UK Student Visa Maintenance Funds Increase (2025-26): What Sri Lankan Students Must Now Show

If you have been planning your UK student visa application using the old maintenance figures — £1,334 per month for London or £1,023 per month outside London — stop. The UK Home Office raised those amounts for the 2025-26 academic year, and the new figures are now what you must show. The jump is significant: London applicants now need £1,529 per month and those studying outside London need £1,171 per month, for up to nine months. Many Sri Lankan students who started building their finances under the old rules are now short. This guide explains exactly what changed, how to calculate your new total, and what to do if you need to top up.

What Changed: The New Maintenance Figures for 2025-26

The UK Home Office updates the maintenance fund thresholds periodically, and for the 2025-26 academic year the amounts were raised considerably. These higher figures apply to applications being submitted now and continue to apply to 2026 applications for the same academic cycle.

• London: £1,529 per month (up from £1,334 per month — an increase of £195 per month)
• Outside London: £1,171 per month (up from £1,023 per month — an increase of £148 per month)
• The per-month rate applies for up to 9 months — this is the maximum the Home Office counts, regardless of how long your course is

These are not minor adjustments. The London rate has risen by nearly 15 percent and the outside-London rate by more than 14 percent. For students who prepared finances months ago using the old thresholds, the gap between what you have and what you now need could be substantial.

The 9-Month Maths: Your Total Maintenance Requirement

The Home Office caps the maintenance calculation at 9 months, even if your course runs for 3 or 4 years. So the maximum maintenance amount you will ever be required to show — before adding unpaid tuition fees — is fixed. Here is how the totals work out at the new rates.

London: 9 months multiplied by £1,529 equals £13,761. Outside London: 9 months multiplied by £1,171 equals £10,539. Compare those to the previous maximums of £12,006 (London) and £9,207 (outside London). The increases in total are £1,755 for London and £1,332 for outside London — real money that many applicants will need to find.

In Sri Lankan rupee terms, at a rough indicative rate of LKR 340 per pound (check the current rate — it moves), the new 9-month London total is approximately LKR 4.68 million and the outside-London total is approximately LKR 3.58 million. These are rough conversions only; the Home Office requires the funds in GBP in a bank account, and the LKR equivalent will shift with the exchange rate.

Plus Tuition Fees Not Yet Paid

The maintenance amount is only part of what you must show. On top of the maintenance total, you also need to demonstrate that you can cover any portion of your course fees that you have not yet paid to the university. Your Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS) letter will specify the fee amount your university is using.

So your total required balance is: the maintenance amount (either £13,761 for London or £10,539 for outside London) plus any unpaid course fees stated on your CAS. A student studying in London on a course with £22,000 annual tuition — not yet paid — would need to show £13,761 plus £22,000, totalling approximately £35,761. If fees are already paid in full, no additional fee amount is required.

The 28-Day Rule Still Applies — No Changes There

The maintenance fund increase did not change the 28-day rule, which remains one of the strictest and most unforgiving requirements of the UK student visa. The full required amount — maintenance plus any unpaid fees — must be present in your bank account (or your sponsor's account) continuously for 28 consecutive days.

• The funds must be held every single day for 28 consecutive days — not just at the start and end
• The 28-day period must end within 31 days before the date you submit your online visa application
• The balance must not dip below the required total on even one day during this period
• You cannot fund the account with a commercial bank loan — the money must be genuinely yours or your sponsor's

Our guide on the UK 28-day rule goes into this in more detail, including common mistakes Sri Lankan applicants make. If you are using a parent's account, you will also need a signed sponsorship letter, your birth certificate as proof of relationship, and source-of-funds documentation for the funds in that account. The 28-day clock applies equally to self-funded and parent-funded cases.

What This Means for Sri Lankan Students Already Mid-Preparation

If you started building your bank balance based on guidance you received six months ago, or based on what a friend told you, or based on figures from a blog post published before the increase was announced, you may be working to the wrong target. This is the reality many Sri Lankan applicants now face.

For a London-based course, the shortfall between the old maximum (£12,006) and the new one (£13,761) is £1,755. That is a meaningful gap when you also have to maintain the balance continuously for 28 days. Topping up your account right before applying will not help if the higher amount was not present throughout the full 28-day window — you would need to start a fresh 28-day period at the correct, higher balance.

Topping Up Funds You Already Prepared at the Old Figures

If you need to top up to reach the new threshold, the key thing to understand is timing. The 28-day window must end within 31 days of your application date. So if you top up today, you need to wait at least 28 days before submitting your application — and the balance must stay at or above the new required amount throughout that entire period.

For Sri Lankan students preparing through local banks such as Bank of Ceylon, Commercial Bank, Sampath, Hatton National Bank, People's Bank, or NDB, the process is straightforward if you have the funds available. If you do not have the additional amount readily available in your own account and are relying on a parent sponsor, make sure the top-up goes into the correct account — the one that will be used for the bank statements — and that it remains there without dropping for the full 28 days.

Large sudden deposits can attract questions about source of funds. If the top-up amount is significant and represents a transfer from another account or a lump-sum transfer from family, be prepared to document the origin of those funds. Our guide on explaining large deposits to embassies covers the documentation approach in detail.

How ShowMoneyLK Helps with the New UK Maintenance Amounts

ShowMoneyLK has helped hundreds of Sri Lankan students meet UK student visa financial requirements, and we track changes in threshold amounts so that our clients always work to the correct current figures. When you work with us, we calculate your exact required balance — maintenance at the current rate plus any unpaid course fees — and help you structure your bank account to meet the 28-day rule cleanly.

We work with CBSL-approved institutions and can provide bank statements and balance confirmation letters in formats that UK Visas and Immigration accepts. If your current balance is short of the new threshold, we will assess your realistic options given your application timeline — honestly, without promising what is not possible. We also prepare source-of-funds documentation for parent-sponsored cases, which is one of the most commonly queried parts of a UK student visa financial package.