Organ Transplants in Turkey for International Patients
A plain-language guide to kidney, liver and bone marrow transplantation in Turkey: who can donate under Turkish law, how the ethics-commission step works and what a transplant centre needs from you before it can review your case.
This guide is information, not an offer of organs or donors.
Quick answer
International patients can be assessed in Turkey for living-donor kidney and liver transplants and for bone marrow (stem cell) transplants. A living donor must be the recipient's spouse of at least two years or a relative up to the fourth degree; every other case needs ethics-commission approval. Transplants take place at Ministry of Health–licensed centres.
- Covered here
- Kidney, liver, bone marrow
- Living donor
- Spouse (2+ years) or relative to 4th degree
- Any other donor
- Ethics-commission approval
- Buying or selling organs
- Criminal offence
- Where
- Ministry of Health–licensed centres
- Donors via Nexwell
- None: we do not find or pay donors
Which transplants are available to international patients
This guide covers three transplant types: kidney, liver and bone marrow (haematopoietic stem cell) transplantation. For kidney and liver, international patients are assessed for a living-donor transplant, which means a willing, medically suitable donor who meets the legal relationship rules below must travel with the patient.
Bone marrow transplants work differently. They use the patient's own stem cells or cells from a matched sibling, a partially matched family member or an unrelated donor found through national and international donor registries.
If you are currently on dialysis and travelling for treatment, see dialysis treatment in Turkey. For long-term kidney disease care before a transplant, see nephrology and kidney care.
Kidney transplant
Living-donor kidney transplant: donor rules, work-up, the ethics-commission step and follow-up.
Read the guide →Liver transplant
Living-donor liver transplant: who can donate, eligibility, donor safety and recovery.
Read the guide →Bone marrow transplant
Autologous and allogeneic stem cell transplants, donor matching and long-term follow-up.
Read the guide →Living-donor rules under Turkish law
The legal framework in one paragraph
Under Turkish Law No. 2238 (1979) and the Organ Transplantation Services Regulation (Official Gazette, 9 Dec 2022), a living donor must be the recipient's spouse of at least two years or a relative up to the fourth degree (Regulation Art. 12(2)); all other living-donor cases require approval by a provincial ethics commission (Art. 12(4)), and buying or selling organs is prohibited (Law Art. 3) and punishable under the Turkish Penal Code (Law Art. 15).
Nexwell does not find, supply or pay donors.
In practice this means three things. First, the donor is the recipient's spouse (married for at least two years) or a blood or in-law relative up to the fourth degree. Second, any other living donor, for example a friend or a more distant relative, can only proceed if a provincial ethics commission approves the case. Third, payment for an organ is prohibited, and arranging or advertising organ sales is punishable under the Turkish Penal Code.
Nexwell does not find, supply or pay donors. We cannot arrange a donor for you, and no one in Turkey can lawfully do so.
Which article says what
The rules above come from two texts: Law No. 2238 on the Removal, Storage, Grafting and Transplantation of Organs and Tissues, and the Organ Transplantation Services Regulation published in the Official Gazette on 9 December 2022 (issue 32038). The table lists the articles that matter most to an international patient, summarised from the official texts linked under Sources. Read the originals, or ask the transplant centre, before relying on a summary.
| Rule | Where it is written | What it says |
|---|---|---|
| Organs cannot be bought or sold | Law No. 2238, Art. 3 | Removing or selling organs or tissue in return for a price or any other benefit is prohibited. |
| Advertising | Law No. 2238, Art. 4 | Advertising about the removal and giving of organs is prohibited, apart from scientific, statistical and news information. |
| Age and capacity | Law No. 2238, Art. 5 | Organs cannot be taken from anyone under 18 or from a person who lacks the capacity of discernment. |
| Donor consent | Law No. 2238, Art. 6 | An adult donor gives clear, informed consent without outside influence, in front of at least two witnesses, confirmed by a physician. |
| Criminal liability | Law No. 2238, Art. 15 | Unlawfully taking, selling, buying or brokering organs, or placing or publishing notices or advertisements to obtain organs, is punished under Article 91 of the Turkish Penal Code. |
| Living donation is a last resort | Regulation, Art. 12(1) | A living donor's organ may be taken only for the recipient's treatment, when no suitable organ from a deceased donor is found and no comparable alternative treatment exists. |
| Who can donate | Regulation, Art. 12(2) | The recipient's spouse (married at least two years) or a blood or in-law relative up to the fourth degree. The two-year rule does not apply if the illness was diagnosed after the marriage. |
| Everyone else | Regulation, Art. 12(4) | Any other living-donor transplant is assessed by the Organ Transplant Evaluation Ethics Commission in the province where the application is made. |
| Foreign residents | Regulation, Art. 13(10) | Transplants involving people living in Turkey under Law No. 6458 go to the ethics commission in every case, even between relatives. |
| High-risk regions | Regulation, Art. 13(11) | For patients coming for health tourism from regions the Ministry designates as at risk of organ trade or trafficking, the Ministry may require an ethics-commission application or set limits, even between relatives. |
| Registration | Regulation, Art. 9(3) | A living-donor transplant for a patient who is not registered in the national software system is prohibited. |
| Centres | Regulation, Art. 33(1) | Transplants may be performed only at centres that meet the regulation's requirements and hold Ministry of Health permission. |
Summaries are ours; the Turkish text of the Law and the Regulation prevails.
The ethics-commission process
An ethics commission checks that a donation is voluntary, unpaid and medically justified. The transplant centre, not the patient or Nexwell, files the application. The regulation also routes cases involving foreign nationals residing in Turkey under Law No. 6458 to the commission even when donor and recipient are relatives, and the centre confirms which route applies to you.
Where ethics-commission approval is required, surgery is not scheduled before approval, and the commission's meeting schedule affects the timing. Once the records are complete and the donor is confirmed as suitable, the centre usually completes the pre-transplant preparations within about a week and the operation goes ahead on a planned date.
STEP 1
Records review. The transplant team reviews your diagnosis, test results and imaging to see whether a transplant is possible at all.
STEP 2
Donor and recipient assessment. Both people are examined separately. The donor's health and freedom to decide are assessed independently of the recipient's care.
STEP 3
Relationship documents. Official civil-registry documents proving the relationship are prepared, legalised and translated as the centre requires.
STEP 4
Application. Where the law requires it, the transplant centre submits the case to the provincial ethics commission.
STEP 5
Decision and scheduling. Surgery is scheduled only after the required approvals are in place.
Is this transplant tourism? What the Declaration of Istanbul says
The Declaration of Istanbul (2018 edition) is the international ethics standard on organ trafficking and transplant tourism. It separates two things. "Travel for transplantation" is simply the movement of people across borders to have a transplant. It becomes "transplant tourism", and is unethical, if it involves trafficking in persons for organ removal or trafficking in human organs, or if the resources devoted to patients from abroad undermine a country's ability to serve its own population.
The Declaration defines organ trafficking to include removing organs in exchange for financial gain or a comparable advantage, and soliciting or recruiting donors or recipients for financial gain. That is why this guide does not explain how to find a donor, and why Nexwell does not do it. Turkish law points the same way: the donor is a spouse or close relative, every other case goes to an ethics commission, and payment is prohibited.
Pre-transplant work-up
Before a centre can say yes, it needs a full picture of the recipient and the donor. The exact list depends on the organ and your condition, and the centre sets it.
- HLA tissue typing and crossmatch between donor and recipient (kidney)
- Blood group and compatibility checks for donor and recipient
- Cardiac and vascular assessment, infection screening and imaging
- Disease-specific tests, for example kidney function history or liver scores such as MELD
- Psychological and social assessment of donor and recipient
- A separate medical evaluation of the donor, focused on the donor's long-term safety
After you fly home
Transplant care continues for life. Before you travel home, the transplant centre prepares written discharge documents: the operation report, your immunosuppression plan, a monitoring schedule and vaccination advice, for your home nephrologist, hepatologist or haematologist to follow.
Do not stop or change anti-rejection medicine without your transplant team. Tell your home team about any fever, pain or change in how you feel right away.
Who reviews your case
Kidney and liver transplant cases arranged by Nexwell Clinics are reviewed together with Op. Dr. Mesut Çaynak and his transplant team at ASV Yaşam Hospital in Antalya, a Ministry of Health–licensed transplant centre.
Nexwell Clinics is a medical tourism company (Nexwell Global Solutions FZCO, Dubai). Surgery, donor evaluation and the ethics-commission application are carried out by the transplant centre, not by Nexwell.
General Surgeon
Reviews kidney and liver transplant cases with the team at ASV Yaşam Hospital, Antalya.
Page reviewed by Op. Dr. Mesut Çaynak, General Surgeon. Last reviewed 25 October 2026.
Organ transplants in Turkey: common questions
Which Turkish laws govern organ transplants for foreign patients?
Law No. 2238 on the Removal, Storage, Grafting and Transplantation of Organs and Tissues and the Organ Transplantation Services Regulation of 9 December 2022. Key points: organ sales are prohibited (Law Art. 3), a living donor must be a spouse of two years or a relative to the fourth degree (Regulation Art. 12(2)), and other donors go to an ethics commission (Art. 12(4)).
Is a transplant in Turkey for a foreign patient "transplant tourism"?
Not by itself. The Declaration of Istanbul treats travel for transplantation as unethical only when it involves trafficking in persons or organs, or when services for patients from abroad undermine a country's ability to serve its own population. Paying a donor or recruiting donors for gain is trafficking. Turkish law prohibits it.
Can foreigners have an organ transplant in Turkey?
International patients can be assessed for living-donor kidney and liver transplants and for bone marrow transplants at Ministry of Health–licensed centres. Eligibility is decided by the transplant centre and, where the law requires it, by an ethics commission. Deceased-donor organs are not available to foreign patients.
Who can be a living donor under Turkish law?
A living donor must be the recipient's spouse of at least two years or a relative up to the fourth degree, by blood or marriage. Any other living-donor case needs approval from a provincial ethics commission. The donor must give consent freely, without payment, after an independent medical and psychological assessment.
Can a friend or someone unrelated donate?
Only if a provincial ethics commission approves the case. The commission checks that the donation is voluntary and unpaid. Paying a donor, or arranging payment, is a criminal offence in Turkey. Relationship documents and the donor's own motives are examined closely, and the commission may refuse.
Is it legal to pay a donor?
No. Buying or selling organs is prohibited by Turkish law and is a criminal offence, and arranging or advertising organ sales is punishable under the Turkish Penal Code. A donor must give freely, and the transplant centre and the ethics commission check this independently of the patient.
Can I join a deceased-donor waiting list in Turkey?
No. Foreign patients are not added to Turkey's deceased-donor waiting list, and deceased-donor transplants in Turkey are rare and cannot be planned in advance. Plans for international patients are therefore built around a living donor, who must meet the Turkish legal rules and the centre's medical criteria.
Does Nexwell find or pay donors?
No. Nexwell does not find, supply or pay donors. Nexwell is a medical tourism company that coordinates records review, travel and logistics. Donor evaluation, the ethics-commission application and surgery are carried out by the transplant centre. If anyone offers you a donor for money, do not proceed.
What should I send for an eligibility review?
Send your diagnosis, recent blood tests, imaging reports, a list of current medicines and, if you have one, the details of your proposed donor. For kidney patients, include dialysis history. The transplant team then tells you whether a transplant looks possible and which further tests it needs.
Who performs the surgery?
Transplants take place at Ministry of Health–licensed transplant centres. Surgery is performed by the centre's own surgical team. Kidney and liver cases arranged by Nexwell are reviewed together with Op. Dr. Mesut Çaynak and his transplant team at ASV Yaşam Hospital before travel is planned. Bone marrow transplants are handled by a licensed centre's haematology team.
Send your records for an eligibility review
Share your diagnosis, recent test results and imaging. The transplant centre's team reviews whether a transplant is medically and legally possible for you and tells you what else it needs. This is a medical review, not an offer of organs or donors. Nexwell does not find, supply or pay donors.
Related guides
Kidney transplant in Turkey
Living-donor rules, work-up and follow-up for kidney patients.
Read the guide →Liver transplant in Turkey
Who can donate part of a liver, eligibility and recovery.
Read the guide →Bone marrow transplantation
Stem cell transplants, donor matching and long-term follow-up.
Read the guide →Dialysis in Turkey
Haemodialysis for patients travelling or waiting for a transplant.
Read the guide →Sources
- Law No. 2238 on the Removal, Storage, Grafting and Transplantation of Organs and Tissues (mevzuat.gov.tr)
- Organ Transplantation Services Regulation, Official Gazette of 9 December 2022 (resmigazete.gov.tr)
- The Declaration of Istanbul on Organ Trafficking and Transplant Tourism, 2018 edition (declarationofistanbul.org)
For information only, not medical advice and not an offer of treatment, organs or donors. Eligibility for any transplant is decided by the transplant centre and, where the law requires it, by an ethics commission. See our editorial policy and medical disclaimer. Nexwell Clinics is a medical tourism company (Nexwell Global Solutions FZCO, Dubai); treatment is provided by independent, Ministry of Health–licensed hospitals and clinicians. Last updated 25 October 2026.