceptance. In Klinikbook the quote is accepted in the patient portal and the accepted version cannot be changed.
Does Klinikbook refund money?
No. Klinikbook never holds or moves money. You make the refund through your own bank or payment tool; Klinikbook only records the refund and the cancellation.
Quote, due dates and cancellation terms in one place
The patient sees the quote, the deposit and the terms in the portal; you follow acceptance and payments. 30 days free, no card.
Sources
- Distance Contracts Regulation (arts. 2, 6, 9, 10, 12, 15; read on a secondary site) — Alomaliye (republication of the regulation), Resmî Gazete 27 November 2014, no. 29188
- Regulation on International Health Tourism and Tourist Health, no. 32882 — Resmî Gazete, 26 April 2025
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