You Sent the Form. Here Is What Happens in the Next 72 Hours

Hour 0: The Form Arrives

When you hit submit, your request enters a queue that is monitored during business hours (Colombia time, UTC-5). If you submitted at 2 AM Eastern, it will not be reviewed until the next morning. If you submitted at 10 AM, it is typically in front of someone within the hour.

The system logs your submission with a timestamp, the page you submitted from, and the information you provided. Nothing is lost. If you submitted from a procedure page, the system already knows which procedure you are asking about. If you submitted from the general contact form, the first step is identifying which procedure category your request falls into.

Hours 1 to 4: Review and Triage

A coordinator reviews your submission for completeness. They are checking for the essentials: which procedure, which country you are in, your general health profile, and your timeline. If all of that is clear, your request moves to clinic matching. If something is missing or ambiguous, you will receive a follow-up message (typically via WhatsApp or email, depending on what you provided) asking for clarification.

The most common reasons a request needs clarification: the procedure field says "cosmetic surgery" without specifying which procedure. The timeline says "soon" without indicating whether that means next week or next quarter. The health profile is blank or says "healthy" without noting medications, prior surgeries, or relevant conditions. None of these are dealbreakers. They just slow the process by one round of back-and-forth. The article What Makes a Quote Request Unanswerable covers the details.

Hours 4 to 24: Clinic Matching

Once your request is complete, a coordinator matches it to the appropriate clinic or surgeon. This is not random assignment. The match considers the procedure you need, the surgeon's specialization and case volume for that specific procedure, the facility's accreditation status, your preferred city (if stated), and any specific requirements you mentioned (language, facility tier, technology preferences).

For straightforward requests (a well-defined procedure with no complex medical history), the match happens the same day. For complex cases (revision surgery, multiple procedures, patients with significant medical history), the coordinator may consult with the medical team before making the match, which can add 12 to 24 hours.

In some cases, your request may be sent to more than one clinic for competitive quotes. This is more common for high-value procedures (joint replacements, full-arch dental, bariatric) where the price spread between facilities is significant. If this happens, you will be told that multiple quotes are being sourced.

Hours 24 to 72: The First Response

Within 24 to 72 hours of a complete submission, you receive the preliminary response. This is typically delivered via WhatsApp or email and includes a preliminary cost range based on your information, a description of the clinic and surgeon being considered, a list of follow-up information needed to build the detailed quote (medical records, imaging, photos), and the next steps.

The preliminary response is not the final quote. It is a starting point. The range may be wide because the clinic has not seen your imaging or evaluated your case in detail. That is expected. The detailed quote comes after you provide the follow-up information and, in most cases, after a virtual consultation with the surgeon.

If you have not received any response within 72 hours, something went wrong. The most common causes: your email went to spam (check your junk folder), your WhatsApp number was entered incorrectly, or your request was flagged as incomplete and the follow-up message was not received. In that case, send a follow-up via the alternate contact method or reach out on WhatsApp directly at https://wa.me/16146071230.

What You Can Do While You Wait

The 24 to 72-hour window between submission and first response is productive time if you use it. Gather your medical records: recent lab work, imaging results, surgical history, and a current medication list. If the procedure is cosmetic, take the photos the clinic will ask for (most cosmetic clinics provide photo guidelines: front, side, and 45-degree angles, in good lighting, without clothing over the area of interest). Research the procedure on getsurgeryquotes.com so you know the typical cost range before the preliminary quote arrives. And prepare your questions for the virtual consultation that will come after the preliminary response.

If you have had the same procedure quoted domestically, have those quotes accessible. Comparing a Colombia quote to a US cash-pay quote you already received is the fastest way to evaluate the savings. If you have not been quoted domestically, the estimate ranges on our partner site give you the same reference point.

For patients considering combining procedures (for example, tummy tuck plus breast lift, or multiple dental procedures), use the waiting period to clarify which procedures you want combined and which you are still deciding on. The more specific your list when the preliminary response arrives, the faster the coordinator can build an accurate combined-procedure quote.

The patients who move through this process fastest are the ones who treat the waiting period as preparation time, not dead time. By the time the preliminary response arrives, they already have their records organized, their photos taken, and their questions written. That means the follow-up round is fast, the detailed quote comes sooner, and the entire timeline compresses. Every day you save in the early stages is a day you gain in scheduling flexibility later.

Weekend and Holiday Submissions

Requests submitted on weekends or Colombian public holidays enter the queue but are not reviewed until the next business day. Colombia observes approximately 18 public holidays per year, more than the US or Canada. If you submit on a Friday evening, expect the review to begin Monday morning Colombia time. If Monday is a holiday (Colombia has frequent Monday holidays under the Ley de Emiliani), the review begins Tuesday.

This does not mean your request is lost or deprioritized. It means the human who reviews it is not working on weekends. If your situation is genuinely urgent and you submit over a weekend, send a follow-up WhatsApp message noting the urgency. Urgent messages are monitored outside business hours on a best-effort basis.

The 72-hour window is a maximum, not a target. Many patients receive their preliminary response within 24 hours. The faster you provided complete information in your initial submission, the faster that response arrives.