UK Student Visa Requirements for Indian Students in 2026

  • Last Updated on: August 8, 2026 by
  • Shiva Sai Bejawada
UK Student Visa Requirements
UK Student Visa Requirements

UK student visa requirements for Indian students rest on four proofs: a valid Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS), money held in a fixed pattern, English at your course level, and a clean suitability record. In 2026, the application itself costs GBP 558 from outside the UK, though the Home Office bills Indian applicants in rupees at a different number. The maintenance amounts changed in November 2025, so check the date on any other page you read. Every requirement below carries the Immigration Rules paragraph that creates it, which is how you date-check the rest. Key Takeaways first, then the requirements in the order a caseworker reads them.

Written by
Shiva Sai Bejawada
Senior Counsellor (British Council Certified) -UK & Ireland
Shiva Sai Bejawada is a British Council Certified overseas-education counsellor at AOEC India who guides Indian students through UK and Ireland university selection, admissions, and student visa documentation.
6 Years, 96% visa approval rate
Reviewed by
Sridhar Kongara
Managing Director
Mr. Kongara Sridhar, Director of AOEC India, has over 12 years of experience in overseas education consulting, admissions, and student visa guidance.
Over 12 years Experience

Key Takeaways

  • Two documents are compulsory for every applicant: a current passport and a CAS. The rest is conditional.
  • Maintenance is GBP 1,529 a month (approx. INR 195,768) in London and GBP 1,171 (approx. INR 149,931) outside London, for a maximum of 9 months.
  • The Home Office charges INR 74,383 from India, plus the Immigration Health Surcharge at GBP 776 (approx. INR 99,356) per year of permission.
  • India is not on the differential evidence list, so evidence goes in up front.
  • A Secure English Language Test is not always required, but the exemption needs three conditions together.
  • In the year ending March 2026, Indian nationals took 90,425 Sponsored Study grants, 23% of 409,954.
  • A refused application spends your CAS, so re-applying needs a new one.
Table of Contents
Who qualifies for a UK student visa, and what you must prove Scroll here ↓ CAS requirements: what makes your Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies valid Scroll here ↓ English language requirements: B1, B2, and when a SELT is not needed Scroll here ↓ The financial requirement: GBP 1,529 or GBP 1,171 a month Scroll here ↓ UK student visa fees for Indian students: GBP 558, the IHS and priority processing Scroll here ↓ Documents required for a UK student visa Scroll here ↓ How long a UK student visa takes, and when to apply Scroll here ↓ Why UK student visa applications get refused Scroll here ↓ Work rights and dependants on a UK student visa Scroll here ↓ How long your UK student visa lasts, and what comes next Scroll here ↓ Frequently Asked Questions Scroll here ↓

Who qualifies for a UK student visa, and what you must prove

You qualify if a licensed student sponsor has offered you a place, you can pay for one academic year, your English meets your course level, and nothing in your history triggers a suitability refusal. That is the whole test, and a caseworker checks it in four parts:

  • A place from a licensed student sponsor, confirmed on a CAS
  • Money for the outstanding course fees on that CAS, plus living costs
  • English at the level set by your course level, not by your nationality
  • A record clean under Part 9 Suitability

Where nationality bites is the evidence load. In 2026, Appendix Student paragraph ST 22.1 lets certain nationalities leave financial and qualification evidence out entirely. China and the United States are on that list. India is not. You upload both at filing; a Chinese classmate on the same course does not.

That is why the UK student visa requirements for Indian students run heavier than a general country overview suggests. Rank them: the CAS and the money settle most outcomes, English and suitability the rest. Course choice and costs sit in our study in UK guide.

CAS requirements: what makes your Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies valid

A CAS is not an acceptance letter, and holding one is not the same as holding a valid one. It is a single-use electronic record your sponsor assigns you, and it can fail two tests before anyone reads your bank statement.

  • ST 7.1: the sponsor’s licence must still be valid on the date your application is decided, not the date the CAS was issued.
  • ST 7.2: the CAS must not have been used in a previous application that was either granted or refused.

Read ST 7.2 twice. The word doing the work is “refused”: you cannot fix a bank statement, attach it to the same CAS number and file again.

So treat the CAS as one shot. Ask for it when the rest of your file is finished, not the day your offer turns unconditional. If your funds have not completed their hold, you are gambling the CAS. What a CAS contains and how your university issues one sits in our explainer on the CAS and its full form.

English language requirements: B1, B2, and when a SELT is not needed

IELTS is not a universal requirement on the Student route. The rules set a level, not a test.

In 2026, the Home Office’s knowledge of English guidance sets the bar at Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) level B2 at degree level and above, and CEFR level B1 below it. CEFR is the six-band European scale test scores map onto. Course level fixes the band, so master’s and bachelor’s applicants face the same B2 bar.

Appendix English Language paragraph EL 8.1 then lets your university assess you instead of a test centre. Three conditions hold together:

  • The course is at degree level or above
  • Your sponsor is a higher education provider with a track record of compliance
  • The CAS states that the sponsor assessed your English and the method it used

Miss any one and you are back to a Secure English Language Test (SELT), the approved four-skill test taken at an approved centre. Which score your university wants sits in our breakdown of the PTE score required for UK study.

One exemption you can stop looking for: EL 4.1 waives the requirement for nationals of majority English-speaking countries. India is not on that list, and English-medium schooling does not open the door.

If you do need one, five SELT providers are approved, the test must be sat at an approved location, and it must have been awarded in the two years before your application date. Every intake we meet students in Hyderabad who’d paid for a slot before checking whether their CAS carried the university’s own assessment. Check the CAS wording first, then our guide to studying in the UK without IELTS.

The financial requirement: GBP 1,529 or GBP 1,171 a month

In 2026, the maintenance requirement is GBP 1,529 a month (approx. INR 195,768) for a London course and GBP 1,171 (approx. INR 149,931) outside London, for a maximum of 9 months, set by the Home Office on its Student visa: money you need guidance. Nine months is a ceiling, not a flat figure.

Parents, this is the number your lender sizes the loan against, not the number your child will spend. You evidence only the course fees still outstanding on the CAS for one academic year. Under ST 12.4 a deposit paid to your sponsor for its own accommodation offsets the rest, capped at GBP 1,529. A private landlord’s deposit does not count.

Maintenance elementGBPINR (approx.)
London course, per month1,529195,768
London course, 9-month maximum13,7611,761,909
Outside London, per month1,171149,931
Outside London, 9-month maximum10,5391,349,376
Deduct: outstanding course fees on your CAS (one academic year)As stated on CASAs stated on CAS
Deduct: deposit paid to your sponsor for its own accommodationUp to 1,529Up to 195,768
Add: each dependant, London, per month845108,191
Add: each dependant, outside London, per month68087,065

The 28-day hold and the 31-day evidence window

Holding the money is a timing exercise, not a balance check. The funds must sit in the account for 28 days in a row, ending within 31 days of your application date. Appendix Finance builds it backwards: FIN 7.1 dates your latest evidence to within 31 days before you apply, and FIN 7.2 counts the 28 days back from its closing balance. So do not move money into a fresh account to tidy the paperwork; the clock restarts, and the neater document costs a month.

These amounts apply to applications made on or after 11 November 2025, according to the UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA). Lower monthly figures predate that. Set aside the 12-month rule that removes the funds test: ST 12.1 reaches only applications for permission to stay made inside the UK.

At the London rate, nine months means GBP 13,761 sitting untouched for a month, and no property valuation or gold holding substitutes for it. Which instruments qualify sits in our proof of funds guide.

UK student visa fees for Indian students: GBP 558, the IHS and priority processing

In August 2026, the Home Office charges Indian applicants INR 74,383 for a Student visa, published on its UK visa fees for India portal. At the rate in the note above, GBP 558 converts to about INR 71,444, so the rupee price sits roughly INR 2,939 higher.

No published source explains the gap, so treat it as arithmetic. Budget the rupee figure; a converted one is a wrong number.

The larger charge is the Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS), the up-front payment for National Health Service access. In 2026 it runs at GBP 776 per year for students and dependants, billed on the length of permission rather than course length. A stay of 6 months or less applied for from outside the UK attracts none; over 6 months but under a year costs a full year.

ChargeAmountWhat it covers
Student visa application feeINR 74,383 (GBP 558 on GOV.UK)Charged in rupees when applying from India
Immigration Health SurchargeGBP 776 (approx. INR 99,356) per yearEvery year of permission, paid before the decision
Priority service, optionalGBP 500 (approx. INR 64,018)Decision within 5 working days
Super priority service, optionalGBP 1,000 (approx. INR 128,036)Decision by the end of the next working day
Tuberculosis test at an approved Hyderabad clinicINR 2,200 to INR 2,800Paid directly to the clinic
ATAS certificate, where requiredGBP 0No fee, but not instant

Priority and super priority sit on top of the fee and are offered during the application rather than guaranteed, so buy speed only when a date forces it. An aged bank statement just buys a faster refusal.

The IHS outweighs the application fee on any course longer than twelve months, falls due at the same moment as the fee, and is charged for every year of permission before a caseworker reads your file. Tuition and living costs sit in our breakdown of the cost of studying in the UK.

Documents required for a UK student visa

Almost every item on a UK student visa document list is conditional. That is why forum checklists run longer than the one the Home Office mandates.

The two documents every applicant must upload

Strip the UK student visa requirements for Indian students back to what every applicant must provide, and two items remain: a current passport or other valid travel documentation, and a CAS from your course provider.

Everything else attaches to a circumstance:

  • Financial evidence, because India is outside the differential evidence list
  • Qualification documents, unless the exemption below applies
  • A tuberculosis certificate, for where you have lived
  • An ATAS certificate, if your course needs one
  • Parental consent, if the funds sit in a parent’s account

A covering letter is on no mandatory list. It earns a place only when your file needs explaining, and our guide to the UK student visa cover letter sets out what belongs in one.

Financial evidence, and when you can skip your transcripts

ST 20.1 drops the qualification-evidence requirement on two conditions: the course is at degree level or above, and the sponsor is a higher education provider with a track record of compliance. Both, not either. It covers qualifications only, never money. A master’s applicant at a compliant university may leave out the Class XII marksheet. That same applicant still uploads every page of the bank statement.

Your TB certificate: India is on the list

A tuberculosis test is required if you have lived in India for 6 months or more, were living there within the last 6 months, and are coming to the UK for 6 months or more. A clear result gives a certificate valid for 6 months from the date of the x-ray, not from the date you receive it.

In August 2026, the Home Office lists approved clinics across India, three of them in Hyderabad, charging INR 2,200 to INR 2,800 for applicants aged 11 and above. Students we sit with in Hyderabad routinely leave the x-ray until last. Book it early, because the certificate ages from the x-ray date and the slot you want isn’t always there.

ATAS, if your course code needs it

The Academic Technology Approval Scheme (ATAS) is the security clearance certain sensitive-technology courses need. It costs nothing. Applications take at least 30 working days, and the certificate is valid for 6 months.

Apply too late and you cannot file; too early and the certificate expires before your CAS arrives. Aim for clearance a month before you apply.

How long a UK student visa takes, and when to apply

In 2026, you can apply up to 6 months before your course start date from outside the UK, and a decision usually arrives within 3 weeks, both stated on the Home Office’s Student visa overview. That window is the one part of this process you fully control, so treat the earliest date as the target rather than the fallback.

You will not use the whole six months, because two things gate your filing date: the CAS has to exist, and the funds hold has to be finished. Work backwards from the arrival date, subtract the three-week decision and the 31-day evidence window, and you have the day the money must already be sitting there.

6 months

Earliest you can apply before the course starts GOV.UK, 2026

30 days

Minimum working days an ATAS certificate takes GOV.UK, 2026

6 months

TB certificate validity, from the x-ray date GOV.UK, 2026

3 weeks

Usual decision time from outside the UK GOV.UK, 2026

1 month

Earliest arrival for a course over 6 months GOV.UK, 2026

A grant no longer arrives as a card in your passport. In 2026 you get an eVisa, an online record of immigration status reached through the UKVI account you create, so confirm you can open that record before booking flights. Two limits then govern arrival, both in the Student visa: apply from outside the UK guidance: a course over 6 months lets you enter up to 1 month early, and you must never travel before the start date printed on the visa. Where those dates come from is covered in our walkthrough of the UCAS application process for Indian students.

Why UK student visa applications get refused

A file arrives with a valid CAS, ample money, and 28 days that finish two days after filing. It is refused, and it is far more typical than the obviously weak one.

Money the rules do not accept

Appendix Finance tests access, not wealth. FIN 8.1 requires an account the funds can be withdrawn from immediately, and FIN 8.2 excludes shares, bonds, credit cards and pensions you cannot draw on immediately. On that same access test, a fixed deposit with a lock-in fails too. A student loan qualifies on a lender letter dated within 6 months. UKCISA adds that overseas funds are disregarded where the Home Office cannot verify the bank, it is unregulated at home, or it keeps no electronic records.

From our counselling desk: what sinks a file at our Hyderabad office is almost never the amount in the account. It's the dates around it. Ranked by how often we send a file back: a closing balance that's already too old, then 28 days incomplete on filing day, then money from an account belonging to neither the student nor a parent. Fix the dates before you book biometrics.

The genuine student test and the credibility interview

ST 5.1 requires that the applicant be a genuine student, letting a caseworker weigh your immigration history, study gap, finances and course choice. But under the caseworker guidance, version 14.0, a caseworker must not refuse on genuineness grounds without interviewing you, unless an earlier genuineness refusal stands with no change in circumstances and no new evidence. So an interview is not a bad sign; it is the step that must precede refusal. The Home Office publishes no figure for the proportion interviewed.

False information, including your agent’s

Part 9 Suitability paragraph SUI 10.1 permits refusal where the applicant or a third party supplied false documents. The rule then adds the phrase that should decide how you pick an agent: “whether or not to the applicant’s knowledge”. A doctored statement filed for you is your refusal. Where deception is established SUI 9.1 makes refusal mandatory and SUI 12.1 attaches a 10-year re-entry ban.

If you are refused, most students ask about Administrative Review first. The more urgent question is the CAS: ST 7.2 has spent it, so ask your university for a new one the week the refusal lands. The Home Office publishes no Student route refusal or grant rate by nationality, only grant counts, and ICEF Monitor reports rates for Pakistan at 41% and Nigeria at 20% with none for India.

Work rights and dependants on a UK student visa

Your right to work is set by your course level and sponsor, not by holding a visa. Breach it and the consequence is yours, not your employer’s.

ST 26.1 sets three tiers, and the third is the one aggregators omit:

  • 20 hours a week in term time, for degree-level study with a higher education provider that has a track record of compliance
  • 10 hours a week in term time, for below-degree-level study with such a sponsor
  • No employment permitted for all other study, including all part-time study

So “degree-level students can work 20 hours” is only true with the sponsor condition attached. Check your university’s status before you accept a job, not after. Outside term time the rule permits full-time employment and sets no hourly number, so any numeric vacation cap you have seen quoted has no official source. Hourly pay sits in our note on the UK minimum wage.

ST 26.5 bans four things outright: self-employment, business activity, work as a professional sportsperson or entertainer, and filling a permanent full-time vacancy. Gig-platform delivery counts as self-employment, so two evenings on a food-delivery app breaches the route as fully as a full week would.

Dependants are misread most often. Only two groups can bring a partner or children: government-sponsored students on courses longer than 6 months, and full-time students on a PhD, another doctorate or a research-based higher degree of 9 months or more. A taught master’s does not qualify, however long it runs. The test is course type and sponsorship, not length. Each dependant carries their own maintenance on top of yours, at the rates tabled above.

How long your UK student visa lasts, and what comes next

Two rules decide your stay: course level sets the study permission, and one application date sets what follows.

SituationLength of permission
Degree-level course, applicant aged 18 or overUp to 5 years
Graduate visa applied for before 1 January 20272 years
Graduate visa applied for on or after 1 January 202718 months
Graduate visa, doctoral graduates3 years

Appendix Graduate paragraph GR 8.1 keys the cut to the date the Graduate visa application is made. Not your course start date, not your end date, not your graduation ceremony. A student finishing in December 2026 who files on 3 January 2027 gets 18 months; the same student filing three days earlier gets two years. If your completion sits near that boundary, treat the switch as a diary entry to make now, and our guide to the post study work visa in the UK covers eligibility.

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Frequently Asked Questions

No. The 28 consecutive days must be complete on the day you file, because the closing balance on your latest financial evidence has to be dated within 31 days before the date of application. Your biometric appointment comes afterwards and does not extend that window.

Not on the Student visa itself, which is temporary permission to study. The Graduate visa that follows is also time-limited, on the schedule tabled above. Settlement runs through a separate work route with its own sponsor, salary and residence rules, so plan it as a later application, not an extension.

In the year ending March 2026, Indian nationals received 90,425 Sponsored Study visas as main applicants, 23% of the 409,954 granted and the largest share of any nationality. The Home Office publishes no refusal rate by nationality, so judge your chances on your file, not a percentage.

Not necessarily. Appendix Finance accepts an account held by your parent or legal guardian, provided you supply proof of the relationship and written consent from that parent. A sibling, uncle, cousin or family friend does not qualify, however close the family and however willing they are to sign.

Recency decides it. All three must apply: a UK stay of 6 months or more, 6 months or more lived in a listed country, and residence in one of those countries within the last 6 months. India is listed, so if you left over 6 months ago and have lived elsewhere since, that third condition may not be met.

Ardent Overseas counsels students from offices in Hyderabad and Tirupati. On the visa file, we build the funds timeline backwards from your CAS date, check the closing balance and the 31-day window before you file, and review each document against the rule that governs it. We can’t promise you an outcome, because the Home Office decides that.

Sources

Figures are 2026/27 entry, checked against the Immigration Rules as at 3 August 2026.

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