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Knee arthroscopy abroad for public patients in the EU
Covered by your country's public health service under the Cross Border Directive.
A torn meniscus, the cushion of cartilage inside the knee, can make the knee catch, lock or swell while you wait for a knee arthroscopy.
Your knee repaired without the public wait: a fixed price in a private hospital in another EU country, paid back by your public health service. The hospital, the surgeon, the price and your stay are in writing before you decide.
Free · no commitment · no documents · by video or phone, at a time you pick
Your right under EU law since 2011
290,000claims paid back to patients across Europe in 2024
Your rights under the schemeHow long you wait for a knee arthroscopy depends on where you live: waiting times differ widely between EU countries, and between regions within a country. We look at your own wait with you.
Your own public health service's published waiting times; no single European figure is quoted here
Your knee arthroscopy in another EU country, step by step.
Eight steps from the first conversation to your refund. You commit at step 4, not before.
Before you commit
Stop at any time, at no cost
Talk to us
You
Schedule a free call, by video or phone, at a time you pick. We check your country's rules with you and tell you how the route works for a knee arthroscopy.
Fill in the Consent Form
You · about 15 minutes
Your details and documents, uploaded securely. You usually need a referral for a knee arthroscopy from your own doctor, or a letter showing you are on a public waiting list for it; we tell you what your country asks for.
We determine your eligibility
Ablement · within 1 to 2 working days
You get a clear yes or no on whether you are eligible for a knee arthroscopy in another EU country, checked against your country's rules.
We find a private hospital
Ablement · within 5 working days of a complete file
We ask the hospitals and send you one written proposal: the hospital, the surgeon, the price of your knee arthroscopy, the dates and your expected refund.
After you commit
We stay with you to the refund
Your date is confirmed
The hospital
The hospital confirms your date in writing within 10 working days of your acceptance, and then you book your travel. A knee arthroscopy is usually a day case, so the trip is short; the hospital's written plan says when you can fly.
Your treatment abroad
The hospital
You meet your surgeon before the operation, by video before you travel or in person at the hospital, as your country's rules and the hospital allow. You have your operation and fly home when the surgeon says you are fit to fly. You pay the hospital directly and send us the documents for your claim.
We claim your refund
Ablement · within 5 working days of your return
We send your signed claim to your public health service and follow it until you are paid. How long the decision takes depends on your country; we tell you before you decide.
Your aftercare at home
Your own doctor
Your own doctor and the public system take over, as if you had the operation at home. If your knee gives you trouble, your own doctor is your first contact and can refer you on.
One contact person, from the first conversation to the refund.
Easy to reach at every step. A family member can join every call.
What a knee arthroscopy costs you
Our service
Nothing. The hospital that treats you pays us a referral fee.
The hospital
One fixed price for your knee arthroscopy, in writing before you commit. You pay the hospital directly, before your public health service pays you back.
Your public health service
Pays you back up to what a knee arthroscopy costs in the public system at home, under your country's own rules.
The detail for a knee arthroscopy
Your country's public health service pays back the cost of your knee arthroscopy up to what it costs in the public system at home, or the invoice if that is less, under your country's own rules. It is paid to you after the operation, into your own account, and it does not include flights, a hotel or a companion's costs. Whether your country asks for permission in advance, called prior authorisation, we check with you on the call. You see the fixed price in writing before you accept; where no hospital offers a price the refund covers, we show you the difference in writing and leave the decision to you.
What is paid back, and when
Find out in one free call if a knee arthroscopy in another EU country can work for you
Kaare Beck-Fischer, Chief Executive Officer
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What a knee arthroscopy involves
A knee arthroscopy is keyhole surgery for damage inside the knee, most often a torn meniscus, the cushion of cartilage that can catch, lock or swell. Under a general or a spinal anaesthetic, the surgeon passes a thin camera through one small cut and fine instruments through another, and trims or stitches the torn cartilage, removes loose fragments or smooths a damaged surface.
The cuts are small and the operation usually takes less than an hour. Most people walk out the same day with the knee bandaged, and get back to normal activity over the following weeks with exercises from the hospital. The aim is a knee that moves freely without catching; an arthroscopy does not cure arthritis, so the surgeon checks first that it is the right operation for your knee.
Questions about a knee arthroscopy
Short answers to what people ask us most. Open a question to read the answer.
All frequently asked questionsYour question isn't here?
Ask us in the chat Or send us a message from the Contact pageIs a knee arthroscopy a day case?
Usually yes. Because it is keyhole surgery, you can usually leave the hospital the same day and rest at a hotel nearby. Whether you can go that day is the surgeon's decision.
Is a knee arthroscopy paid back?
Yes, when the rules are met. A knee arthroscopy is an operation that public health systems across the EU provide, so your country's public health service can pay it back up to its own public rate if you have a referral, a consultation before the operation and proof that you paid the hospital from your own account. Some countries ask for permission in advance. We check your case against your country's rules before we propose a hospital.
What if my knee gives me trouble after I am home?
Your own doctor is your first contact at home and can refer you on in your public system, as if the operation had been done at home. If something is urgent, go to an emergency department. If you need to reach the hospital or the surgeon abroad, we help you do that, and the hospital's written terms on complications are in your proposal.
Will I lose my place on the waiting list at home?
No. The Cross Border Directive does not ask you to leave a waiting list to use it, and you stay on it until you have been treated. Once your operation is done abroad, you let your hospital at home know, so it can take you off the list. If you change your mind before then, nothing has changed at home.
Do I have to pay up front?
Yes. You pay the hospital directly, and your public health service pays you back afterwards; how long that takes depends on your country, and we tell you before you decide. Some people use savings or help from their family. We do not lend money or arrange loans, and no money of yours passes through us.
Is it safe, and what if something goes wrong?
You see the hospital and the surgeon's name in writing before you decide anything, and you have a consultation with the surgeon before the operation. Every hospital we work with must be registered with its country's health authorities, use surgeons who specialise in the operation, give its price and its terms on complications in writing, and give you an English-speaking contact person. The hospital that treats you is responsible for your care, and it must have a complaints procedure. We help you deal with the hospital, and at home your own doctor takes over as after any operation.
Why is your help free? What's the catch?
There is no catch. The hospital that treats you pays us a referral fee; you never pay us anything, and the hospital's price is fixed in writing before you accept. You can stop at any time before you sign with the hospital.
Will my health service really pay me back?
The Cross Border Directive is EU law, and 290,000 claims were paid back across Europe in 2024 alone. The refund is yours when your country's rules are met: usually a referral, any permission your country asks for in advance, the itemised invoice and your receipt. We check your country's rules with you before you pay anything, and we prepare the claim with you.
Can a family member come with me, or join the calls?
Yes. A family member can join every call and meeting, be named on your Consent Form and travel with you. Their travel and hotel are your own cost.
Find out if this route can work for you
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