NUQAIM and TMTC Announce Partnership to Open a Medical Travel Corridor to the UAE
A new partnership connects patients from the UK, GCC and Africa with internationally accredited care in the UAE, with TMTC managing the entire journey.
Published on 30 October 20268m
TMTC Team
Team of medical writers creating research-based articles, reviewed by healthcare professionals.
The Medical Travel Company (TMTC) and NUQAIM Holdings, the Dubai-headquartered diversified healthcare enterprise, have signed a strategic partnership at Dusit Thani, Dubai, on 26 October 2026. Together, they will build a corridor for medical travel to the UAE, connecting patients from the UK, the GCC and Africa with world-class care. The announcement has been covered by Khaleej Times, Gulf Time and Zawya.
How Medical Travel to the UAE Will Work With TMTC
TMTC will manage the entire journey, so patients never have to organise their care alone. This includes:
- First consultation at home: A specialist consultation in your home country, before any travel is arranged
- Travel handled for you: Visas, flights, accommodation and airport transfers are all organised
- A dedicated care coordinator: One point of contact throughout the journey
- Your own doctor stays involved: For UK patients, your own doctor remains part of your care before, during and after treatment
- Support after you return: Nurse-assisted recovery and telemedicine follow-up continue once you are home
Planned Treatments: Joint Replacement, IVF and Dental Implants in the UAE
A defining feature of the partnership is bringing international healthcare providers from India, the UK, the USA and the UAE to operate in the UAE. The consortium's clinicians are senior consultants with experience of thousands of complex procedures, including robotic surgery. Procedures such as joint replacement, IVF and dental implants are planned to be performed in the UAE, subject to licensing. You can meet more of the TMTC network on our doctors and hospitals pages.
An Alternative to NHS Waiting Lists for UK Patients
For UK patients, this is a meaningful step. At the end of August 2026, NHS England reported about 7.4 million cases waiting to start treatment on the NHS waiting list, with around 6.2 million individual patients. Many of them are living with pain and reduced mobility while they wait.
This corridor offers a new option: surgery in the UAE, a few hours' flight from home, in an internationally accredited hospital. Demand for care abroad is already growing. An estimated 523,000 UK residents travelled abroad for treatment in 2024, up from 348,000 in 2022, based on Office for National Statistics figures.
Medical Travel From Africa and the GCC to the UAE
The UK is the first focus of the partnership, but the corridor was built for patients from Africa and the GCC too. TMTC already works with patients across Africa and the Middle East, and the UAE gives them another destination to consider, closer to home for many.
The same managed journey applies. Patients start with a consultation in their home country, TMTC organises travel and stay, a care coordinator stays with them throughout, and recovery and follow-up continue once they return. As Dr Shajir Gaffar of NUQAIM notes, patients from Europe, the GCC and Africa are increasingly choosing the UAE, and this partnership is designed to give all of them a trusted route there.
Why Patients Are Choosing Medical Tourism in the UAE
The UAE has built a strong reputation in global healthcare. According to NUQAIM:
- Dubai ranked sixth in the world in the 2020-21 Medical Tourism Index
- Dubai welcomed 691,478 international health tourists in 2023, according to the Dubai Health Authority
- Dubai's healthcare sector counts around 5,800 licensed facilities and more than 69,400 private sector professionals
- The UAE ranks first globally for accredited healthcare facilities
What NUQAIM and TMTC Leaders Say About the Corridor
"The UAE has built some of the most advanced healthcare infrastructure in the world, and patients from Europe, the GCC and Africa are increasingly choosing it. This partnership opens a trusted corridor from the UK and brings highly experienced world renowned and distinguished UAE Based specialists to manage these patients providing the highest internationally evidence based practices and care. Together, we are shaping a future where healthcare is accessible, efficient and compassionate."Dr Shajir Gaffar, Managing Director, NUQAIM Holdings
"Most medical travel companies book a hospital and stop there. TMTC is a full-stack healthcare concierge: a UK doctor assesses their case, we match the patient with the right specialist, and we handle their travel, treatment, recovery and follow-up once they're home. That's how Jean Paul got two new knees and skipped three years on a waiting list, and how Marie, at 79, got cancer treatment she had been told wasn't possible by the NHS. That's what TMTC is for: giving people a second chance at life. With NUQAIM, we can bring the TMTC Ecosystem to the UAE and give patients world-class care through one seamless, fully managed journey."Ankit Mehrotra, Co-Founder, The Medical Travel Company
"Many patients in the UK face prolonged waiting times for joint replacement surgery, during which pain can intensify and mobility can deteriorate. The UAE offers timely access to treatment at internationally accredited hospitals, delivered to established, evidence-based clinical standards. What matters most to me is that this partnership extends beyond surgery itself. Every patient will benefit from a coordinated treatment pathway, structured post-operative rehabilitation, and continuity of care after returning home, creating a seamless, patient-centred experience focused on clinical outcomes, recovery and long-term well-being."Dr. Samih Tarabichi, Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon and Knee and Hip Replacement Expert
The launch also included a panel discussion on the UAE's future as a global medical travel hub, moderated by Prof. Abdel Rahman Ahmed Omer, an international healthcare strategic advisor and Executive Director of NUQAIM Holdings.
A New Chapter for TMTC
TMTC was built on a simple idea: patients deserve timely, well-coordinated care, wherever in the world it is. Working with NUQAIM brings the TMTC ecosystem to the UAE and gives patients in the UK, the GCC and Africa a new destination to consider, supported by the same managed journey from first consultation to follow-up at home. If you are still weighing up your options, our guide on how to choose the right medical travel company is a good place to start, and The TMTC Journey from Start to Finish shows what to expect at every step.
About the Partners
About NUQAIM Holdings
NUQAIM Holdings is a Dubai-headquartered diversified healthcare enterprise operating across the GCC. It builds and operates healthcare, from specialised clinical services and hospital management to new medical infrastructure.
About TMTC
The Medical Travel Company (TMTC) describes itself as the world's first end-to-end healthcare concierge. The platform connects patients with leading specialists across borders, with a UK doctor-managed patient journey, nurse-assisted aftercare and insurance that follows the patient home. TMTC is headquartered in London and works with over 2,000 accredited partner hospitals.
Take the Next Step
Waiting for treatment is hard, and you should not have to work out your options alone. If you want to know whether care in the UAE could be right for you, speak to the TMTC team. We will review your case, explain how the journey works from first consultation to follow-up at home, and walk you through your options.
Sources
- NHS England. Referral to Treatment (RTT) Waiting Times. england.nhs.uk
- Dubai Health Authority. (2024). Dubai welcomes more than 691,000 international medical tourists in 2023. dha.gov.ae
- UK Office for National Statistics (2024), as reported by LBC. Brits now seeking medical treatment abroad in record numbers. lbc.co.uk
- Medical Tourism Index 2020 to 21
- Khaleej Times. (27 October 2026). UAE medical tourism market set to grow due to world class facilities. khaleejtimes.com
- Gulf Time. (26 October 2026). NUQAIM, TMTC put UAE at the centre of global medical travel. gulftime.ae
- Zawya. NUQAIM and TMTC put the UAE at the centre of global medical travel. zawya.com
- Gulf Daily News. NUQAIM Holdings, TMTC partner to develop UK Africa medical travel corridor to UAE. gdnonline.com
- TradeArabia. NUQAIM Holdings, TMTC partner to develop UK Africa medical travel corridor to UAE. tradearabia.com
- Ain Al Emirate. (26 October 2026). NUQAIM and TMTC put the UAE at the centre of global medical travel. ainalemirate.com
- Observer Dubai. NUQAIM and TMTC put the UAE at the centre of global medical travel. observerdubai.com
- Pantime Arabia. NUQAIM and TMTC put the UAE at the centre of global medical travel (Arabic). pantimearabia.com
- Al Bayan. (Arabic). albayan.ae
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