How much money do I need for an F-1 visa?

There is no national threshold. The cost of attendance printed on your I-20 is the amount for one year, and you must show funds covering it. That figure is set by your institution, so it varies widely between applicants.

What is a 214(b) refusal?

A refusal on the grounds that the officer was not satisfied you intend to return to Nepal after your studies. There is no appeal, and you may reapply, but reapplying without a materially different case usually produces the same result.

How long is the interview?

Usually a few minutes. Most of it is your course, your funding and your plans afterwards. Short, specific answers with real numbers do better than long explanations.

Is the SEVIS fee the same as the visa fee?

No, they are separate payments made at different stages. The SEVIS fee is paid before the interview and the receipt is taken with you.

Can I work on an F-1?

On-campus work is generally permitted within limits, and off-campus work requires specific authorisation tied to your programme. It is not a funding plan, and the officer will not treat it as one.

Does a previous refusal from another country matter?

Yes, and you must declare it. An undisclosed refusal found later turns a recoverable problem into a misrepresentation finding, which is far more serious than the original refusal.

Officeak

🇺🇸 F-1 student visa

Studying in the USA from Nepal

The United States is the only one of these destinations with no published funds threshold. There is no figure to look up. Your I-20 states the cost of attendance for one year at your institution, and that is the number you must cover, which means two students from the same class can face amounts that differ by three times. The second difference is that the decision is made by a person, in a few minutes, at the embassy in Kathmandu.

Work out your own figure Check if you are eligible

A published rule, not an estimate

What the visa asks you to show

Living costs to evidence

NPR 0

$32,000

Plus first year tuition still owed

typical masters, NPR 44.2 lakh

NPR 44.2 lakh

So, roughly, in the bank

at $1 = NPR 138, August 2026

No fixed figure. You must show funds covering the first year's cost of attendance exactly as printed on your I-20, plus the SEVIS fee.

Consular officers look at where the money came from as much as how much there is.

Source: US Department of State, the I-20 sets the amount, not a national threshold. 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	$18,000NPR 24.8 lakh	$32,000NPR 44.2 lakh	$60,000NPR 82.8 lakh
Tuition, bachelors, per year	$15,000NPR 20.7 lakh	$28,000NPR 38.6 lakh	$55,000NPR 75.9 lakh
Tuition, diploma, per year	$8,000NPR 11.0 lakh	$14,000NPR 19.3 lakh	$22,000NPR 30.4 lakh
Living, per year	$10,000NPR 13.8 lakh	$15,000NPR 20.7 lakh	$24,000NPR 33.1 lakh
One offvisa fee, student health insurance, flight	$185 visa · $1800 a year · NPR 1.3 lakh flight from Kathmandu

Converted at $1 = NPR 138, 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.

12 to 14 months beforeSit the testsMost institutions want TOEFL, IELTS or PTE, and many graduate programmes want the GRE or GMAT. Start earlier than for any other destination, because there are more tests.
10 to 12 months beforeApplyAmerican deadlines are earlier than most students expect, and funding decisions follow admission rather than accompany it.
6 to 8 months beforeAccept, and receive the I-20The I-20 is issued by the institution and states the cost of attendance. Read it properly; it is the figure the whole financial case is built on.
5 months beforePay the SEVIS fee and complete the DS-160The SEVIS fee is separate from the visa application fee and must be paid before the interview. Keep the receipt.
4 months beforeBook the interview, and the NOCInterview slots in Kathmandu are scarce before a major intake. Book as soon as the SEVIS payment clears, and apply for the NOC in parallel.
3 months beforeRehearse, then attendSay your answers out loud to somebody before you say them to an officer. Take the I-20, the financial evidence and the receipts, organised so you can hand over what is asked for.

Why files fail

What gets a Nepali application refused here

Section 214(b), which is about intent rather than paperwork

Every applicant is presumed to intend to immigrate until they show otherwise. A 214(b) refusal is not a comment on your documents; it is the officer not being persuaded that you will return. It carries no appeal and no ban, and you may reapply, but reapplying without changing anything produces the same answer.

Not knowing your own I-20

The cost of attendance on your I-20 is the figure you are expected to cover. Students arrive at the window unable to say what their own tuition is, what the total on the form says, or how the gap between that and their funds is met. It is a short conversation and that answer is most of it.

A sponsor who cannot be connected to the money

American officers look harder at the source of funds than at the balance. An uncle in the Gulf, a family business, a property sale, all workable, all requiring that the relationship and the income can be shown. A sponsor whose declared income cannot support the figure raises the obvious question.

Answers that were memorised

Officers interview all day and recognise recitation immediately. The questions are predictable: why this university, why this course, who is paying, what will you do after. Rehearse so you have said it aloud once, not so you have learned a script.

Questions families ask

How much money do I need for an F-1 visa?: There is no national threshold. The cost of attendance printed on your I-20 is the amount for one year, and you must show funds covering it. That figure is set by your institution, so it varies widely between applicants.
What is a 214(b) refusal?: A refusal on the grounds that the officer was not satisfied you intend to return to Nepal after your studies. There is no appeal, and you may reapply, but reapplying without a materially different case usually produces the same result.
How long is the interview?: Usually a few minutes. Most of it is your course, your funding and your plans afterwards. Short, specific answers with real numbers do better than long explanations.
Is the SEVIS fee the same as the visa fee?: No, they are separate payments made at different stages. The SEVIS fee is paid before the interview and the receipt is taken with you.
Can I work on an F-1?: On-campus work is generally permitted within limits, and off-campus work requires specific authorisation tied to your programme. It is not a funding plan, and the officer will not treat it as one.
Does a previous refusal from another country matter?: Yes, and you must declare it. An undisclosed refusal found later turns a recoverable problem into a misrepresentation finding, which is far more serious than the original refusal.

Four minutes at the window →The sentences that sink a statement →Refused. What now? →

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