How much money do I need for a Canadian study permit?

The living-cost threshold for a single applicant, plus first year tuition and return travel. The living figure is set by IRCC and rises most years, so check the current one on the IRCC site rather than relying on a number you were told last intake.

Is SDS still available?

No. The Student Direct Stream was discontinued, so applications from Nepal go through the standard study permit route. Anyone offering you an SDS application is working from old information.

What is a provincial attestation letter?

A letter from the province confirming your place counts against its allocation. Most study permit applications need one, the institution obtains it, and without it the application cannot proceed. Confirm your institution can issue one before paying a deposit.

Does a GIC cover everything?

No. It satisfies the living-cost portion. You still need to evidence first year tuition and return travel separately.

Can I work while studying in Canada?

Study permit holders generally have limited working rights during term and more during scheduled breaks, subject to conditions printed on the permit. Treat it as a contribution rather than as part of the funding you show.

Yes. The No Objection Certificate from Nepal's Ministry of Education is what lets your bank legally remit tuition abroad. It is a Nepali requirement and is separate from the study permit.

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🇨🇦 Study permit

Studying in Canada from Nepal

Canada changed more than any other destination in the last two years, and most of what Nepali students were told about it is now out of date. The Student Direct Stream is gone, so there is no fast lane. A provincial attestation letter is required before you can even submit, and the college has to be able to issue you one. The money is still the main hurdle, but the paperwork order in front of it is new.

Work out your own figure Check if you are eligible

A published rule, not an estimate

What the visa asks you to show

C$23,448

Living costs to evidence

NPR 23.0 lakh

C$28,000

Plus first year tuition still owed

typical masters, NPR 27.4 lakh

NPR 50.4 lakh

So, roughly, in the bank

at C$1 = NPR 98, August 2026

CAD 23,448 living costs for a single applicant + first year tuition + return travel

A GIC is the usual route and satisfies the living-cost portion.

Source: IRCC cost-of-living threshold, applications from 1 September 2026 (was CAD 22,895). Check the current figure on the government's own site before you rely on it; it changes, and a page is not an authority.

Estimates, for planning

What it actually costs

These are ranges for planning, not a quote. Once you hold an offer letter, type your own tuition into the calculator and ignore the middle column.

	Lower	Typical	Higher
Tuition, masters, per year	C$18,000NPR 17.6 lakh	C$28,000NPR 27.4 lakh	C$45,000NPR 44.1 lakh
Tuition, bachelors, per year	C$20,000NPR 19.6 lakh	C$30,000NPR 29.4 lakh	C$45,000NPR 44.1 lakh
Tuition, diploma, per year	C$14,000NPR 13.7 lakh	C$18,000NPR 17.6 lakh	C$24,000NPR 23.5 lakh
Living, per year	C$15,000NPR 14.7 lakh	C$20,000NPR 19.6 lakh	C$27,000NPR 26.5 lakh
One offvisa fee, provincial or private health cover, flight	C$235 visa · C$800 a year · NPR 1.3 lakh flight from Kathmandu

Converted at C$1 = NPR 98, set August 2026. Rates move; the calculator uses the same figures and shows the date it was last updated.

Put your own numbers in

From Kathmandu

When to do what

Dated backwards from the intake, because that is the only fixed point. The step people leave too late is marked.

10 to 12 months beforeSit IELTS or PTECanada accepts several tests but the institution decides which. Confirm what yours takes before you book.
9 to 10 months beforeApply, and confirm the attestation letterAsk the institution directly whether it can issue a provincial attestation letter for your intake. This is the question that decides whether the rest is possible.
7 months beforeAccept, pay the deposit, get the letter of acceptanceThe letter of acceptance and the attestation letter are two different documents and you need both.
6 months beforeBuy the GIC and assemble the rest of the fundsThe GIC covers living costs. Tuition and travel are evidenced separately, so work out the full figure rather than the GIC figure.
4 to 5 months beforeThe NOC from the Ministry of EducationNepal's own step, and what allows your bank to remit tuition legally. Separate from anything Canada asks for.
3 to 4 months beforeApply for the study permit, give biometricsProcessing times from Nepal move, and they lengthen before a major intake. Check the current figure on the IRCC site rather than assuming last year's.

Why files fail

What gets a Nepali application refused here

No provincial attestation letter, so the file is returned unopened

Most study permit applications now need a provincial attestation letter from the province where the institution sits. Provinces receive a limited allocation and distribute it among their institutions, so a college that could issue one in January may not be able to in June. Confirm the institution can issue you a letter before you pay any deposit, not after.

The GIC covering living costs, and nothing covering tuition

A Guaranteed Investment Certificate is the usual way to satisfy the living-cost portion, and because it is such a clean piece of evidence people assume it is the whole requirement. It is not. You must also show first year tuition, paid or available, and return travel. A file with a perfect GIC and no tuition evidence is incomplete.

A study plan that reads as immigration rather than study

An officer is asking whether the course makes sense for your career and whether you intend to leave at the end of it. A masters that is a sideways step from your bachelors, in a field unrelated to anything you have done, invites the conclusion that the course is a means rather than the purpose. Say plainly what the qualification is for and what you will do with it in Nepal.

Money that appeared recently, from somewhere undocumented

Land sold, a loan sanctioned, a relative abroad, all of these are acceptable and all of them need paperwork. A balance that arrived weeks before the application, with no trace of where it came from, is the most common financial refusal on Nepali files. Trace every significant deposit to a document.

Questions families ask

How much money do I need for a Canadian study permit?: The living-cost threshold for a single applicant, plus first year tuition and return travel. The living figure is set by IRCC and rises most years, so check the current one on the IRCC site rather than relying on a number you were told last intake.
Is SDS still available?: No. The Student Direct Stream was discontinued, so applications from Nepal go through the standard study permit route. Anyone offering you an SDS application is working from old information.
What is a provincial attestation letter?: A letter from the province confirming your place counts against its allocation. Most study permit applications need one, the institution obtains it, and without it the application cannot proceed. Confirm your institution can issue one before paying a deposit.
Does a GIC cover everything?: No. It satisfies the living-cost portion. You still need to evidence first year tuition and return travel separately.
Can I work while studying in Canada?: Study permit holders generally have limited working rights during term and more during scheduled breaks, subject to conditions printed on the permit. Treat it as a contribution rather than as part of the funding you show.
Do I need an NOC?: Yes. The No Objection Certificate from Nepal's Ministry of Education is what lets your bank legally remit tuition abroad. It is a Nepali requirement and is separate from the study permit.

Canada, now that SDS is gone →The NOC, start to finish →Refused. What now? →

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