UK Student Visa Financial Requirements: Maintenance Funds, 28-Day Rule, and 2026 Amounts

Missing the UK student visa financial requirements by a single detail — one day short on the holding period, one penny below the threshold, a statement from the wrong bank — results in an automatic refusal. UKVI does not contact applicants to ask for clarification. It just refuses.

This guide covers the 2026 financial requirements for the UK Student Route: how much you need, how long you need to hold it, who can provide the funds, and what the "28-day rule" actually means in practice.

How Much You Need to Show in 2026

The UK Home Office updated maintenance fund thresholds in late 2025. The amount you need to demonstrate depends on two things: where your institution is located and how much of your course remains.

For full-year applicants applying from outside the UK, the standard requirements are:

Living costs (maintenance funds):

Tuition fees: You must also show funds equal to your first year of tuition fees, unless your Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS) states that you have already paid them or that your course fees are covered by a scholarship.

The combined total you need to show = maintenance funds for up to 9 months + first-year tuition fees (if not already paid or covered).

For a student at a university outside London with annual tuition of £18,000 who has not yet paid fees:

• Tuition: £18,000
• Maintenance (9 months × £1,171): £10,539
• Total required: £28,539

For a student whose CAS already records the tuition as paid:

• Maintenance only: £10,539

Check your CAS carefully — what it says about fees paid directly affects how much you need to show.

The 28-Day Rule: Exactly What It Means

The 28-day rule is UKVI's primary mechanism for preventing fund parking. It means:

1. The required total amount must be present in the account(s) you are using as evidence for 28 consecutive days without dropping below the threshold on any single day
2. The last day of that 28-day window — called the "closing date" of your evidence — must fall no more than 31 days before the date of your online visa application

This means you cannot use a bank statement showing the balance from 35 days ago. And you cannot just deposit the funds 5 days before applying — the 28-day holding period must already be complete.

Practical timeline: If you plan to apply on June 1, your 28-day holding period must start no later than May 4. If funds arrive on May 6, you cannot apply until June 3 at the earliest.

The threshold cannot dip. If your account held £11,000 for 27 days and then dropped to £10,000 on day 28, the 28-day rule is not satisfied. UKVI reviews the closing balance of the statement, but officers can request full transaction histories. A dip during the period is grounds for refusal.

Acceptable Types of Bank Accounts

UKVI is specific about what counts as an acceptable financial institution:

Acceptable:

• Personal savings or current accounts at banks regulated by the FCA (UK), or their equivalent regulatory bodies in other countries (e.g., RBI in India, CBN in Nigeria, SBP in Pakistan)
• Accounts at international banks with FCA recognition or equivalence

Not acceptable:

• Cryptocurrency wallets or exchange accounts
• Pension accounts, provident funds, or retirement funds (they are not liquid)
• Stocks, bonds, mutual funds, or any investment account unless it has been liquidated into a cash account
• Accounts at unregulated financial institutions
• Accounts held in a business's name (must be personal)

Some applicants from India use their NRE (Non-Resident External) accounts in Indian banks — these are generally acceptable as long as the bank is recognized and the statement shows the required balance in the holding period.

Who Can Provide the Funds

UKVI is strict about whose money counts:

You can use funds in:

• Your own account
• Your parent's account (must provide original birth certificate or legal adoption certificate linking you to the parent)
• Your legal guardian's account (must provide the legal guardianship order)

You cannot use funds from:

• Siblings
• Grandparents (unless they hold formal legal guardianship)
• Aunts, uncles, or other relatives
• Friends, employers, or any third party

If you use a parent's account, you must provide the birth certificate at the time of application, not later. Missing this document means UKVI will not accept the funds as valid evidence.

Format of Financial Evidence

Documents must show:

• Your full name (or the account holder's name if using a parent's account)
• The account number
• The financial institution's name and logo
• Individual transactions or a running balance for the full 28-day period
• The closing balance

E-statements: Acceptable, but must show the URL of the bank's web portal at the bottom of each page — evidence of direct download, not local editing. A statement printed from a browser without the URL footer is often rejected.

Stamped statements: For banks in India, Nigeria, Pakistan, and similar markets, a physically stamped and signed statement from the bank branch is recommended. Online printouts alone from these markets have higher rejection rates.

Language: All documents must be in English or accompanied by a certified translation.

If Your Funds Are From a Recent Large Deposit

A sudden large deposit that does not fit the pattern of your regular account activity will raise a fund parking flag. This applies even if the funds are legitimate — for example, if you recently received a parental gift, sold assets, or liquidated an investment.

In these cases, include a letter explaining the source of the deposit. This should be accompanied by documentary evidence: a gift deed if the money came from a parent, a sale deed if it came from property, or a fund redemption document if from an investment. The letter itself is not enough — it needs documentation.

Applying From Inside the UK (Visa Extension)

If you are already in the UK and extending your student visa, the same 28-day rule and threshold amounts apply. Your CAS must be dated within the last 6 months of your application date. For extensions, you do not need to show funds for the full first-year tuition — only the maintenance amount, since you are already enrolled.

What Happens If You Fall Just Short

UKVI does not grant leeway for being slightly under the threshold. A balance of £10,500 when £10,539 is required is a refusal. The only remedy is to reapply with corrected evidence — and pay the visa application fee again.

If you're close to the threshold: maintain a buffer of at least 5–10% above the required amount. Exchange rate fluctuations affect the value of funds held in currencies other than GBP, and even minor movements can push a converted balance below the threshold on the assessment date.

The UK student visa has some of the most rigidly enforced financial documentation rules of any immigration system in the world. Getting the 28-day window, the account holder relationships, and the document format right simultaneously requires careful planning.

The Financial Documentation & Proof of Funds Guide covers the UK maintenance fund requirements in full, alongside the comparable requirements for Canada, Germany, Australia, and the US — with a submission timing calculator and templates for source-of-funds explanations.