Can I use my insurance at a dentist in Hanoi?

Last updated 6 November 2026 · By the Dentist in Hanoi editorial team

In short: it depends on your policy, not on the clinic. Many international health plans only cover routine dental care with an optional dental module, often with waiting periods. Some Hanoi clinics and hospitals bill certain international insurers directly; elsewhere you pay and claim it back. Travel insurance typically covers only emergency pain relief. Vietnam's public insurance (BHYT) covers foreigners with a long-term work contract, but not cosmetic treatment or dentures.

International health insurance (expats)

Most international health plans treat dental care as an add-on. As an example, Cigna Global sells dental as an optional module with an annual limit and waiting periods: in its 2025 Gold plan document, 3 months for preventive and routine care, 12 months for major restorative work and 18 months for orthodontics, with partial refunds (for example 80% for major restorative work). Your own policy may differ, so check:

  • Do I have a dental module, and what is the annual limit?
  • Have the waiting periods passed?
  • Is pre-approval needed for crowns, implants or braces?
  • Does the insurer have a direct-billing agreement with the clinic I want to use?

Direct billing in Hanoi

With direct billing the clinic sends the bill to your insurer, so you don't pay up front (except any excess or uncovered part). In our directory, these providers publish that they bill insurers directly:

  • Vinmec Times City publishes a list of insurers it bills directly.
  • BeDental says it offers direct billing with "20 insurance companies and 4 TPAs", without naming them.

Always confirm before treatment that direct billing applies to dental treatment under your plan. A direct-billing agreement for medical care does not automatically include dental care.

Travel insurance (tourists)

Travel insurance usually covers emergency dental treatment to relieve sudden pain, often up to a limited amount, and not planned treatment. Call your insurer's assistance line when you can, keep the itemised invoice, the treatment note and any X-rays, and ask the clinic for these in English. See Emergency dentist in Hanoi.

Vietnam's public health insurance (BHYT)

  • Since 1 July 2025, foreigners who work in Vietnam on a labour contract of 12 months or more with a Vietnamese employer are in the compulsory BHYT group, with some exceptions (for example intra-company transferees).
  • Tourists are not covered.
  • BHYT does not pay for cosmetic services or for false teeth (dentures).
  • BHYT only pays at facilities with a BHYT contract, and the covered amounts are based on public tariffs. Most private clinics that foreigners use are paid privately.

Sources: Health Insurance Law as amended by Law 51/2024/QH15; Cigna Global Gold plan document (02/2025); clinic websites. See the links below.

Sources