UK Student Visa: Requirements & How to Apply

Below: the full requirements checklist, what a CAS is, the 28-day proof-of-funds rule that trips up genuine students, the English rules, the fees (including the cost in Naira and how to pay through VFS Global), a step-by-step guide, the complete documents checklist, and the common reasons UK student visas get refused.

Who this is for. This page is for students from Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, Zimbabwe, Zambia, South Africa and across Africa applying for the UK Student visa (the route that replaced Tier 4). The fees section below converts every cost into Naira for Nigerian applicants.

UK student visa requirements (checklist)

To qualify for a UK Student visa you must score 70 points — 50 for a confirmed place of study, 10 for money, and 10 for English. In plain terms, that means you need:

• A CAS (Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies) from a licensed UK university — your offer must be accepted first.
• Proof of funds — your first year’s tuition (as printed on your CAS) plus living costs of £1,529/month (London) or £1,171/month (outside London), held in an account for 28 consecutive days.
• English at the required level — usually proven by your university (school English grades or a Medium of Instruction letter), or by an approved test.
• A valid passport and a recent passport photo / biometrics.
• The fees paid — the £558 visa fee and the IHS, both online.
• A TB test certificate — required for most African origins because your course is longer than six months.
• Academic certificates — the qualifications your offer was based on (WAEC/NECO, KCSE, NSC, ZIMSEC, a prior degree, etc.).

Each of these is explained below. The two most common reasons genuine African students get refused are a broken 28-day funds rule and a weak credibility answer — so read those sections carefully.

Your CAS explained

A CAS (Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies) is an electronic record your UK university issues once you’ve accepted an unconditional offer and met any conditions (deposit, English, documents). It is the single most important requirement — without a CAS you cannot apply.

Your CAS contains a CAS number you enter on the visa form, and it states your course, its start and end dates, and your first year’s tuition fee — the exact figure the Home Office uses to check your proof of funds. Key things to know:

• Only licensed student sponsors (universities and colleges on the Home Office register) can issue a CAS. Always confirm your university is licensed before paying any deposit.
• A CAS is valid for six months and you can normally only use it once, so apply for your visa promptly after you receive it.
• If your CAS shows you’ve already paid part of your tuition (a deposit), that reduces the amount you must show in your account.

If a school cannot issue a CAS, it is not licensed to enrol visa students — a red flag we always check. See how our UK application support works.

Proof of funds & the 28-day rule

After your CAS, money is where most applications are won or lost. You must prove you can pay for your first year, showing two things:

1. Your first year’s tuition — the figure printed on your CAS (less any deposit already paid).
2. Living costs (maintenance): £1,529/month for London or £1,171/month outside London, for up to 9 months. That is a maximum of £13,761 (London) or £10,539 (outside London).

The 28-day rule is the trap. The required total must sit in your account — or a parent’s/sponsor’s account — for 28 consecutive days, and the closing balance on your statement must be dated within 31 days of the day you apply. During those 28 days the balance must never drop below the required amount, even for a single day.

A few details that catch African applicants out:

• Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, Zimbabwe, Zambia and South Africa are not on the UK’s “differential evidence” list, so you must submit full financial evidence upfront — you cannot apply now and send proof later.
• Money must be in cash funds (current/savings accounts). Shares, property, pensions and some investment accounts do not count.
• If a parent or sponsor holds the money, you’ll need their bank statement, a letter of consent, and proof of your relationship.

This is the single most common reason a genuine student is refused — so we review every applicant’s statements against the 28-day rule before submission. The fees section below shows the same maintenance figures converted into Naira.

English requirement

You need to prove English at roughly CEFR B2 level to score the 10 English points. Importantly, skipping IELTS is not the same as “no English needed” — you still have to satisfy both your university and the visa.

The good news for African students: none of the six main origin countries is on the Home Office’s “majority English-speaking” exemption list, but most UK universities self-assess English at degree level and waive IELTS through:

• A Medium of Instruction (MOI) letter — proof your previous degree was taught in English.
• School English grades — e.g. WAEC/WASSCE or NECO English at C6 or above, KCSE, NSC, Zambia GCE or ZIMSEC.
• An approved alternative test — IELTS for UKVI, TOEFL iBT, PTE Academic, LanguageCert, Cambridge or Trinity (Duolingo at some universities only).

High-bar courses — Law, Medicine, Nursing, Teaching, Journalism — usually still require a formal test (often IELTS 7.0–7.5) with minimum component scores. For the full picture of waivers and which universities accept what, read study in the UK without IELTS.

Fees & the Immigration Health Surcharge

There are two costs you pay directly to the Home Office, both online during your application:

• A 1-year master’s pays about £776 IHS (often £1,164 for an 18-month visa); a 3-year bachelor’s pays about £2,328 (£776 × 3).
• The IHS is separate from and on top of the £558 visa fee.
• Beyond these, budget for the TB test, document courier, and any optional VFS Global add-ons.

(Pound figures are from gov.uk; re-check on the day you apply, as fees are uprated periodically.) For the same costs converted into Naira and how to pay them, see the next section.

UK student visa fees from Nigeria (in Naira)

For Nigerian applicants, here is every UK student visa cost in pounds and Naira. The UK student visa fee in Nigeria is £558 (about ₦1.01 million), paid online when you apply. On top of that you pay the Immigration Health Surcharge of £776 per year, and you must show maintenance funds — money you prove you have, not money you hand over.

FX as of June 2026 at £1 ≈ ₦1,807. The Naira is volatile — rates move every couple of weeks, so treat every ₦ figure as a planning estimate and re-check on the day you pay.

The two costs you actually hand over to the Home Office are the £558 visa fee and the IHS. In Naira, a three-year IHS is roughly ₦4.2 million — so for a longer degree the IHS, not the visa fee, is the bigger Home Office cost. If you read older guides quoting £490 or £524, those are out of date: the current Student visa fee is £558, and maintenance was uprated to £1,529 / £1,171 for applications on or after 11 November 2025.

How and where to pay your UK visa fee in Nigeria

You pay the fee and IHS online on gov.uk, then attend a VFS Global centre in person for biometrics. Here’s how it works:

• The visa fee is charged in pounds — your card is billed in GBP and converted to Naira by your bank, so the exact Naira amount depends on your card’s exchange rate that day. Many Nigerian cards have a low international limit, so check yours works for foreign-currency payments before you start.
• You cannot pay the Home Office in cash or in Naira directly — it’s an online card payment. VFS may charge separate service or add-on fees at the centre, which can be paid locally.
• VFS Global runs the UK visa centres in Nigeria (it replaced TLScontact in November 2024). Centres operate in major cities including Abuja and Lagos; check the current centre list and locations on the VFS Global website when you book.
• Optional VFS add-ons — priority/super-priority processing, courier passport return, “keep my passport while I apply”, lounge and SMS services are typically offered as paid extras; skip the ones you don’t need.

If you’re still choosing a country, compare the full picture on our study in the UK from Nigeria track.

Step-by-step: how to apply for a UK student visa

1. Accept your offer and get your CAS. Confirm your university is a licensed sponsor, meet any conditions, and request your CAS — note your CAS number and first-year tuition figure.
2. Prepare your proof of funds. Hold your tuition (less deposit) plus 9 months’ maintenance (£1,529 London / £1,171 outside) for 28 consecutive days, ending within 31 days of applying.
3. Sort your English evidence. Get your MOI letter, school English grades, or book an approved test if your course requires one.
4. Take your TB test at an approved clinic in your country and keep the certificate (valid 6 months).
5. Apply online on gov.uk, complete the Student visa form, and pay the £558 fee and the IHS by card.
6. Prove your identity — either at a VFS Global appointment (biometrics: fingerprints and photo) or via the “UK Immigration: ID Check” app where eligible.
7. Upload your documents — passport, CAS, financial evidence, TB certificate, English evidence and academic certificates.
8. Wait for the decision — usually about three weeks for applications from Africa. Once approved, you receive an eVisa through your UKVI account (physical BRP cards have been phased out).

Want a second pair of eyes before you submit? See how we help with UK applications — we review your funds and documents first.

Full documents checklist

Have these ready before you start the online form (the exact list can vary by case):

• Valid passport (and any old passports with previous travel/visas).
• CAS number and the CAS statement details.
• Bank statements proving 28 days of funds (yours or your sponsor’s), plus a sponsor letter and relationship proof if the money isn’t in your name.
• Tuition deposit receipt, if you’ve paid part of your fees.
• Academic certificates and transcripts the offer was based on (WAEC/NECO, KCSE, NSC, ZIMSEC, degree certificate, etc.).
• English evidence — MOI letter, school English results, or an approved test certificate.
• TB test certificate from an approved clinic.
• Passport-style photo (if not captured at biometrics).
• Parental/sponsor consent letter and ID, where a parent funds you.
• ATAS certificate — only for certain sensitive science/technology postgraduate courses.

Common refusal reasons & how we help

Most UK student visa refusals from Africa are not about ability — they are about paperwork and credibility. The causes we screen for:

• The 28-day rule broken — the balance dipped below the threshold, or the statement is dated too early.
• Wrong funds amount — using stale maintenance figures, or forgetting the unpaid-tuition portion.
• Weak credibility — a vague reason for your course, university or country, which can fail the genuine-student test (some applicants face a credibility interview).
• Missing or expired TB certificate.
• English evidence gaps — an MOI letter that doesn’t meet the wording the university needs.

World Study guides African students through the UK student visa honestly — real costs, real approval odds, and no inflated promises. Recent UK student-visa refusal rates ran around 10% for Nigeria, 17% for Ghana and 12% for Kenya, and careful document checks are exactly how we improve those odds. Our core guidance is free; you only pay if you choose our optional premium visa support.

Talk to a World Study advisor on WhatsApp or take the free 2-minute eligibility check → to have your CAS, funds and documents checked before you apply.

If you’re still researching, start with our study in the UK from Africa hub.