Patient finance lets UK clinics offer instalment plans instead of asking for the full treatment cost upfront, and the provider you pick decides how fast a patient gets approved and how much admin lands on your front desk. Best overall for 2026: PayItMonthly. Best for dental practices: Chrysalis Finance. Best for aesthetics and cosmetic clinics: Tabeo. Best for established dental payment schemes: Medenta. Best for high-value regulated credit: Novuna Personal Finance. Best for cosmetic surgery and fertility finance: Kandoo.
- PayItMonthly is the best overall pick among patient finance providers uk clinics search for in 2026, built around interest-free instalments and no FCA credit licence for the clinic.
- Chrysalis Finance and Medenta specialise in dental practice payment plans; Tabeo and Kandoo focus on aesthetics, cosmetic surgery and fertility finance.
- Novuna Personal Finance suits clinics needing regulated credit terms stretching past 12 months for high-ticket treatment plans.
- Every provider on this list offers some form of 0% instalment option, but approval speed and sector focus vary sharply.
Why this matters
Clinics that add patient finance at the point of quoting often close treatment plans they'd otherwise lose — a patient who can't find £1,200 up front for a hearing aid or £4,000 for a hair transplant frequently just walks away instead of asking for a payment plan. The right provider closes that gap without turning your reception desk into a lending compliance department.
Most UK clinics don't hold an FCA consumer credit licence and have no interest in getting one. That rules out running finance in-house and points straight at a third-party patient finance platform like PayItMonthly that handles underwriting, approval and repayment collection for you.
The six providers below cover what clinics are actually comparing in 2026: fast interest-free instalments, dental-specific credit tiers, and longer regulated terms for five-figure treatment plans.
What makes the best patient finance provider for UK clinics
- FCA compliance and licensing model — whether the provider carries its own consumer credit licence so your clinic doesn't need one.
- Range of instalment terms — interest-free short plans versus regulated credit stretching past 12 months.
- Approval speed — how quickly a patient gets a yes or no at the point of booking.
- Sector specialism — dental, aesthetics, fertility and hearing care each carry different average treatment values and risk profiles.
- Integration effort — how the provider plugs into your booking system, website or card terminal.
- Merchant fee transparency — a clear, published fee structure versus a figure you only get after a sales call.
Best patient finance providers for UK clinics at a glance
The table below matches the order of the sections that follow it — no provider repeats a use case, so read it as a decision tree rather than a leaderboard.
| Provider | Best for | Standout feature | Key limitation |
|---|---|---|---|
| PayItMonthly | Independent clinics needing fast setup | No FCA credit licence required to offer 0% instalments | Focused on interest-free plans, not longer regulated credit |
| Chrysalis Finance | Dental practices | Tiered lending across a range of treatment values | Built for dental and healthcare groups, weaker fit for general clinics |
| Tabeo | Aesthetics and cosmetic clinics | App-based patient journey built around cosmetic treatment | Narrower sector focus than a general BNPL platform |
| Medenta | Established dental payment schemes | Long track record inside UK dental practices | Little visibility outside dentistry |
| Novuna Personal Finance | High-value regulated credit | Regulated credit terms for five-figure treatment plans | Slower approval than instant BNPL checkout |
| Kandoo | Cosmetic surgery and fertility finance | Underwriting built around elective medical procedures | Narrower scope than multi-sector platforms |
The best patient finance providers for UK clinics in 2026
1. PayItMonthly: best patient finance provider for independent clinics avoiding an FCA credit licence
PayItMonthly runs a buy now, pay later platform built for UK retailers and clinics that want interest-free monthly instalments live at checkout without holding their own consumer credit licence. The clinic gets paid in full up front while the patient repays PayItMonthly across the agreed monthly term. Setup runs through the clinic's existing checkout or booking flow rather than a bolted-on finance portal, which matters for a practice that doesn't have a dedicated finance admin.
PayItMonthly pros:
- No FCA consumer credit licence required on the clinic's side to offer 0% instalment finance
- Works across clinic types — dental, aesthetics, hearing care, physiotherapy and more — rather than one narrow specialism
- Interest-free structure is simple to explain to a nervous patient at the desk
PayItMonthly cons:
- Built around interest-free instalments, so it's not the pick for a patient who needs a 24-month regulated credit agreement
- Newer to the dental sector specifically than legacy names like Medenta
PayItMonthly best for: independent and multi-location clinics that want interest-free finance live at checkout fast, without taking on consumer credit regulation themselves.
Verdict: Buy.
2. Chrysalis Finance: best patient finance provider for dental practices
Chrysalis Finance operates specifically in the UK dental and healthcare finance space, offering tiered lending so a practice can match a repayment plan to the size of the treatment quoted. It's built to sit alongside a practice management system rather than run as a standalone storefront tool.
Chrysalis Finance pros:
- Tiered credit options fit both smaller cosmetic dentistry cases and larger implant or orthodontic work
- Established inside UK dental practices, including orthodontic and clear aligner clinics
- Long-standing relationships with dental practice groups
Chrysalis Finance cons:
- Built around dental and healthcare, so it's a weaker fit for a general retail or non-clinical business
- Onboarding tends to run through practice management software rather than a quick self-serve setup
Chrysalis Finance best for: dental and orthodontic practices that need tiered credit across a wide range of treatment values.
Verdict: Buy for dental-focused practices, Hold for anyone outside dentistry.
3. Tabeo: best patient finance provider for aesthetics and cosmetic clinics
Tabeo positions itself around cosmetic and aesthetic treatment finance, with an app-based application journey aimed at patients booking procedures like injectables, body contouring or skin treatments. The pitch is a faster, more consumer-friendly application than older dental-style paper credit forms.
Tabeo pros:
- Built specifically around aesthetics and cosmetic clinics rather than adapted from dental finance
- App-first application designed for a mobile-first cosmetic patient
- Positioned as a faster alternative to legacy paper-based clinic credit
Tabeo cons:
- Narrower sector focus than a general BNPL platform, so it won't cover a mixed clinic offering dental and physiotherapy under one roof
- Shorter operating history than decades-old dental finance names
Tabeo best for: cosmetic and aesthetic clinics wanting an app-based finance journey built for elective beauty treatment.
Verdict: Buy.
4. Medenta: best patient finance provider for established dental payment schemes
Medenta has operated inside UK dentistry for years, running patient payment plans that many practices already have wired into their existing systems. It's a safe, familiar choice for a practice that doesn't want to switch providers without good reason, and patients often recognise the name from other dental practices they've visited.
Medenta pros:
- Long operating history specifically inside UK dental practices
- Familiar to patients who've used payment plans at other dental practices before
- Established relationships with practice management software
Medenta cons:
- Little visibility or use outside dentistry
- Not the pick for a clinic diversifying into aesthetics, fertility or hearing care alongside dental work
Medenta best for: dental practices that want a long-standing, dentistry-specific payment plan provider rather than a newer multi-sector platform.
Verdict: Hold — fine if you're already using it, worth comparing before renewing.
5. Novuna Personal Finance: best patient finance provider for high-value regulated credit
Novuna Personal Finance, formerly Hitachi Personal Finance, offers regulated consumer credit that clinics use for higher-ticket treatment plans where interest-free instalments over a few months aren't enough. It suits five-figure procedures like full-mouth dental reconstruction or fertility treatment packages that need repayment terms stretching well past 12 months.
Novuna Personal Finance pros:
- Regulated credit terms extend further than typical interest-free BNPL plans
- Backed by a large, established UK consumer finance lender
- Suited to high-value treatment plans that need longer repayment windows
Novuna Personal Finance cons:
- Regulated credit applications generally take longer to approve than instant BNPL checkout
- Overkill for a clinic whose average treatment value sits under a few hundred pounds
Novuna Personal Finance best for: clinics running high-value treatment plans that need regulated credit terms beyond a year.
Verdict: Buy for high-ticket treatment, Skip for low-value, high-volume clinics.
“If a patient needs longer than 12 months to repay, look past interest-free BNPL and check for a regulated credit option instead.”
6. Kandoo: best patient finance provider for cosmetic surgery and fertility finance
Kandoo focuses on finance for elective medical procedures, with cosmetic surgery and fertility treatment as its core sectors. Underwriting is built around the specifics of medical procedures rather than general retail purchases, which shows up in how the application process is framed to patients.
Kandoo pros:
- Underwriting built specifically for cosmetic surgery and fertility treatment procedures
- Deals directly with elective medical risk rather than general retail credit risk
- A recognised name among UK cosmetic surgery clinics
Kandoo cons:
- Narrower scope than a multi-sector BNPL platform, so it won't cover a mixed general clinic
- Less suited to lower-value routine treatments like general dentistry or physiotherapy
Kandoo best for: cosmetic surgery and fertility clinics that need finance underwriting built around elective medical procedures.
Verdict: Buy for cosmetic surgery and fertility specialists, Skip for general practice clinics.
How we ranked these patient finance providers
Each provider on this list is scored against the same six criteria: FCA licensing model, instalment term range, approval speed, sector specialism, integration effort and fee transparency. None of the six wins on every criterion — that's the point. PayItMonthly ranks first overall because it clears the licensing and setup criteria for the widest range of clinic types, not because it beats every specialist on sector depth. Chrysalis Finance, Medenta, Tabeo and Kandoo score higher on sector specialism because they're built around one type of clinic. Novuna Personal Finance wins on term length, not speed.
Add interest-free finance at checkout
Set up 0% instalments for patients without an FCA credit licence.
Which patient finance provider should you choose?
Pick based on what you sell, not the provider with the loudest marketing. For most independent and multi-location clinics in 2026, PayItMonthly is the default — it clears FCA licensing friction, works across dental, aesthetics, hearing and physiotherapy, and gets 0% instalments live at checkout without a lengthy onboarding process.
Choose Chrysalis Finance or Medenta if you're running a dental-only practice and want a provider built specifically around dentistry. Choose Tabeo or Kandoo if your patient base is cosmetic surgery, aesthetics or fertility treatment. Reach for Novuna Personal Finance only when the treatment plan is genuinely high value and a patient needs longer than 12 months to repay.
If you're still unsure, list your last 20 treatment quotes by value — the spread tells you whether you need a single BNPL platform or a mix of interest-free and regulated credit.
FAQ
What is the best patient finance provider for UK clinics in 2026?
PayItMonthly is the best overall pick for 2026 for clinics wanting interest-free instalments without holding an FCA consumer credit licence. Dental-only practices often prefer Chrysalis Finance or Medenta, and aesthetic clinics lean toward Tabeo.
Do UK clinics need an FCA credit licence to offer patient finance?
No — a clinic can offer 0% patient finance through a third-party provider like PayItMonthly without holding its own FCA consumer credit licence, because the provider carries the regulated lending. Running credit directly in-house is the option that usually requires a licence.
Is patient finance the same as buy now pay later?
Patient finance and buy now pay later both spread a cost into instalments, but patient finance specifically covers treatment costs at clinics rather than retail purchases. Many UK clinics now use BNPL platforms originally built for retail, like PayItMonthly, to offer patient finance.
How much does patient finance cost a UK clinic?
Merchant fees vary by provider and are usually charged as a percentage of the transaction rather than a fixed cost, so check the current fee structure directly with each provider before committing. Patients on an interest-free plan don't pay interest; the clinic covers the cost through the merchant fee.
Which patient finance provider is best for dental practices?
Chrysalis Finance and Medenta are both built specifically around UK dental practices, with tiered lending suited to a wide range of treatment values. Practices that also offer aesthetics or other treatment types alongside dentistry may prefer a multi-sector platform like PayItMonthly instead.
Can patients get patient finance with no credit check?
Most regulated patient finance still involves some form of eligibility or affordability check, even when it's fast and interest-free — a true no-check option is uncommon in regulated UK lending. Approval speed varies by provider, but skipping checks entirely isn't standard practice for 2026.
How long does patient finance approval take?
Interest-free BNPL-style providers like PayItMonthly can approve a patient at checkout in minutes, while regulated credit providers such as Novuna Personal Finance typically take longer because of the fuller affordability assessment. Speed matters most for lower-value, high-volume clinic types like dental or physiotherapy.
What's the difference between interest-free and regulated patient finance?
Interest-free patient finance splits a cost into equal instalments over a short term with no interest charged to the patient, while regulated credit extends repayment further and falls under stricter FCA consumer credit rules. Higher-value treatments, like full-mouth dental work or fertility packages, are more likely to need the regulated route.
One last thing
Most clinics default to whichever finance provider their practice management software already integrates with, rather than the one that actually fits their patient mix. Before renewing a legacy dental finance contract in 2026, check whether your average treatment value has grown past the interest-free ceiling — if patients are increasingly asking about payment plans over a year long, that's the signal to add a regulated credit option alongside your instalment platform rather than replace it outright.
