What each government actually requires you to prove, read from its own page and dated. The useful thing this table shows is not just the amounts — it is which governments publish a figure at all. Several of the twenty below do not, and that is the single biggest reason the numbers you find quoted online contradict each other.

Why the numbers you find online disagree

Take Canada. A great many pages still quote CA$20,635 as the single-applicant requirement. That figure was correct for applications lodged between 1 January 2024 and 31 August 2025, and it is now wrong — the current amount is CA$22,895. Nothing about those pages announces that they are stale, and an applicant who prepares CA$20,635 has under-funded their application by more than two thousand dollars.

France and Austria show the same trap from different angles: France’s required amount jumped from €615 to €877.50 a month on 1 August 2026, a 43% increase in one decree, while Austria’s ASVG-linked figure rises every year and many guides still quote last year’s €722.58 instead of the current €777.58. Japan, Switzerland, Italy, South Korea, and Singapore show a different trap entirely: there is no single national figure to go stale, because no single office publishes one — each is set per school, per canton, per consulate, or per institution, and the widely repeated round numbers online for all five are practice dressed up as policy.

The three tests, not one

Governments assess funds on three axes and applicants tend to prepare only for the first.

Amount. The published figure, where one exists, plus whatever the record says is excluded — Canada’s living-cost tiers exclude tuition and transport entirely, New Zealand’s exclude both tuition and outward travel, the Netherlands’ study norm excludes college fees, and France’s, Sweden’s, Denmark’s, Italy’s, Norway’s, Finland’s, and Spain’s are all living-cost figures separate from tuition, so the headline number is never the whole requirement.

Holding period. The UK’s 28-day rule is the strictest published version: the balance must sit for 28 consecutive days, the last of which falls within 31 days of your application date, and a single day below the threshold restarts it. Canada asks for four months of bank statements, France and the Netherlands ask for statements no older than three months, Denmark asks for a statement no older than 30 days, and Spain typically wants one no older than one to two months — all achieve similar scrutiny by a different route.

Provenance. Where the money came from, and whether it is genuinely available to you. This is the axis with no published number and the one that sinks applications. A large deposit shortly before filing is not fatal in itself — undocumented, it reads as borrowed money staged for the application. Denmark, Sweden, and Switzerland’s Zurich canton all go further than most: none accepts a parent’s or any other private individual’s bank statement as proof at all — the money must already sit in an account in the student’s own name. Spain and most Italian consulates sit at the opposite end, explicitly allowing family, subsidies, aid, or a scholarship as valid sources.

Frequently asked questions

Which country requires the most proof of funds?

Of the destinations that publish a figure, Canada asks for the largest standalone living-cost sum: CA$22,895 for a single applicant, on top of first-year tuition and return transport. France’s €877.50/month, the Netherlands’ €1,130.77/month, Norway’s roughly NOK 14,200/month equivalent, Switzerland’s roughly CHF 1,750/month equivalent, and Sweden’s roughly SEK 10,656/month all add up fast over a full academic year too. Direct comparison is misleading, though, since the countries include and exclude different items.

Do these amounts include tuition?

It varies, which is exactly the trap. Canada’s cost-of-living tiers explicitly exclude both tuition and transportation. New Zealand’s living-cost figure excludes both tuition and outward travel, shown as separate requirements. France’s €877.50/month is specifically what you must have left after tuition and program fees are paid. Sweden’s, Denmark’s, Switzerland’s, Italy’s, Austria’s, Norway’s, Finland’s, and Spain’s figures are all living-cost only — though in Denmark, proof that you’ve already paid your first semester’s tuition can substitute for the whole requirement. The Netherlands’ study norm excludes college fees. Ireland’s €10,000/year also excludes course fees, shown separately. The US I-20 cost of attendance already includes tuition. Read each row before assuming.

Why do the US, Japan, Switzerland, Italy, Singapore, and South Korea have no single proof-of-funds amount?

For a few different reasons. The US and Singapore calculate per student or per institution — your school (or Private Education Institution, for Singapore) works out what it wants to see and there’s no central figure to publish. Japan’s is calculated per school too, set by the institution that sponsors your Certificate of Eligibility. Switzerland’s is calculated per canton. Italy’s is calculated per consulate, and can even differ by visa track within the same consulate. South Korea’s is set in practice by universities and their partner consulates, especially in the Seoul area, rather than published centrally by HiKorea. None of these six has a single national number to publish, and anyone quoting one as official has invented it.

Which countries won’t accept a parent’s bank statement?

Sweden, Denmark, and Switzerland’s Canton of Zurich are the strictest among the countries here. Sweden doesn’t allow private individuals to sponsor you at all — family money has to be moved into your own account first. Denmark explicitly rejects any bank statement not in your own name, including a parent’s. Zurich requires the account to be in your own name at a Swiss-domiciled bank, with letters of support from parents or relatives explicitly not accepted. Spain, most Italian consulates, and South Korea (with the right sponsorship paperwork) sit at the other extreme, explicitly welcoming a family sponsor. Check the specific rule for your destination rather than assuming.

How current are these figures?

Every row carries the date its figure was read from the government or university page linked on it. Austria, Norway, Finland, and South Korea were checked in September 2026. Sweden’s maintenance requirement, Spain’s IPREM, Austria’s ASVG rate, and Norway’s UDI figure all update annually, so re-check them directly if you’re budgeting for a later intake year. Maintenance requirements are raised without much warning, so confirm on the official page before you move money.

Read the full breakdown for your destination

• United Kingdom — £1,529/£1,171 a month, capped at 9 months
• Canada — CA$22,895 single applicant
• United States — no national figure, set per student on your I-20
• Australia — set in a legislative instrument, not the visa page
• Germany — no single figure, varies by mission
• Ireland — €10,000/year, or €833/month for shorter courses
• New Zealand — NZD $20,000/year, or $1,667/month for shorter courses
• France — €877.50/month, up from €615 since 1 Aug 2026
• Netherlands — €1,130.77/month for hbo/university study
• Italy — no single figure, varies by consulate
• Austria — €777.58/month under 24, tied to the ASVG rate
• Norway — NOK 170,368/year, set by UDI
• Finland — €800/month, or €9,600/year
• Japan — no national figure, set per school
• South Korea — no HiKorea figure, ~₩20,000,000 in practice
• Singapore — no ICA figure, set per institution
• Sweden — SEK 10,656/month (2026 level)
• Denmark — DKK 7,426/month (2026 level), your own name only
• Switzerland — no federal figure, set per canton
• Spain — €600/month (100% of IPREM), family sponsors allowed

Next steps

Work out your own total with the proof-of-funds calculator, compare up to three destinations side by side with the cost of living comparator, build a full budget breakdown that separates locked figures from your own estimates, check the rest of your application against the grounds officers actually refuse under in our refusal risk self-assessment, and see the published refusal rates by country and consulate.