UK student visa proof of funds from Ghana: how much, in cedis, and how to show it

What the rule asks for

A UK Student visa has two money tests. You must be able to pay what your university still charges, as shown on your CAS, and you must have living money for yourself. The living money is a set amount per month, and it depends on where you will study. London means the City of London and its 32 boroughs. Everywhere else counts as outside London.

Today the amounts are £1,171 a month outside London and £1,529 in London. They are counted for up to nine months, so £10,539 or £13,761 in total. At the rate of GH₵15.54 to the pound that is GH₵163,797 or GH₵213,873.

Ghana is not one of the countries the Home Office lets skip this test, so the money must be shown in the right form. It can be your own, or a parent's if the account is theirs and they give you a letter agreeing you may use it. It must be available at once. Overdrafts, shares, pensions, cryptocurrency and accounts at institutions that the local regulator does not supervise do not count, and neither do accounts that keep no electronic record. In Ghana the supervisor of banks is the Bank of Ghana, so an account at a licensed bank is the safe choice.

How the figure has moved

For four years the rule stood still. From December 2020 to the end of 2024, London needed £1,334 a month and the rest of the UK £1,023. The Home Office announced a rise in September 2024 to £1,483 and £1,136 for applications from 2 January 2025, and said it would keep the figure in step with inflation and with the maintenance loans paid to home students. GOV.UK shows £1,529 and £1,171 today. A Statement of Changes dated 3 September 2026 sets £1,570 and £1,203 from 30 November 2026.

Plan on the figure changing every year. A number you read in a group chat last term is probably out of date, so check the GOV.UK money page in the week you apply.

The 30 November 2026 date

The date you apply decides the figure, not the date of your CAS or your statement. This comes from a law-firm analysis of the September 2026 Statement of Changes, which we have not read ourselves, so confirm it on GOV.UK. If it holds, an application made before 30 November 2026 uses the lower figures and one made on or after it uses the higher ones. Over nine months the difference is £369 in London and £288 elsewhere, about GH₵5,735 and GH₵4,476.

The danger is in the 28 days. A family that has held the old total for four weeks and then applies after the change can find it is short, and a top-up on the day does not repair a balance that was low earlier. If your date might slip past 29 November, build to the new figure now. Applications can be made up to six months before the course starts, so a January or February 2027 student can apply this month, but only if the file is complete. A rushed application is a bigger risk than paying a little more.

What it costs in cedis

The UK's rule is stated in pounds, so what it asks of a Ghanaian family depends on the cedi. In 2021 nine months of London living money meant about GH₵0.10 million. At the 2024 average rate the same £12,006 meant GH₵0.22 million. In 2025 it was GH₵0.22 million, and today it is about GH₵0.21 million.

Between 2021 and today the cedi cost rose 2.2 times. Roughly 83% of that is the exchange rate, which went from GH₵7.99 to GH₵15.54 a pound, and the rest is the UK raising its figure. The cedi's slide did most of the damage. Since the 2024 average of GH₵18.13 the cedi has recovered about 14%, which is real relief, but it can turn again.

UKVI converts a foreign-currency balance at the OANDA rate on the day you apply. A family holding cedis should keep a margin above the requirement. We suggest around 5%. That is our advice, not a rule.

How to show the money, step by step

1. Fix your application date first. It decides the figure and starts the clock.
2. Count back from it. The latest statement must close no more than 31 days before you apply, and the 28 days run back from that closing date. For an application on 4 January 2027, the statement closes on or after 4 December 2026 and the money must have been there from 7 November.
3. Choose the account. A personal account at a licensed bank, yours or your parent's, with the parent's written consent if it is theirs.
4. Leave the balance alone. A dip below the line on any day in the 28 breaks the period.
5. Collect the evidence: bank statements (paper or downloaded), a bank letter or a certificate of deposit. It must show the account holder's name, the bank and the balance.
6. Keep a margin because of the exchange rate.
7. Have the file checked before you submit. A cover letter is worth preparing if any recent deposit is large or unusual.

Points that are particular to a Ghanaian file

Where to lodge it. UK visa services in Ghana run through VFS Global. Press coverage reported a UK visa application centre in Accra from 22 October 2024 and a premium centre in Kumasi from 26 June 2025. Check the VFS Global page for Ghana before you book, because locations and services change.

Tuberculosis test. Ghana is on the UK's list of countries where applicants for stays over six months need a TB test from an approved clinic. Book it before you apply.

Large deposits and gaps. UKVI advised in August and September 2026 that a cover letter may be needed to explain large or unexplained deposits and gaps since you last studied. Ghanaian families who rely on relatives abroad should keep transfer receipts and write down who sent what and why. We have this from news reports of the UKVI notice rather than from the GOV.UK money page, so confirm the wording before you rely on it.

Mobile money. A mobile money wallet is not a bank account. Do not build your plan around one without asking your counsellor first.

Mistakes to avoid

1. Using last year's figure.
2. Treating the CAS date as the deciding date. The application date decides.
3. Moving the money in during the last fortnight.
4. Holding the funds in shares, a pension or a wallet app.
5. Forgetting the parent's letter.
6. Showing exactly the minimum in cedis. A small fall in the cedi on the day can leave you short.