UK student visa money rules for 2026, and the funding questions your interview may ask
Aman Batth · 10 min read ·
How much money a UK Student visa needs in 2026, how the 28-day bank rule works with a dated example, what changes on 30 November 2026, and how the same numbers can come up again in your pre-CAS or credibility interview. Every rule links to its official source.
Money comes up twice on the way to a UK university: on paper, when UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) checks that you hold enough, and out loud, when your university or UKVI asks where it came from. This guide covers both, with every rule linked to its official source.
What are the UK student visa financial requirements in 2026?
If you apply from outside the UK, you must show money for two things. The first is your course fees for one academic year, or for the whole course if it is shorter. That figure is on your CAS (Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies), less anything you have already paid your university. The second is living costs for each month of your course, up to nine months: £1,529 a month if you study in London and £1,171 a month anywhere else. For applications made on or after 30 November 2026, those amounts rise to £1,570 and £1,203. The money must stay in the account for at least 28 days in a row, and the last of those days must fall within 31 days of the date you apply. A student loan is shown with a loan letter, and an official sponsor with the reference on your CAS or a letter from the sponsor. Your university, and later UKVI, may also ask you to explain this money in an interview, as covered below.
Sources: gov.uk, Student visa: money; gov.uk finance guidance; Statement of changes HC 584; UKCISA for the shorter-course rule.
How much do you need for living costs?
| Where you study | Applications made before 30 Nov 2026 | Applications made on or after 30 Nov 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| London, per month | £1,529 | £1,570 |
| London, 9 months (the most you show) | £13,761 | £14,130 |
| Outside London, per month | £1,171 | £1,203 |
| Outside London, 9 months | £10,539 | £10,827 |
The nine-month rows are the monthly figure times nine. Which number is yours:
- London means the City of London and the 32 London boroughs (gov.uk). If you are unsure whether your campus counts, UKCISA suggests asking your university.
- Months are counted from the course dates on your CAS (UKCISA), and a part month is rounded up to a full one (Appendix Student, ST 12.3).
- The date you apply decides the column, not the date your course starts. The Home Office's rule change, HC 584, says applications made before 30 November 2026 are decided under the rules in force on 29 November 2026.
Why the rise? The explanatory memorandum to HC 584 (paragraph 5.43) ties it to home students' maintenance loans, which are reviewed every year, and says the Home Office will keep the two in line, so expect it to change again.
What can you take off the total?
Two payments to your university reduce what you need to show:
- Fees already paid. These must be shown on your CAS, or on a receipt from the university (ST 12.5).
- An accommodation deposit, only if you paid it to the university for housing the university arranges. You can take off up to £1,529, rising to £1,570 for applications from 30 November 2026 (ST 12.4 and HC 584). The caseworker guidance says a payment counts only when the university provides the housing; money paid to a separate housing provider is not counted.
How does the 28-day rule work?
Gov.uk's finance guidance counts the 28 days backwards from the closing balance date on your most recent statement or bank letter, and that evidence must be no more than 31 days old when you apply. UKCISA adds that the balance must not drop below the required amount on any day in those 28 days.
A made-up example, with real dates:
- Meera has a one-year master's offer from a university outside London. Her CAS shows a fee of £16,500, with £4,000 already paid, so £12,500 is outstanding.
- She plans to apply on 15 January 2027, after the change, so her living costs are 9 × £1,203 = £10,827. Her total is £23,327.
- Her parents' bank statement has a closing balance date of 10 January 2027. Counting back 28 days gives 14 December 2026 to 10 January 2027. The balance must be at least £23,327 on every one of those days.
- 10 January is five days before she applies, so the statement is recent enough. If she delayed until 12 February 2027, it would be 33 days old and she would need a newer one.
- Had she applied on 25 November 2026 instead, the old figure would apply: 9 × £1,171 = £10,539, for a total of £23,039.
Money held in rupees or taka is converted to pounds at the OANDA rate for the date you apply (finance guidance). Exchange rates move, so a balance that only just covers the total today may not cover it on the day you apply.
What if a loan or a sponsor is paying?
You show a letter instead of 28 days of statements. The finance guidance says what it must contain:
- Student loan: from a government, a government-sponsored student loan company, or an academic or educational loans scheme. The letter must be dated no more than six months before you apply, be in your name, state the amount, set no condition on releasing the money other than a successful application to study, and confirm the money will reach you or your university before the course begins.
- Official sponsor, such as a government or a university: the reference number on your CAS, or, if it is not there, a dated letter giving the sponsor's name and contact details, how long the support lasts and how much it covers.
Overdrafts, pensions, shares and cryptocurrency do not count, and nor do accounts at banks that are unregulated or keep no electronic records. The money must have been obtained legally, and UKVI may check your evidence with your bank.
Do you have to send the evidence at all?
Gov.uk's money page and finance guidance list nationalities that do not have to send financial evidence when they apply. India, Nepal, Pakistan and Bangladesh were not on either list when we checked on 6 October 2026, so plan to send yours. The finance guidance adds that people on the list must still meet the money rules, and UKVI can ask them for the evidence before it decides.
How does money come up in the interview?
Your university may interview you before it issues your CAS, and UKVI may interview you during your visa application. Your university decides whether to issue your CAS; the Home Office decides your visa. Both can ask about money:
- Your university's pre-CAS interview. Liverpool John Moores University lists your finances, funding plans and accommodation among the usual topics of its recorded interview, and may ask for bank statements before your CAS is issued.
- A UKVI credibility interview. Coventry University's guide lists finances as a main area: how fees, living costs and housing will be paid, and whether you understand the financial requirements. It also advises that you know the money papers you sent well enough to explain them, especially when the course costs far more than your family usually earns.
- What UKVI is told to weigh. The caseworker guidance asks whether you have a "credible source of funds" for the length of the course, how the money was acquired, your family's economic circumstances, the distance between your housing and your place of study, and your average monthly spending.
Example questions, written by us to match those points:
| A question you might hear | What it is checking | Where your answer comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Who is paying for this, and how did they save it? | A believable source, and how the money was built up | Parent's or sponsor's letter, statements, income papers |
| What does your first year cost, and how much is already paid? | That you know your own fee | CAS, fee receipt |
| Your course runs two years. How will year two be paid for? | Money for the whole course | Savings plan, loan sanction letter |
| What will you spend each month in the UK? | Monthly spending | Rent agreement, your own budget |
| How far is your room from campus, and how will you travel? | Distance to housing | Accommodation booking |
| Your loan must be repaid. What is the plan? | That the funding holds up | Loan terms |
Answer from your own figures, in your own words. LJMU does not allow notes or scripts in its interview, and warns that rehearsed answers stand out.
Why one set of numbers matters
Your university wrote your CAS, and UKCISA notes that a CAS is stored on a database the Home Office has access to. So the fee, the amount paid and the funding you describe aloud will be heard by someone who can check them. Before any interview, write these on one page and check every document and every spoken answer against it:
- Fee for the first year, amount paid, amount outstanding.
- Your monthly living-cost figure (London or not) and the number of months.
- The total, who holds it, in which account, and its value in pounds.
- Your rent and a realistic monthly budget.
If your balance has fallen well below the required level by the time UKVI decides, Appendix Student ST 12.7 says the person deciding your visa must be satisfied the money went on fees, an accommodation deposit or other costs of the course. Keep receipts, and be ready to explain them.
This is what Hilingo's UK CAS Interview practice is built around. You fill one profile from your own offer, CAS and money papers, and every money answer is built from it. Those answers use the official UKVI monthly figure for your campus that is in force on the day you build them, and when that figure is due for a re-check the app stops building them rather than guess. If you will apply on or after 30 November 2026, check the figure in your answer against the table above. Change an amount in your own edit and it is flagged, and cannot be locked, until it matches your profile. Then you practise on camera, saying the numbers aloud.
Re-check before you apply
We checked every figure here against its official source on 6 October 2026. Rules can change at any time, so open the gov.uk money page on the day you apply. Visa fees and the health surcharge are not covered here; see the Student visa overview for current amounts.
Read next:
- UK credibility interview questions: every topic, and where each answer comes from
- The Genuine Student requirement, explained from the Home Office's own guidance
- Why students fail the pre-CAS interview, and how to avoid each mistake
Frequently asked questions
Can I use my parents' bank account?
Yes. Gov.uk's finance guidance accepts your parent's money if the account is one they control and they give a letter agreeing to you using it. UKCISA adds that you also need proof of the relationship, such as your birth certificate.
Can I show a fixed deposit?
Gov.uk's finance guidance lists certificates of deposit among the accepted evidence, and says the account must allow immediate access to the money. UKCISA explains the Home Office's conditions: the certificate is issued by a bank, the money has been held for the 28-day period, and you can access it at any time. Check with your bank and your university that your deposit meets these points before you rely on it.
How old can my bank statement be?
Gov.uk's finance guidance says your evidence must be from no more than 31 days before the date you apply, and the 28 days are counted back from the closing balance date on your most recent evidence.
Does the money have to be in pounds?
No. Gov.uk's finance guidance says money in another currency is converted to pounds at the OANDA rate for the date you apply, so leave some margin for exchange-rate changes.
Do I need fees for the whole course?
No. Gov.uk asks for fees for one academic year, and UKCISA explains that a course shorter than a year needs fees for the whole course. An interviewer may still ask how later years will be paid for; Coventry's guide raises this for longer courses.
Which figure applies if I apply in November 2026?
Under HC 584, applications made before 30 November 2026 use £1,529 (London) and £1,171 (outside London) a month. Applications made on or after 30 November 2026 use £1,570 and £1,203.
Sources (accessed 6 October 2026)
- Student visa: money, gov.uk
- Financial evidence for Student and Child Student visa applicants, gov.uk
- Statement of changes to the Immigration Rules: HC 584, 3 September 2026, Home Office, and its explanatory memorandum, paragraph 5.43
- Immigration Rules: Appendix Student, ST 12.3 to ST 12.7
- Student and Child Student caseworker guidance, Home Office
- Student route: eligibility and requirements, UKCISA
- Credibility interviews, Coventry University
- Pre-CAS interviews, Liverpool John Moores University