USA student visa fee

At a glance

The fee, as published

Two mandatory government fees, both non-refundable: (1) Nonimmigrant visa application fee, also called the MRV fee — US$185 for F and M student visas (official India fee list; payable in Indian rupees via NEFT, UPI, debit/credit card or cash at DRUK/AXIS/Citibank). (2) I-901 SEVIS fee — US$350 for F or M visa applicants (full payment), paid to DHS at FMJfee.com. Total core government cost: US$535. A visa issuance ("reciprocity") fee may also apply depending on nationality — check the State Department reciprocity table for India. MRV fee payments are valid for 365 days from the receipt date, within which you must schedule your appointment. IMPORTANT: the US$250 "Visa Integrity Fee" created by the July 2025 budget law (HR-1 / One Big Beautiful Bill Act) is NOT listed on the official India visa-fee page as of August 2026 — it requires cross-agency implementation and has not been added to the published India fee schedule. Do not quote it as a confirmed cost; re-check the official fee page before applying.

What the application fee does not cover

Almost every student visa route has costs beyond the application fee itself, and they are a material part of the budget rather than a rounding error.

• Health surcharge or insurance, which several countries require up front for the whole course length.
• Biometrics, where it is charged separately from the application.
• Document costs — attestation, notarisation, certified translations, courier.
• The financial requirement itself, which is money you must hold rather than spend, and is usually the largest number in the process.
• Dependant applications, each charged separately.

Before you budget from this page

1. Check the date this page was last verified, printed at the foot.
2. Open the official source linked there and confirm the current figure.
3. Check whether your route — the specific visa subclass or category — carries the same fee.
4. Add the surrounding costs above before deciding what the visa stage will cost you.

Visa fees are revised on government timetables rather than annual ones, and a figure that was right last quarter can be wrong this one. The date at the foot of this page is the honest limit of what we can tell you.