UK Student Visa 2026: Process, Fees & Requirements for Indians

The UK student visa is the permission an Indian student needs to study a full-time course in the United Kingdom, and in 2026 it is officially called the Student visa, the route that replaced the old Tier 4 (General) student visa in October 2020. You apply for it online from India once a UK university offers you a place, and you get charged three separate things by the government, an application fee of £558, a yearly health surcharge, and, in the background, a rule that you must prove you already hold enough money to live on. That last one, the financial requirement, is what rejects more otherwise-strong Indian applicants than anything else, so this page puts the real cost in rupees, the exact money rule, and every step, in the order you will actually meet them. Every figure carries its gov.uk source and its as-of date, because the UK changed several of these rules in 2024 and 2025.

Rupee figures use an indicative rate of about 1 GBP to 108 INR from mid-July 2026, which moves daily, so treat the INR as a guide and the GBP as the real number.

What is the UK Student visa, and who can apply for it in 2026?

The UK Student visa lets you live in the UK to study a full-time course with a licensed university, and you can apply if you are 16 or over and hold a confirmed place. A licensed student sponsor is a UK university or college that the Home Office has approved to enrol international students, and only an offer from one of them counts. In plain terms, before the visa is even possible, a university on the official register of licensed student sponsors must give you an unconditional offer and then send you a reference number called a CAS.

The core eligibility is short. You need that offer, enough money to pay your course and support yourself, and proof you can read, write, speak and understand English. The English bar is set at CEFR level B2 for a degree and B1 below degree level, and Indian students are not on the small list of nationalities exempted from proving it, so you show it either through an approved test or a university assessment, covered further down. If you are 16 or 17 you also need written parental consent.

How long the visa lasts depends on your level. A degree-level student aged 18 or over can be given up to 5 years, and a below-degree course up to 2 years. Choosing that university is a decision in its own right, and our guide to the top UK universities for Indian students covers who holds a sponsor licence and how the rankings compare.

How much does a UK student visa cost for an Indian student?

The visa itself costs £558 to apply from India, and on top of that you pay the Immigration Health Surcharge for every year of your stay, so the true cash cost for a one-year master’s is roughly £1,722, about ₹1.86 lakh, before tuition and living money. The Immigration Health Surcharge, usually shortened to IHS, is an upfront charge that buys you access to the National Health Service (the UK’s public healthcare) for the length of your visa. The student rate is £776 per year, raised from £470 in February 2024, and you pay the whole amount during the online application, not year by year.

Here is the part that catches Indian families out. The IHS is billed for the full length of the visa, and a one-year taught master’s is given about sixteen months of permission, not twelve, so the surcharge rounds up to a year and a half. That is £1,164, not £776. gov.uk charges a full extra year for any period over six months, so budget for the rounding.

The table below separates the money you hand over and never see again from the money you only have to prove you hold. Read it that way, because the single largest line, the maintenance funds, is not a fee at all.

So the government cash cost of a UK master’s visa, the part you truly spend, is close to £1,722 plus the TB test, around ₹1.9 lakh, and everything else on the invoice is either tuition you would pay anyway or savings you simply have to display. gov.uk does not publish a single TB-test price because fees vary by approved clinic in India, so treat the rupee figure as indicative. The dependant surcharge and fees are separate again, and covered later.

How much money must you show for a UK student visa, and what is the 28-day rule?

You must show first-year tuition still owed plus fixed living money of £1,529 a month in London or £1,171 a month outside London, each for up to nine months, and you must have held that total for 28 days in a row. This maintenance requirement is the technical rule that decides most refusals of Indian students, because the amount is easy but the way you hold and evidence the money is strict. The living figures rose in 2025, so a lot of older guides still quote £1,483 and £1,136, which are now out of date. Use the current numbers below, confirmed on gov.uk’s money page and in the binding Immigration Rules, Appendix Student.

The total you must prove follows one line.

Funds to show = (£1,529 if in London, else £1,171) × number of course months up to 9 + first-year tuition still unpaid

Take a real case. You join a one-year MSc outside London with annual tuition of £18,000, of which you have already paid a £2,000 deposit. You must show 1,171 × 9 for living costs, which is £10,539, plus the £16,000 tuition you still owe, so £26,539 in total, roughly ₹28.7 lakh, sitting in an account you can prove. London courses use £1,529 a month, giving £13,761 of living money before tuition.

The 28-day rule is where good applications fall over. gov.uk states you must have held the money for at least 28 days in a row, and the end of that 28-day period must fall within 31 days of the date you apply. The caseworker counts backwards from the closing balance on your most recent statement, so if the balance dipped even one day below the required total inside that 28-day window, the clock resets and the application can be refused, even though you have the money today. Two more conditions trip people up. The account must let you withdraw the money immediately, so a locked fixed deposit that you cannot break on demand does not qualify, and the evidence must be dated no more than 31 days before you apply.

One thing many Indian applicants do not realise is that they are asked for more paperwork than some other nationalities. The UK runs a low-risk list of countries whose students can skip uploading financial evidence at the point of application. India is not on that list, so an Indian applicant must submit the full bank statements, loan letter or official sponsor letter upfront, every time. An education loan sanction letter from a recognised bank and a government or university scholarship letter both count as acceptable evidence, alongside your own or a parent’s savings held with written consent.

What is a CAS, and how do ATAS and the English test fit in?

A CAS is the electronic reference number your university sends once it confirms your place, and you cannot apply for the visa without it. CAS stands for Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies, and it is not a document you download, it is a number the licensed sponsor issues into the Home Office system that ties you to a specific course, start date and fee. You must apply for your visa within 6 months of the CAS being issued, and each CAS can be used for only one application.

That six-month clock hides a real trap. You are also only allowed to apply from outside the UK up to six months before your course starts, and the CAS must be no more than six months old on the day you apply. If a university issues your CAS very early, say eight months before a September intake, it can age out before you are even permitted to apply, and you have to ask for it to be re-issued closer to the date. Line up the CAS date with your intended application window rather than accepting the earliest possible one.

Two things can sit upstream of the CAS. For certain sensitive postgraduate subjects, mostly advanced science and engineering, you need an ATAS certificate, which is a security clearance from the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. The order matters more than students expect, because Home Office guidance says the ATAS certificate must be obtained before the CAS is assigned when it applies, and ATAS can take weeks, so it is effectively the first step, not a visa afterthought. Our guide to the CAS, ATAS and credibility together walks through how they interlock. English is the other prerequisite. For a degree the university itself can assess your English to level B2, or you sit an approved Secure English Language Test, and the IELTS for UKVI and other accepted English tests are set out separately.

What documents do you need for a UK student visa, including the TB test?

The two documents you always need are a current passport and your CAS number, and most Indian applicants also need proof of funds, a TB test certificate, and their academic and English evidence. gov.uk lists the core and conditional documents, and which of the conditional ones apply depends on your course and your circumstances.

• Passport or valid travel document, showing you have a page for the visa.
• CAS reference number from your licensed sponsor.
• Proof of finances, the bank statements, loan letter or sponsor letter that satisfy the 28-day rule above.
• TB test certificate, because India is on the list of countries that require it.
• Academic qualifications listed on your CAS, and your English evidence if the university has not already confirmed it.
• ATAS certificate, only if your course needs one.
• Parental consent and proof of relationship, if you are 16 or 17.
• Written sponsor consent, if a government or other body has funded you in the last 12 months.

The TB test is a step Indian students cannot skip. Because your course is longer than six months and you have lived in India, you must take a tuberculosis test at a Home Office-approved clinic in India before you apply. It is mainly a chest X-ray, the clinic issues a certificate that is valid for six months, and approved centres run in cities including Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Bangalore, Kolkata, Hyderabad and Pune. Only a certificate from an approved clinic is accepted, so do not use an ordinary hospital.

How do you apply for a UK student visa, give biometrics, and how long does it take?

You apply online, prove your identity either through a phone app or by giving fingerprints and a photo at a visa application centre, and a decision from India usually arrives within three weeks. The application runs on the gov.uk Student visa service, where you complete the form, pay the £558 fee and the IHS together, and book how you will confirm your identity. The steps below are the real order for an Indian applicant.

1. Get your unconditional offer and CAS from a licensed sponsor, and clear ATAS first if your course needs it.
2. Take your TB test at an approved clinic and keep the certificate.
3. Hold your maintenance money for the full 28 days and gather the statements.
4. Complete the online application on gov.uk and pay the fee plus the IHS.
5. Prove your identity, either with the UK Immigration ID Check app if you have a biometric passport and a compatible phone, or by booking a visa application centre in India to give your fingerprints and photograph.
6. Upload your documents and wait for the decision.

On timing, the earliest you can apply from outside the UK is six months before your course starts, and the standard decision comes usually within three weeks of your identity step. gov.uk says you may be able to pay for a faster decision and will be told at the time whether it is offered, but it does not publish a priority price for India, so do not rely on a figure you read elsewhere. Note that if you do not complete the identity step within 240 days of submitting online, the application lapses and you start again.

Will you pass the genuine student check on a UK visa?

Yes, most well-prepared Indian students pass, but a caseworker must be satisfied you are a genuine student, and they can call you for a short credibility interview before refusing on that ground. The Immigration Rules say plainly that the applicant must be a genuine student, and the caseworker weighs your study plans, your immigration history, and whether your funding is credible and its source is clear. In practice they are checking that you know your course and university, that your choice makes sense after your previous study, and that you intend to leave when your permission ends.

The reassuring part is procedural. Home Office guidance states a caseworker must not refuse you on genuineness grounds without first giving you an interview, which is often held over the phone. So if something looks unclear, you get a chance to explain it rather than a silent rejection. The way to prepare is to be able to talk naturally about why this course, why this university, how you are paying, and what you plan to do after. Vague answers about funding, or a story that does not fit your academic record, are what turn a routine check into a problem.

Can you bring dependants on a UK student visa in 2026?

For most Indian students starting in 2026 the answer is no, because since 1 January 2024 only research postgraduates and government-sponsored students can bring family. A dependant means your husband, wife, civil partner or unmarried partner, or your child under 18. The government restricted the dependant route from January 2024, and the rule now turns on the type of course, not just its level.

The dividing line surprises couples because it is not taught versus untaught in the way most people assume. You can bring dependants only if you are a full-time student on a PhD or a research-based higher degree lasting nine months or more, or a government-sponsored student on a course over six months. A student on a taught master’s, an MSc or MA in the UK, cannot bring a partner or child, while a PhD student at the very same university can. So two people starting postgraduate study together can get opposite answers purely because one degree is research-based and the other is taught.

If you do qualify, the money adds up. Each dependant pays their own £558 visa fee and the same IHS as you, and you must show extra maintenance of £845 a month in London or £680 a month outside London, again for up to nine months and held for the same 28 days.

What do you actually get, a BRP or an eVisa?

You get an eVisa, not a plastic card, because the UK finished replacing Biometric Residence Permits with digital status through 2025. A Biometric Residence Permit, or BRP, was the physical card students used to receive to prove their right to study and stay. Those have all now expired, and gov.uk confirms that eVisas have replaced physical immigration documents. An eVisa is simply an online record of your immigration status linked to your passport.

What this means for a 2026 arrival is that there is no card in your hand when you land, which genuinely confuses new students and the landlords, banks and part-time employers who ask to see one. Instead you create a UKVI account, and when someone needs to check your status you generate a share code that lets them view it online. Setting up the account is free. If you happen to hold an older, expired BRP from a previous stay, you can still use it only to sign in, get a share code, or apply to extend, and only until the end of 2026.

One forward-looking point matters for anyone weighing the UK now. The Graduate route, the post-study work visa that lets you stay and work after your course, currently lasts two years if you apply on or before 31 December 2026, but only 18 months if you apply from 1 January 2027, with PhDs unaffected at three years. A 2026 intake is close to the last cohort that can still secure the full two years, which is worth factoring into your timing. That makes the post-study window part of the same decision as the visa itself, not a separate question for later.

Sources

• gov.uk, Student visa overview, fee £558, replaces Tier 4, length of stay, gov.uk/student-visa
• gov.uk, Student visa money page, maintenance amounts and the 28-day rule, gov.uk/student-visa/money
• gov.uk, healthcare immigration application, IHS £776 per year for students, gov.uk/healthcare-immigration-application/how-much-pay
• gov.uk, Immigration Rules Appendix Student, maintenance, CAS, ATAS and genuine-student rules, gov.uk Appendix Student
• gov.uk, Student visa course and CAS requirement, gov.uk/student-visa/course
• gov.uk, documents you must provide, gov.uk/student-visa/documents-you-must-provide
• gov.uk, TB test clinics in India, gov.uk TB test clinics in India
• gov.uk, apply and when to apply, biometrics and processing time, gov.uk/student-visa/when-to-apply
• gov.uk, family members and the dependant restriction, gov.uk/student-visa/family-members
• gov.uk, news, tough government action on student visas, effective January 2024, gov.uk news
• gov.uk, eVisa and the end of Biometric Residence Permits, gov.uk/evisa
• gov.uk, Graduate visa duration by application date, gov.uk/graduate-visa

Related reading. This page sits under our guide to studying in the UK for Indian students, which links every step in turn, from choosing a university and course, to your English test and CAS, to the visa and life after it. For more country guides, browse the Nbyula study abroad articles.