International student maintenance increase
The maintenance requirement is for student applicants to demonstrate they have enough funds to support themselves for each month of their course (up to nine months). This level of funds was originally matched with the maintenance loans available for home students, but the maintenance requirement for international students has not been updated since 2020. We are making a change to increase the maintenance requirement for international students to match the maintenance loans available for home students for the 2024-25 academic year. We will aim to ensure it aligns with home students’ maintenance loans in future.
Currently the maintenance level is set at £1334/month for those studying in London and £1023 for people studying outside of London. This is being changed to £1483 and £1136 respectively.
This change will come into effect for students making a visa application on or after 2 January 2025. The current maintenance levels will remain in place up until that point.
We have also updated the maximum amount for the accommodation offset in line with the changes to the maintenance requirement. The accommodation offset allows students to demonstrate less maintenance funds if they have paid a deposit for their accommodation in the UK. The maximum offset is limited to one month’s maintenance, currently £1334, in line with the higher funds level for London students, which will increase to £1483 from 2 January.
We are also reviewing the maintenance levels set for student dependent’s and we will confirm the outcome of this in due course.
