costs & funding
What a year in the UK really costs from Nepal — tuition, the maintenance figure you must show, the health surcharge — and the 28-day rule that decides whether your money counts.
The UK's defining financial feature is the one-year taught master's. A degree that takes two years elsewhere takes one here, which changes the total cost of the qualification far more than the per-year figure suggests.
Some lower-cost universities advertise undergraduate tuition from around £9,500–11,000, and PhD places are frequently funded. As always, the course page is the only figure that binds.
The UK sets a monthly maintenance figure you must prove, and it depends on whether you study in London. It is capped at nine months regardless of how long your course runs.
Older figures are still circulating: £1,334 / £1,023 (pre-2025) and £1,483 / £1,136 (from Jan 2025) Any source still quoting those has not been updated since 2025 — treat the rest of its numbers with the same suspicion.
One useful offset: up to £1,529 of a paid accommodation deposit can reduce the maintenance amount you need to show.
The IHS is paid upfront for the whole visa length, so a one-year master's with its short wrap-around usually means more than one year of surcharge in a single payment. In return you get NHS access on the same basis as a resident — genuinely valuable, and easy to undervalue when comparing destinations.
This is the most mechanical and most avoidable refusal reason in the entire UK process — and it catches Nepali applicants constantly.
You must show your outstanding first-year tuition as stated on the CAS, plus the maintenance figure — use the outstanding amount shown on the CAS, not the headline fee
The full amount must sit in the account for 28 consecutive days
The statement's closing balance date must be within 31 days of the date you apply
Nepal is not on the UKVI differentiation (low-risk) list. That means you must submit full financial evidence upfront, where nationals of some other countries are not asked to.
Accepted: personal, parent or guardian bank statements (a parent's account needs a consent letter and proof of relationship), an education-loan letter meeting Student-route rules, and liquidated or matured fixed deposits.
Not accepted, ever: property papers, salary slips, shares or bonds, pension funds, credit cards, overdrafts. Families routinely assemble the wrong evidence here and lose an intake to it.
Indicative only. Every UK figure is set and charged in pounds; the rupee equivalent moves with the rate.
Reference rate used here: 1 GBP ≈ NPR 175–185. NPR is pegged to INR, so GBP/NPR moves with GBP/INR.
The outside-London maintenance cap of £10,539 is roughly NPR 1.85–1.95 million
A first-year all-in for a taught master's outside London commonly lands around £25,000–40,000 ≈ NPR 4.4–7.4 million
The UK offers two genuinely significant government scholarships that Nepali students are eligible for — more than most destinations.
Chevening — UK-government, fully funded one-year master's. Nepal is an eligible country — competitive; verify the current cycle.
Commonwealth Scholarships — master's and PhD for Commonwealth countries. Nepal is eligible.
GREAT Scholarships and university bursaries. Numerous partial awards and international fee waivers.
Term-time work: up to 20 hours per week, and full-time during official vacations.
Your work rights are identical whether you proved English by IELTS or by the MOI route — a persistent myth says otherwise. Breaching the term-time cap risks your visa, so treat 20 hours as a hard line, not a guideline.
Nepali bank education loans are commonly used, and the loan letter must meet UK Student-route rules to count as evidence. Specific bank rates: not published