How to pay a hospital bill in Nigeria from the UK
Get the hospital's own account details from the ward or billing office, not from a relative's memory, and send by a transfer app that pays into a Nigerian bank account in minutes. If your relative has an HMO, ask the hospital to request the authorisation code before you pay anything: since April 2025 HMOs must issue it within an hour, and emergencies are treated first and coded within 48 hours.
By Kinship · Updated 19 September 2026 · 5 min read · Information, not advice.
Step by step
- Ask for a written estimate and the hospital's account name and number. Most private hospitals in Lagos ask for a deposit of N50,000 to N200,000 before an emergency admission, even for HMO members.
- If there is an HMO, give the hospital the member's HMO details and ask them to request the authorisation code. Ask what the plan pays towards and what it does not; benefit limits on basic plans can be as low as N150,000 for inpatient care.
- Send the deposit by app into the hospital's Nigerian account. Transfers pay out in naira only since May 2026; check the rate you get on the day.
- Ask for a receipt in the member's name and a running bill. Photograph everything.
- Before discharge, get the discharge summary, the prescription and the follow-up date in writing. This is the moment recovery goes wrong for want of anyone holding the thread.
What to ask the hospital
- Is the doctor treating them a consultant or a house officer, and who is responsible for the case?
- What is the diagnosis, in plain words, and what are the next steps?
- Which items on the bill are covered by the HMO and which are cash?
- Can a relative or a nurse sit with them, and at what hours?
Doing this less often
The pattern above is the emergency version. A plan in the member's name changes the order of events: the health benefits are used on a card through the hospital network, a doctor is available in the app before it becomes a hospital visit, and a Kinkeeper takes the call so the family hears one account rather than several. Kinship Well starts from £39 a month.
Questions people ask
Can I pay a Nigerian hospital directly with a UK card?
Some large private hospitals accept international cards; most do not. A transfer app into the hospital's Nigerian bank account is the reliable route.
What if the HMO delays the authorisation code?
The NHIA rule since 1 April 2025 is one hour. If it is not issued, the hospital is meant to treat and inform NHIA; complaints go to NHIA's state office.
Support after a hospital stay
If this is your situation, the page below shows how a Kinship Plan applies to it, with prices.
Support after a hospital stayRelated
Sources
- NHIA one-hour authorisation rule (Channels TV, April 2025)
- NHIA enforcement of the rule (Premium Times, Sept 2025)
- Lagos hospital deposits and consultation costs (lagos.cool, May 2026)
- Hygeia individual plan schedule with benefit limits (2025)
- CBN naira-only payout rule (WeeTracker, May 2026)
Prices in naira are quoted with their date because they move. Nothing on this page recommends a named provider.