UK guide · Money
How much it costs to study in the UK from Nepal
A one-year master's in the UK costs a Nepali student about Rs 55 lakh to Rs 85 lakh in total, outside London: tuition of £14,000 to £25,000, living costs for the year, the £558 visa fee, the health surcharge and your flight. London adds about Rs 9 lakh to Rs 11 lakh in living costs. Because most UK master's take one year, the UK often costs less in total than a two-year master's elsewhere.
Written byKamal Pandey, Senior counsellorHandles UK and Germany files, from shortlist to visa appointment.
Checked byRabindra Joshi, Head of complianceChecks every money and visa page against the official source.
Published · 5 min read
The UK cost at a glance
- Tuition
- £14,000 to £25,000 a year (Rs 28.4 to 50.7 lakh)
- Living, outside London
- £850 to £1,250 a month
- Living, London
- £1,300 to £1,700 a month
- Visa + health surcharge
- £558 + £776 a year
- One-year master's
- About Rs 55 to 85 lakh, all in
At Rs 202.99 per GBP (Nepal Rastra Bank sell rate, 18 October 2026).
Total cost of a one-year master's in the UK
This is the whole degree for a student outside London, before part-time income.
| Item | GBP | In rupees |
|---|---|---|
| Tuition | 14,000 to 25,000 | Rs 28.4 to 50.7 lakh |
| Living costs, 12 months | 11,400 to 15,000 | Rs 23.1 to 30.4 lakh |
| Student visa | 558 | Rs 1.13 lakh |
| Immigration Health Surcharge | about 1,164 | Rs 2.36 lakh |
| Flight, one way | Rs 1 to 1.5 lakh | |
| Total | About Rs 55 to 85 lakh |
A 3-year bachelor's costs about Rs 1.6 crore to Rs 2.5 crore before part-time income, because you pay tuition, rent and the surcharge three times.
UK tuition fees for Nepali students
Tuition is set by each university and course. Most of what our students choose falls between £14,000 and £25,000 a year.
- Business, management and IT master's: usually £15,000 to £22,000
- Engineering, data science and public health: usually £18,000 to £25,000
- London universities: often £3,000 to £6,000 more for the same subject
- Medicine and some specialist courses: much higher, and outside what we usually advise
Most universities offer international scholarships of £2,000 to £5,000 off the first year, and many apply them automatically to good marks. Chevening and GREAT go further; see UK scholarships for Nepali students. You pay a deposit, usually £2,000 to £8,000, before the university issues your CAS. It's sent from Nepal after your NOC.
Cost of living in the UK by city
| City | Rent (shared) | Total a month | In rupees |
|---|---|---|---|
| London | £850 to 1,150 | £1,300 to 1,700 | Rs 2.6 to 3.5 lakh |
| Manchester | £550 to 750 | £950 to 1,250 | Rs 1.9 to 2.5 lakh |
| Birmingham | £520 to 720 | £900 to 1,200 | Rs 1.8 to 2.4 lakh |
| Leeds | £480 to 680 | £850 to 1,150 | Rs 1.7 to 2.3 lakh |
Most of our UK students study outside London, and this table is why. The same master's in Leeds instead of London saves about Rs 11 lakh to Rs 13 lakh in living costs alone.
Cost versus the money you must show for the visa
What you'll spend and what you must show aren't the same. For the visa, you hold your unpaid first-year tuition plus £1,171 a month outside London (£1,529 in London) for up to 9 months, for 28 days in a row. From 30 November 2026 those rise to £1,203 and £1,570.
For a typical master's outside London, after the deposit, that's about Rs 45 lakh to Rs 55 lakh held in your or your parent's name. The UK student visa guide explains the 28-day rule and the documents.
What part-time work covers in the UK
You can work 20 hours a week in term and full-time in official vacations. The National Living Wage is £12.71 an hour from 1 April 2026 for workers aged 21 and over.
At 20 hours a week that's about £1,100 a month before tax, about Rs 2.2 lakh. That covers most living costs outside London, but not tuition. A one-year master's also has short vacations and a dissertation over the summer, so you'll work fewer full-time weeks than you might expect.
Most of our students find their first job in 3 to 10 weeks. Bring 2 to 3 months of living money so the first job doesn't have to be the first one offered.
Is the UK cheaper than Australia?
Per year, they cost about the same. Over a whole master's, the UK usually costs less, because it takes one year instead of 1.5 to 2.
| Country | Usual length | Rough total |
|---|---|---|
| UK | 1 year | Rs 55 to 85 lakh |
| Australia | 1.5 to 2 years | Rs 1 crore or more |
| Germany, public university | 2 years | Rs 50 to 60 lakh |
The UK's trade-offs are real, though: family members can't come on a taught master's, and the Graduate visa drops from 2 years to 18 months for applications from 1 January 2027. Our cheapest countries guide compares all 10 countries we cover.
