Short answer
Before you leave Türkiye, get your treatment summary, X-rays, details of the materials used (brand, model and batch for an implant), the guarantee document, a signed copy of your consent form, and your invoices. Ask for all of them in writing.
The Patient Rights Regulation gives patients the right to examine their file and records and obtain a copy (article 16), and to ask for incomplete or wrong information to be corrected (article 17). Your dentist at home needs these papers to give safe follow-up care, and you need them to claim under a guarantee or, if it comes to that, to complain.
Why the records matter
- Follow-up care
- A local dentist cannot treat you safely without knowing which procedure was done on which tooth and with which materials. For implants, without the brand and model it can be hard to find compatible parts.
- Guarantee
- To use a guarantee you need to document what was done, when and by whom (see the guarantees page).
- If there is a complication
- X-rays and the treatment summary help show the cause and, if needed, support a legal route (see the complaints page).
- Future treatment
- Years later another dentist may need to see earlier work. The copy you hold is often the one that stays reachable longest.
The documents to request
| Document | Why it matters | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Written treatment plan and signed consent form (copy) | Shows what was agreed | See the consent and questions pages |
| Treatment summary (epicrisis) | Which tooth, which procedure, which date, which dentist | Authorised facilities are expected to give an epicrisis at discharge (Annex 1) |
| X-rays (before and after) and any 3D imaging | A starting point and comparison for your local dentist | Digital, at original resolution if possible. Ask about the file format and viewing software |
| Clinical photographs (before, during, after) | A record of the difference, especially for cosmetic work | Make clear in writing whether the clinic may use them in promotion |
| Material details | Future care and guarantee | Implants: brand, model, diameter, length, batch number, plus abutment and crown details. Crowns and veneers: material type (for example zirconia, porcelain) and laboratory |
| Implant ID card or passport | So another dentist can find compatible parts | If there is none, get the details above in writing |
| Anaesthesia, sedation and medication | Allergies, interactions and assessing complications | The local anaesthetic used, and the antibiotics and painkillers prescribed |
| Guarantee document | Scope, length and conditions | See the guarantees page |
| Invoices, receipts and payment records | Refunds and disputes | Every payment separately |
| Aftercare and check-up instructions | Your own responsibilities and follow-up | Check-up dates, and whom to call for which symptoms |
| A note of changes and extra procedures made during treatment | A record of any departure from the plan | And a record that your approval was obtained |
| The health history form you gave | What information was shared | Correct it if needed |
| Emergency contact details | Who to reach if there is a problem | Separately for the facility and the agency |
Your rights
- See your records and take a copy
- Under article 16 of the Patient Rights Regulation, you can examine the file and records about your health, directly or through an agent or legal representative, and take a copy. Only people directly involved in your treatment may see them.
- Ask for corrections
- If a record is incomplete, unclear or wrong, you can ask for it to be corrected (article 17).
- Agents
- Legal sources say the right also belongs to a person you authorise, such as a lawyer, or a legal representative. Relatives without authority cannot request the records.
- Personal data rights (KVKK)
- Health data is special-category personal data. You can ask the data controller whether your data is processed, ask for information, learn which third parties it was passed to in Türkiye or abroad, and ask for correction. The KVKK sets a time limit for the reply; check the current period on kvkk.gov.tr.
- The facility's duty
- Authorised facilities are expected to give a treatment summary at discharge. The regulation also provides for patients to view the service they received on the HealthTürkiye portal Ask the facility whether your record is available there.
These rights do not mean the full contents of your records are handed over automatically. Procedure and limits, for example cases where giving information is not appropriate, are set by law. Your request should still be written and clear.
How to ask
- Ask before you leave,at the last session if you can. It is harder to reach the clinic once you are back home.
- Make the request in writing.Email may be enough, but also ask about the organisation's official request channel. List the documents point by point.
- Ask for digital copiesand ask in which format and through which secure channel they will be sent.
- Give a reasonable dateand keep the reply.
- Ask for the papers to be stamped or signed by the organisation.An official look helps your local dentist trust them.
- Ask about translation.Can the documents be made in English or your language? You may need a sworn translation at home.
- Check on receipt:name, date, tooth numbers and dentist's name on each document.
A request you can copy
Tap to copy, then fill in the brackets.
If they will not give you your records
- Repeat the request in writing and keep the reply.
- Ask for the reason, and which rule they rely on for any document they withhold.
- Tell the International Patient Support Unit (+90 850 288 38 38) and SABİM (Alo 184). Secondary sources say record requests can also go to provincial health directorates.
- Make a KVKK application about your health data: in writing to the data controller, and to the Personal Data Protection Board if there is no reply.
- Get legal help if needed (see the complaints page).
After you return home
- Show the records to your own dentist and ask for a copy to be added to your file.
- Back them up. Keep a digital copy somewhere safe and on a different device, and keep the paper documents.
- How long to keep them? For the length of the guarantee, and much longer for long-lived work such as implants. Keep your own permanent copy.
- X-rays, photographs and health history are sensitive. Share them by email or cloud only with encryption and control.
- Keep everything in one folder in date order, so you can find it quickly if a new problem comes up.
Privacy and data
- Ask the organisation in which systems and countries your health data is kept, and for how long. Retention periods for health data are set in scattered rules in Türkiye, so ask for the organisation's own period in writing.
- A KVKK change in force from 1 June 2024 made transfers abroad depend on a tiered structure: an adequacy decision, appropriate safeguards, or exceptional cases. Explicit consent is no longer on its own the basis for transfers abroad, according to a legal article. Ask the facility in writing where your data is stored and on what basis it is sent abroad.
- Photos and videos used in promotion need your written permission, and you do not have to give it.
- You can ask for your data to be deleted, but retention duties in law mean not every item can be deleted at once.
Quick checklist
Tick items off as you receive them. Your ticks stay in this browser only.
Frequently asked questions
Do I have to pay for my records?
We cannot give a general rule. If the organisation asks for a fee, ask for the reason and the amount in writing, and whether it rests on a rule.
Will I get the original X-ray?
Ask for a digital copy or the original image file. A paper printout may not be enough for a local dentist.
Can someone else (my partner, a relative) request my records?
Only if they are authorised as your agent or legal representative.
Something in my records is wrong. What do I do?
Send a written correction request (article 17). If there is no reply, follow the routes on the complaints page.
Can I ask after I have gone home?
Yes, but time and reachability become harder, so ask before you leave.
Sources
- Patient Rights Regulation (text)
- Article 16: examining records and taking a copy (legal book chapter)
- Summary of articles 16–17 (law firm, secondary)
- Patient files and copies (expert article, secondary)
- Medical records (academic summary)
- Regulation annexes, 2025 (Official Gazette PDF)
- Personal Health Data Regulation (amendment, data subject rights)
- KVKK summary: health data, transfers abroad, 30 days
- KVKK regime for transfers abroad (legal article, 2026, secondary)
- Scattered retention periods for health data (legal literature)
- Regulation on private oral and dental health facilities (RG 6.10.2022, no. 31975)