Every country asks you to prove you can live there before it lets you in. Some ask for a sixth of what others do.
The proof-of-funds figure decides more plans than grades, English tests or deadlines put together, and families usually learn it last, after a deposit is paid. We went to the immigration authority, ministry or consulate of every one of the 35 countries on our table and read the current rule. Here is what each asks for in October 2026, in dollars at this week’s rate, and whose money it accepts. The bar is set by policy, not by how expensive the country is, and that is good news if you are flexible about where you go.
Key figures
- $3,700. Poland’s bar for a year, PLN 1,010 a month plus PLN 2,500 for the journey home. The lowest published figure in the EU.
- $25,500. Zurich’s bar, CHF 21,000 confirmed by a Swiss bank. The highest, and nearly seven times Poland’s.
- $11,200 to $15,200. Where most of Western Europe sits: Ireland €10,000, Italy €10,179.85, France €10,530, Germany €11,904, Belgium €12,744, Netherlands €13,569.
- Three moved in 2026. France rose from €615 to €877.50 a month, Italy from €6,947 to €10,179.85 a year, Belgium from €835 to €1,062 a month.
- Five publish nothing. Türkiye, Malaysia, Hungary, Cyprus and Slovakia leave it to the consulate.
Why the figure differs so much
Governments set this number in one of three ways.
A fixed living norm. Britain, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the Nordics, the Netherlands, Belgium, Greece and Germany publish an amount for a frugal year without working. These are the higher figures.
A formula tied to a welfare line. Spain uses its IPREM index, France 47 percent of the gross minimum wage, Portugal, Lithuania, Latvia, Romania and Bulgaria one minimum wage a month, Czechia multiples of its existence minimum, Croatia 25 percent of the average net salary, Slovenia its basic minimum income, Estonia four times its subsistence level, Malta 75 percent of the minimum wage. These sit far below what a student spends, which is why they are the cheapest doors.
No figure at all. Türkiye, Malaysia, Hungary, Cyprus and Slovakia publish a document list and leave the judgement to the officer. Plan to a pattern: three to six months of statements, a balance covering the fee page plus a modest year, and a documented source for every large deposit.
The 35 countries, lowest bar first
Local currency is the official figure; dollars are at the late October 2026 rate, rounded. Tuition is on top of every row.
| Country | What you show for the first year | About | Whose money, and the holding rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Poland | PLN 1,010 a month after housing, plus PLN 2,500 return funds | $3,700 | Polish bank, card limit or scholarship. Documents under a month old. |
| Czechia | CZK 115,810 for a year, from multiples of the existence minimum | $5,300 | Own account. Sponsor only if a public body or company. |
| Croatia | €362.25 a month plus €869.40 return funds, or a scholarship | $5,800 | Own funds or scholarship. |
| Slovenia | €507.43 a month for the whole permit | $6,800 | Own funds, scholarship, or a parent’s statement of support. |
| Serbia | Funds equal to the minimum salary, RSD 64,554 a month; period not stated | $620 a month | Statement, scholarship, or a Serbian resident guarantor. |
| Spain | 100 percent of IPREM, €600 a month, €7,200 for 12 months | $8,100 | Own or a relative’s funds, notarised. Three statements. |
| Bulgaria | One minimum wage, €620.20, per month of stay | $8,300 | Bank statement. One ministry sheet reads it as six wages. |
| Greece | €650 a month | $8,700 | Deposit, transfer, grant or scholarship. |
| Austria | Under 24: €722.58 a month. 24 and over: €1,308.39, for 12 months | $9,700 or $17,600 | Own account, EU-resident guarantor, or scholarship. Rent above €386.43 added. |
| Malta | 75 percent of the minimum wage per month of study, about €746 in 2026 | $10,000 | Own or sponsor’s statements, three months. |
| Latvia | One minimum monthly wage, €780 from April 2026 | $10,500 | Own or sponsor’s funds, notarised. Three months. |
| Finland | €800 a month, €9,600 in the account at application | $10,800 | Own account only, six months of history. No sponsors. |
| Ireland | €10,000 immediate access for the first year | $11,200 | Own or sponsor’s funds, six months, or a €10,000 bond. |
| Italy | €10,179.85 a year, first year only for multi-year courses | $11,400 | Own or parents’ account plus the payer’s employment proof. |
| New Zealand | NZ$20,000 a year | $11,400 | Own funds, sponsor form, or scholarship. |
| France | €877.50 a month from 1 August 2026, €10,530 a year | $11,800 | Own funds, scholarship, or sponsor with payslips. |
| Estonia | €880 a month in 2026 | $11,800 | Own or sponsor’s statements, three months, or scholarship. |
| Portugal | One minimum wage, €920 a month in 2026 | $12,400 | Own funds, scholarship or employment contract. |
| Sweden | SEK 10,656 a month for the whole permit; SEK 255,744 for a two-year master | $12,900 a year | Own account only. No private sponsors. Tuition paid first. |
| Germany | €992 a month, €11,904 in a blocked account | $13,300 | Blocked account, registered sponsor, or public scholarship. |
| Denmark | DKK 7,426 a month, DKK 89,112 for 12 months | $13,300 | Own account only, liquid cash, statement under 30 days old. |
| United Kingdom | £1,171 a month outside London, £1,529 in London, for 9 months | $14,100 or $18,400 | Own or a parent’s account, 28 consecutive days. |
| Belgium | €1,062 a month net for 2026/27, €12,744 a year | $14,300 | Scholarship, transfer to the university, or Annex 32 guarantor. |
| Netherlands | €1,130.77 a month for 2026, €13,569 for 12 months | $15,200 | Own funds or a financier in the Netherlands. |
| Canada | CAD 23,448 a year from 1 September 2026 | $16,700 | Canadian account, GIC, loan, six months of statements, or sponsor. |
| Lithuania | One minimum wage, €1,153, per month plus €1,153 return funds: €14,989 | $16,800 | Statement or employment contract. |
| Norway | NOK 15,488 a month, NOK 170,368 for 2026/27 | $18,300 | Norwegian bank or university deposit account only. |
| Australia | AUD 29,710 for 12 months of living costs | $20,900 | Deposit, loan, scholarship, or parent’s income of AUD 87,856. |
| Switzerland | Set by the canton: CHF 21,000 in Zurich, CHF 20,000 in Geneva | $24,200 to $25,500 | Swiss-licensed bank, Swiss-resident guarantor, or scholarship. |
| Romania | One net minimum wage per month of the visa, plus a full year’s tuition paid | Formula only | No leu figure published. State scholars exempt. |
| Slovakia | No published figure for degree students | None | Checklists still ask for a bank certificate or sponsor declaration. |
| Hungary | No fixed figure; “sufficient resources” plus proof of tuition paid | None | Bank certificate, notarised family declaration, or scholarship. |
| Cyprus | No fixed figure; a home bank certificate covering living, study and return | None | Own bank certificate or scholarship. |
| Türkiye | No published figure | None | Six months of own statements, or a notarised sponsor’s. |
| Malaysia | No proof of funds at government level; the institution lodges a bond | None | Universities set their own rules. |
Where a country publishes a formula, the dollar figure is our arithmetic on the published inputs.
Whose account counts
The money often exists. It is in the wrong name.
Your own account only. Finland does not accept sponsorship agreements from relatives. Denmark refuses a statement in a parent’s name. Sweden accepts universities and companies as sponsors but not private individuals; a parent’s money must be transferred into your account first. Czechia accepts a sponsor only if it is a public body or a company.
A parent, with paperwork. Britain accepts a parent or legal guardian with proof of the relationship and a consent letter. Ireland, Spain, Italy, Hungary, Latvia, Estonia and Slovenia accept a parent or sponsor with a signed, usually notarised, declaration and the sponsor’s own statements. Slovenia accepts a parent’s statement of support in place of a lump sum.
A sponsor registered with the state. Germany’s Verpflichtungserklärung is signed at a German immigration office by a resident of Germany. Austria’s Haftungserklärung must come from someone living in the EU. Belgium’s Annex 32 guarantor must be family within the third degree with net income above about €3,200 a month. Zurich wants a guarantor resident in Switzerland.
The money must move country. Germany’s blocked account, Norway’s Norwegian bank, Switzerland’s Swiss-licensed confirmation, Poland’s Polish bank certificate, Belgium’s transfer to the university. Each adds four to eight weeks, and the German one from Nigeria adds a foreign-exchange step on top.
The holding rules
Britain wants 28 consecutive days with the balance never dipping below the line, and a statement dated within 31 days of the application. We have written that rule out in full. Ireland, Canada, Finland and Türkiye’s consulates want six months of statements, and Ireland asks for every large lodgement to be explained. Malta, Latvia, Estonia and Spain want three months. Denmark wants one statement under 30 days old showing liquid cash: shares, bonds and unsold crypto do not count.
Only Britain’s is a holding rule in the strict sense. But a balance that appeared last week invites the same question everywhere, and the answer needs paper: a land sale, a terminal benefit, a loan agreement, a relative’s transfer with their statements attached.
What moved in 2026
France’s rule changed on 1 August 2026: the €615 a month that many guides still quote became €877.50, or €10,530 a year. Italy’s consulates moved from €6,947.33 to €10,179.85 a year for admissions from 2026/27, a rise of nearly half. Belgium’s net monthly figure for 2026/27 is €1,062, up 27 percent from €835. And Croatia, which our table had down as publishing no figure, sets it at €362.25 a month plus €869.40 for the return journey, one of the cheapest bars in the EU. The destination pages now match.
Two to watch. Germany’s €992 is unchanged for 2026, but the blocked account tracks the federal student grant rate and a reform to that rate is in parliament, so expect a rise from 2027. Slovakia amended its residence act in July 2025 so the funds clause no longer lists study, yet the foreign ministry’s checklist still asks for a funds document. Treat it as unsettled and ask the consulate handling your file.
How to plan toward the lowest bar you can reach
Start with the money you can document, not the country you prefer. A family holding about $8,000 in one account for six months is, by this table alone, open to Poland, Czechia, Croatia, Slovenia, Spain and Greece, and to Austria if the applicant is under 24. At $12,000 add Malta, Latvia, Finland, Ireland, Italy, France, Estonia and New Zealand. At $15,000 add Portugal, Sweden’s first year, Germany, Denmark, Britain outside London and Belgium. Above that come the Netherlands, Canada, Lithuania, Norway, Austria at 24 and over, London, Australia and Switzerland.
Then check whose name the money is in. A parent who will not move it into the applicant’s own account closes Finland, Denmark and Sweden whatever the balance. A sponsor in Nigeria, Ghana or India cannot sign Germany’s or Austria’s declaration, so there the money itself has to travel.
Finally, put tuition back in. Norway at $18,300 looks worse than Ireland at $11,200 until you add Ireland’s $13,930 to $29,030 tuition and recall that some NTNU master programmes charge about $2,840. The right comparison is funds plus year-one tuition, which every destination page shows.
The honest summary
If you can show about $3,700 and a Polish bank certificate, a country on this table will consider you. If you can show $25,500 through a Swiss bank, every country will. In between, most families can reach three or four of these doors within one intake if they pick the door before the university. The free Route Finder runs your real figures against all 35 in about four minutes. If you want a person to read the statements themselves, a Route Review does that in four working days.
