What this page is. A short, honest account of what studying in the United Kingdom costs, built only from figures a UK authority actually publishes. Where no authority publishes a number, this page says so instead of inventing an average. We earn nothing from where you apply, and we link no university, agent or recruiter. See our editorial policy and how education agents earn.
What this page got wrong before 5 August 2026
This page previously gave the UK visa maintenance requirement as £1,483 a month for London and £1,136 a month elsewhere. Those were the figures that applied from January 2025. They are no longer the published figures. GOV.UK now states £1,529 a month for courses in London and £1,171 a month for courses outside London. The page also carried tuition ranges with no publisher and no date. Those ranges have been withdrawn rather than corrected, because no UK authority publishes them. Both changes are set out below.
The UK figures that are actually published
Every number in this table was read at the publisher on 5 August 2026. Nothing here is an estimate, an average, or a range we assembled ourselves.
| What it is | Published figure | Who publishes it, and when we read it |
|---|---|---|
| Student visa application, applying from outside the UK | £558 | GOV.UK, Student visa. Read 5 Aug 2026 |
| Student visa application, extending or switching inside the UK | £558 | GOV.UK, Student visa. Read 5 Aug 2026 |
| Immigration health surcharge | £776 per year, for students and their dependants | GOV.UK, pay for UK healthcare as part of your immigration application. Page last updated 28 Nov 2024. Read 5 Aug 2026 |
| Money you must show, course in London | £1,529 a month, for up to 9 months. Maximum £13,761 | GOV.UK, Student visa: money. Read 5 Aug 2026 |
| Money you must show, course outside London | £1,171 a month, for up to 9 months. Maximum £10,539 | GOV.UK, Student visa: money. Read 5 Aug 2026 |
| How long the money must sit there | At least 28 days in a row, and the last day of that 28-day period must fall within 31 days of the date you apply | GOV.UK, Student visa: money. Read 5 Aug 2026 |
| How long you can stay | Usually up to 5 years for a degree-level course, up to 2 years below degree level | GOV.UK, Student visa. Read 5 Aug 2026 |
The same figures, alongside twenty other countries, are in our proof of funds table and our study abroad costs by country table.
Tuition: why this page gives you no average
There is no UK authority that publishes an international tuition figure. Fees are set by each provider and published in that provider’s own fee schedule, one course at a time. Any “average international tuition in the UK” you read is somebody’s sample of somebody’s prospectuses, usually undated, and it is not a number you can use to plan.
What we can give you instead is the skill of reading a fee schedule, which does not expire:
- Per year or whole course. A one-year taught masters is often quoted as a whole-course fee. A three-year or four-year bachelors is almost always quoted per year, and the later years are not always the same number.
- Bands, not one price. Providers usually band by subject. Laboratory, studio and clinical subjects sit in higher bands than classroom subjects at the same institution.
- The uplift clause. Look for wording that reserves the right to raise the fee each year, and for the cap on that rise. This clause, not the headline, decides what you pay in year three.
- Deposit and instalments. The deposit is usually payable to hold the offer and is often non-refundable once the visa is issued. Instalment dates decide when you actually need the cash, which is a different question from what the year costs.
- What the fee excludes. Bench fees, field trips, studio materials, professional registration and thesis binding are commonly outside the tuition fee.
Compare offers with our college cost calculator and convert them with the live currency converter.
The maintenance figure is not a budget
£1,529 a month in London is an evidence threshold. It is the amount the Home Office wants to see you hold before it grants the visa. It is not a forecast of what you will spend, it is not indexed to the city you actually live in, and holding it does not mean it will be enough. Three consequences follow:
- It is capped at nine months. A twelve-month masters still only requires nine months of maintenance evidence. Your twelve months of living costs are your problem, not the visa’s.
- It is reduced by what you have already paid. Money already paid to the provider for fees or for provider-arranged accommodation can be deducted, within the limits GOV.UK sets out.
- It is a held balance, not a spent one. The test is that the money existed and sat still for 28 days. See proof of funds, explained for the three shapes a funds test can take.
Working while you study: what GOV.UK actually says
This is worth stating precisely, because the internet is confident about a number that the visa page does not carry. GOV.UK’s Student visa work page says only that you “may be able to work” and that “how much depends on what you’re studying and whether you’re working in or out of term-time”. It does state the hard prohibitions: you cannot be self-employed, cannot work as a professional sportsperson or sports coach, and cannot claim public funds.
The weekly hour limit lives in the Home Office caseworker guidance, Student and Child Student, published under Student route: caseworker guidance and last updated 26 March 2026. If a weekly hour figure matters to your plan, read it there, in the version current on the day you apply, and read the condition printed on your own visa. We do not restate it here as a bare number, because a number without its conditions is what gets people into trouble.
Your UK money file, printable
Print this and fill it in. Every line is a document or a date a caseworker can check.
A fuller version by country is in our application document checklist, and the dates sit in the study abroad application timeline.
What we could not source
- A UK-wide international tuition figure. No UK authority publishes one. Withdrawn from this page rather than restated.
- A published weekly work-hour limit on the Student visa page. GOV.UK does not give one there. It is in the caseworker guidance, which we link instead of paraphrasing.
- An official cost-of-living breakdown for students by UK city. We found no UK government publication that sets one out for international students. The maintenance figure is a visa threshold, not a cost survey, and this page does not pretend otherwise.
- Rent by city. Rent moves monthly. A figure that changes weekly does not belong on a page you are meant to be able to trust in a year, so there is none here. Use the currency converter against a real advertised rent when you have one.
FAQ
How much money must I show for a UK student visa?
£1,529 a month for a course in London and £1,171 a month for a course outside London, for up to nine months, held for 28 consecutive days ending within 31 days of your application. Source: GOV.UK, Student visa: money, read 5 August 2026.
Can international students work in the UK?
GOV.UK says work may be permitted and that the amount depends on the course and on whether it is term time. Self-employment, professional sport and public funds are excluded outright. The hour limit is set in the Home Office caseworker guidance and printed as a condition on your own visa.
Is the UK more expensive than other destinations?
On the one thing that is genuinely comparable, the visa funds threshold, the UK sits near the top. Compare the published thresholds side by side in our proof of funds table, and the wider picture in how to choose a study destination.
Where to go next
- How to apply to UK universities through UCAS
- Student visa requirements and costs by country
- Student visa changes in 2026
- Student visa processing times
- The no-agent roadmap
- How scholarships actually get won
This page is information, not immigration advice. Rules and figures change. Check the linked authority on the day you apply.
