Everything you have to do, and when
Tell us the country and the month your course starts. You get the whole process with real dates on it, including the ones people find out about too late, like the 28-day bank balance rule and how long an NOC actually takes.
Where are you going?
When does the course start?
27 steps between here and the plane
Nothing ticked yet. This page does not know who you are. With an account the ring fills as you go.
Settle on a country and a course
Not a shortlist of five countries, one, with a second as a fallback. Everything after this depends on it.
Open the tool →8 things you should already be doing
For a July 2027 intake, these are either late or due within a fortnight. If that is a surprise, it is the useful kind.
Decide
- Settle on a country and a courseOverdue
Not a shortlist of five countries, one, with a second as a fallback. Everything after this depends on it.
Finish by 27 May 2026 · start by 13 May 2026
- Work out the real costOverdue
Tuition, living, visa, flights, and the balance the embassy will ask to see. Do this before anyone pays a consultancy fee.
Finish by 1 Jun 2026
Families routinely budget for tuition alone and discover the living-cost requirement at visa stage.
- Shortlist six to eight institutionsOverdue
A mix: two that are a stretch, four realistic, two safe.
Finish by 16 Jun 2026 · start by 2 Jun 2026
- Check what funding you could apply forOverdue
Most big scholarships close 8 to 12 months before the intake, long before you would normally think about them.
Finish by 26 Jun 2026 · start by 19 Jun 2026
Chevening, Australia Awards and Fulbright all close roughly a year ahead. Miss it and it is a year's wait.
English test
- Sit a full practice testOverdue
Find out where you actually are before you pay for the real one.
Finish by 5 Aug 2026
- Book the IELTS or PTE dateOverdue
Book once your practice band is at or above what your shortlist needs. Slots in Kathmandu fill weeks ahead.
Finish by 4 Sept 2026 · start by 5 Aug 2026
- Sit the testDue soon
Results take about two weeks for IELTS on paper, faster for computer-based and PTE.
Finish by 4 Oct 2026 · start by 20 Sept 2026
Leave room to resit. One attempt with no margin is how intakes get missed.
Apply
- Collect and attest academic documentsStart now
Transcripts, certificates, migration and character certificate. Attestation takes longer than anyone expects.
Finish by 14 Oct 2026 · start by 23 Sept 2026
- Write your statementComing up
Draft it, get it scored, rewrite it in your own words. Not a one-evening job.
Finish by 24 Oct 2026 · start by 10 Oct 2026
- Send the applicationsComing up
Apply to your whole shortlist, not just the favourite. Offers are not guaranteed and deadlines do not move.
Finish by 13 Nov 2026 · start by 30 Oct 2026
- Start the education loan processComing up
Valuation, collateral papers and bank approval. This is the longest pole in the tent.
Finish by 23 Nov 2026 · start by 9 Oct 2026
A land valuation plus bank sanction commonly takes six weeks in Nepal. Starting it after the offer arrives is already late.
- Get the money into the account and leave it thereLater
Most destinations want the balance held for a minimum period before you apply.
Finish by 2 Jan 2027 · start by 3 Dec 2026
The UK requires 28 consecutive days. Money moved in the week before you apply will be rejected.
Offer
- Accept the offer and pay the depositLater
Usually the first instalment of tuition, sometimes a set deposit.
Finish by 1 Feb 2027 · start by 25 Jan 2027
- Get the NOC from the Ministry of EducationLater
Required before a Nepali bank will release fees abroad. Take the offer letter, academic documents and the fee receipt.
Finish by 11 Feb 2027 · start by 28 Jan 2027
No NOC, no bank transfer. Everything downstream stops here.
- Arrange health coverLater
OSHC for Australia, the IHS payment for the UK, provincial or private cover for Canada.
Finish by 21 Feb 2027 · start by 18 Feb 2027
- Get your CoELater
Issued once tuition and OSHC are paid. The visa application needs it.
Finish by 26 Feb 2027 · start by 16 Feb 2027
Visa
- Assemble the visa fileLater
Every financial document, the offer, the NOC, and the statement. Run the document check before you submit.
Finish by 13 Mar 2027 · start by 3 Mar 2027
- Practise the interviewLater
Whether it is a consular interview or a university credibility call, rehearse it until the funding answers are automatic.
Finish by 18 Mar 2027 · start by 11 Mar 2027
The most common reason a well-funded application fails is a student who cannot quote their own numbers.
- Medical examinationLater
Only at a panel physician the destination recognises. Book early, appointments are limited in Kathmandu.
Finish by 23 Mar 2027 · start by 13 Mar 2027
- Police clearance reportLater
From Nepal Police, and from any other country you have lived in.
Finish by 23 Mar 2027 · start by 13 Mar 2027
- Lodge the visa applicationLater
Online, then biometrics at the visa application centre.
Finish by 2 Apr 2027 · start by 26 Mar 2027
- Wait for the decisionLater
Processing times vary enormously by destination and by season. Do not book a non-refundable flight yet.
Finish by 17 May 2027 · start by 2 Apr 2027
Booking a flight before the visa is granted is the most expensive mistake in this list.
Before you fly
- Book the flightLater
Once the visa is granted. Give yourself a few days on the ground before orientation.
Finish by 1 Jun 2027 · start by 29 May 2027
- Arrange the first month's accommodationLater
Book something for the first few weeks rather than signing a year's lease from Kathmandu.
Finish by 6 Jun 2027 · start by 30 May 2027
- Sort money for the first weeksLater
Forex approval, a card that works abroad, and enough cash to land with.
Finish by 11 Jun 2027 · start by 4 Jun 2027
- Pack the documents you must hand-carryLater
Offer letter, CoE or CAS or I-20, financial documents, academic originals, medical report. Never in checked baggage.
Finish by 24 Jun 2027
- Pre-departure briefingLater
Part-time work rules, tax file number, opening a bank account, reporting requirements.
Finish by 24 Jun 2027
Want this to chase you?
Through your consultancy you tick these off and OfficeYak emails what is overdue, one message a morning, not one per task. Your counsellor sees the same plan.
Lead times are realistic rather than official, an NOC is "a few days" on paper and often a fortnight in practice. Confirm anything time-critical with your consultancy.