Where you will actually live
What will I have to pay for student accommodation before I get the keys?
Every country asks for a lump sum before you move in, and the size of it varies by a factor of six. Australia and New Zealand want a four-week bond plus two weeks' rent. Japan can want four to six months' rent all at once — deposit, non-refundable key money, a guarantor company fee and an agency fee. Budget that lump separately from your monthly rent, because it lands in the same month as your flights and your first tuition instalment.
1 figure on this page has no source yet. It is marked in place, with what it would take to confirm it. Check the authority yourself before acting on it.
What student accommodation is
Monthly rent is the easy number. The one that catches Nepali students is what you must hand over before you get the keys — and the fraud that targets you in the weeks before you fly.
Monthly rent is on every university website. These three tables are the parts that are not.
Who needs it
- Anyone arriving for the first year
- The upfront lump sum lands before your first student job pays, and it is the cost most often left out of a budget.
- Students going somewhere that needs a local guarantor
- Several countries require a resident guarantor for a private tenancy, which a newly arrived student does not have.
- Students on a tight arrival budget
- The gap between the cheapest and most expensive country for move-in costs is roughly a factor of six.
What it costs
Expressed in months of rent, because the absolute figure means nothing until you know the city.
| Item | Type | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| JapanKey money never; deposit partly | Other | Deposit, key money, guarantor company fee, agency fee · 4–6 months' rentSources: UK Government — tenancy deposit protection schemes, Tenancy Services (New Zealand) — bonds |
| South KoreaDeposit yes, at the end | Other | Key-money deposit, then monthly rent against it · Very large, or a smaller deposit with higher rentSources: UK Government — tenancy deposit protection schemes, Tenancy Services (New Zealand) — bonds |
| United KingdomDeposit yes, protected in a scheme | Other | Deposit, plus a UK guarantor or several months upfront — the deposit must be in a government-approved scheme within 30 days · 1–6 months' rentSources: UK Government — tenancy deposit protection schemes, Tenancy Services (New Zealand) — bonds |
| GermanyYes, at the end, if undamaged | Other | Kaution, commonly up to three months' cold rent · 3 months' rentSources: UK Government — tenancy deposit protection schemes, Tenancy Services (New Zealand) — bonds |
| United StatesDeposit usually | Other | Security deposit, often a co-signer or months upfront · 1–3 months' rentSources: UK Government — tenancy deposit protection schemes, Tenancy Services (New Zealand) — bonds |
| CanadaLast month applied to rent | Other | First and last month's rent · 2 months' rentSources: UK Government — tenancy deposit protection schemes, Tenancy Services (New Zealand) — bonds |
How long it takes
- At your offerApply for university accommodationOur recommendation, not a rule. Our recommended sequence, based on the dependencies between the steps on this page.Same day you accept. This is the whole decision for most students.
- 5 months outConfirm the hall place, or start lookingOur recommendation, not a rule. Our recommended sequence, based on the dependencies between the steps on this page.If halls are full, now you know — with time to plan rather than react.
- 4 months outBudget the upfront lumpSources: UK Government — tenancy deposit protection schemes, Tenancy Services (New Zealand) — bondsSeparately from rent, in the same line as flights and first tuition.
- 3 months outArrange a guarantor if your country needs oneSources: UK Government — tenancy deposit protection schemes, Tenancy Services (New Zealand) — bondsUK, Japan and Germany. Paid services exist and take time to set up.
- 2 months outBook two to four weeks of temporary accommodationOur recommendation, not a rule. Our recommended sequence. The ordering follows the dependencies between the steps on this page; the underlying rules are sourced in their own rows.Somewhere to land. Refundable if possible.
- 1 month outDo not sign a year leaseOur recommendation, not a rule. Our recommended sequence, based on the dependencies between the steps on this page.Whatever the pressure, and whatever the discount offered.
- Arrival weekView, verify, then signSources: US FTC — how to avoid scholarship and financial aid scams, Scamwatch (ACCC, Australia)In that order, every time.
- First fortnightRegister your addressSources: Korea Immigration Service, Ministry of Justice, Immigration Services Agency of Japan, German Federal Foreign OfficeRequired within a set window in Germany, Japan and Korea, and it unlocks other things.
Documents you need
- RequiredBudget the lump separatelyIt lands in the same month as flights and tuition. Treated as part of monthly rent, it will be short.
- RequiredKnow what comes backBonds and deposits usually return; Japanese key money and agency fees never do.
- RequiredPlan the transferMoving a large sum out of Nepal takes documentation and time under the student facility.
- RequiredA guarantor, where requiredThe UK, Japan and Germany commonly want one. Paid guarantor services exist, and cost money.
- RequiredPassport, offer letter, visaStandard everywhere. Have digital copies before you fly.
- RequiredProof of funds or a sponsor letterPrivate landlords ask for this as often as immigration does.
- RequiredSomebody stands in the roomYou, a friend, or the university housing office. Photographs are not verification.
- RequiredThe landlord is who they sayAsk for evidence of ownership or agency registration. A genuine landlord expects the question.
- RequiredNever pay to viewNo legitimate viewing anywhere requires a transfer first. This one rule prevents most losses.
- RequiredApply for halls at offerNot at visa. Places are allocated months before term and they run out.
- RequiredBook two to four weeks temporaryArrive with somewhere to sleep and nothing signed.
- RequiredRegister your address on timeGermany, Japan and Korea all require it within a set window after arrival.
Step by step
Take the hall place in year one
Apply the day you accept your offer. It costs a little more per week and it removes the guarantor problem, the key-money problem and the fraud problem at once.
Book short-term for the first fortnight
If halls are full, arrive into two to four weeks of temporary accommodation with nothing signed. Viewing in person is worth more than any discount.
Sign only after someone has seen it
Then sign a lease you have read, for a room that exists, with a landlord you have verified.
Mistakes that cost money
Never send money for a room nobody has seen
What it costs: Advance-fee rental fraud targets international students deliberately, in the window when you are still abroad and cannot view anything. The pattern is always the same: an attractive listing, a plausible reason the “landlord” cannot meet you, and pressure to transfer a deposit to hold it. The listing is often copied fro
Instead: This is the single most expensive error on this page. Address it before anything else.
Applying for halls after the visa arrives
What it costs: Halls allocate from the offer stage, so by the time a visa is issued the affordable rooms are gone and you are pushed into a private tenancy you cannot yet guarantee.
Instead: Apply for accommodation the day you accept the offer, not the day the visa arrives.
Budgeting rent but not the move-in lump sum
What it costs: You arrive with enough for monthly rent and not enough for the deposit plus advance rent, which is due immediately and in full.
Instead: Budget the upfront sum as a separate line from monthly rent.
Alternatives, and the trade-off
University halls
Better when: Year one, almost always. No guarantor, a known cost, and no exposure to rental fraud from abroad.
Sharing with existing students
Better when: Year two onward, once you have local knowledge and someone who can act as guarantor.
In favour
- University halls remove the guarantor problem entirely in year one
- Deposits are legally protected in some destinations
- Costs are knowable in advance if you ask the right question
Against
- The upfront sum is due before you have any local income
- A private tenancy usually needs a local guarantor you do not yet have
- Advance-fee rental fraud targets newly arrived international students specifically
Questions people ask
How much money do I need for accommodation before I arrive?
Between about one and a half months' rent and six months' rent, depending entirely on the country. Australia and New Zealand sit at the low end with a bond plus two weeks. Japan sits at the high end once key money, a guarantor company fee and an agency fee are added.
Budget it as a separate line from monthly rent, because it falls due in the same month as your flights and your first tuition instalment.
Are university halls worth it if they cost more?
For a first year, almost always. They remove the guarantor requirement, the key-money problem, the agency fee and — most importantly — the risk of paying for a room that does not exist.
They also fill early. Apply the day you accept your offer rather than waiting for the visa, which is when most students think to start.
What is key money and do I get it back?
Reikin, in Japan, is a payment to the landlord that is not a deposit and is not returned. It sits alongside a refundable deposit, a guarantor company fee and an agency fee, which is why Japanese private rentals can demand four to six months' rent at once.
Korea's system is different again: a large refundable key-money deposit offsets lower monthly rent. The deposit comes back at the end, but you must find it at the start.
How do I avoid rental scams before I arrive?
One rule covers nearly all of it: never send money for a room that you, or someone you actually know, has not physically seen. Fraudulent listings are usually copied from genuine ones and paired with a reason the landlord cannot meet you.
No legitimate landlord or agency anywhere requires a transfer to secure a viewing. If you cannot view, book short-term accommodation and sign nothing until you are there.
Do I need a guarantor to rent abroad?
Commonly in the UK, Japan and Germany, where private landlords want someone locally liable if you do not pay. You will not have one on arrival.
The usual solutions are university halls in the first year, a paid guarantor service, or paying several months' rent in advance. All three cost money, which is another reason halls tend to win year one.
Can a consultancy in Nepal arrange my accommodation abroad?
Some will offer to, and it is rarely a good idea. They are not the landlord, usually have no relationship with one, and you have no recourse in the destination country when something is wrong.
University housing offices arrange accommodation for international students as a matter of routine, free, and they are accountable to the institution. Use them.
Sources
Last reviewed .
Deposits, bonds, key money, guarantor requirements and upfront costs
Sources: UK Government — tenancy deposit protection schemes, Tenancy Services (New Zealand) — bonds
University accommodation cost, availability and application timing
No source yet. needs a survey of university housing office published rates
Address registration requirements and deadlines after arrival
Sources: Korea Immigration Service, Ministry of Justice, Immigration Services Agency of Japan, German Federal Foreign Office
Transferring a large upfront sum out of Nepal
Nepal Rastra Bank — Foreign Exchange Management Department(opens in a new tab)
Rental fraud patterns targeting international students
Sources: US FTC — how to avoid scholarship and financial aid scams, Scamwatch (ACCC, Australia)