The short answer

UK undergraduate tuition for home students is £9,790 a year for 2026/27, with £10,050 planned for 2027/28. International students pay much more — from around £17,000 to £30,000 a year at many universities, more for some courses. Because fee status depends largely on ordinary residence in the UK for the three years before the course, children who grow up in Thailand are often charged international fees, unless a temporary absence for a parent's work applies. Add living costs, flights and currency, and a three-year degree can easily cost £100,000 or more. Start saving early — over 13 years at around 8% a year, growth can pay over 40% of the target. Lawrence will plan it with you, free.

UK university fees in 2026

For students who qualify for home fee status, undergraduate tuition at English universities is capped at £9,790 a year for courses starting in 2026/27, subject to final confirmation. The government has announced its intention to raise the cap to £10,050 for 2027/28, and it's expected to rise at least with inflation after that. Home students can usually also borrow for tuition and living costs through the student loan system.

International fees are set by each university and vary by course. At Keele University, for example, 2026/27 international undergraduate fees range from £17,100 to £29,800 a year depending on the course, with medicine and veterinary science priced separately. Many leading universities charge more. Some universities guarantee that an international student's fee stays the same for the whole course; others raise it each year.

Over a three-year degree, the difference is stark: about £29,370 in tuition at the home rate, against £66,000–£89,400 at international rates of £22,000–£29,800 — before living costs.

UK tuition at a glance

Undergraduate tuition for courses starting in 2026/27. Living costs, accommodation and flights are extra.

Sources: UCL and University of Leeds for the home fee; Keele University 2026/27 international bands as an example. Many universities charge more; medicine is priced separately.

Fee status: why expat children often pay international fees

Many British parents assume that a British passport means home fees. It doesn't. Universities assess fee status on a combination of nationality, immigration status and ordinary residence — broadly, where your child has been living for the three years before the course starts.

A British child who has lived in Thailand with their family for those three years will often be classed as an international student. There is an important exception: absences that are temporary — for example, because a parent was posted abroad by their employer — can sometimes count as UK residence. Universities look at the whole family picture: where each parent has lived and worked, where income was taxed, where the family home is, and where the child went to school.

In practice, families who are permanently settled in Thailand should expect international fees in most cases. If you're abroad on a fixed-term work posting with clear plans to return, home fees may be arguable, so keep the evidence. Returning to the UK before sixth form can restore home status, because it gives your child three years of UK residence before university. And remember that Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland each have their own fee and funding rules.

Each university makes its own assessment, so ask the universities you're considering early, and plan for international fees unless you're confident.

Thinking of moving back before university?

Some families plan to return to the UK so that their children can establish residence before university. Because universities generally look at the three years before the course starts, that usually means moving back before the start of Year 11 or sixth form. It can make a large difference to fees and gives access to student loans — but it also means school changes, a UK cost of living and possibly a parent's job move. It's a family decision, not just a financial one, and worth planning several years ahead. Ask universities how they would assess your situation before committing, and keep evidence of the move.

Questions to ask universities

Ask each university how it would assess your child's fee status given where you've lived, what the tuition fee is for the course and whether it stays fixed for the whole degree, and what it estimates for living costs in its city. Find out whether first-year accommodation is guaranteed and at what cost, which scholarships are available and when their deadlines fall, and when and how fees are paid — and in which currency.

The costs beyond tuition

Tuition is only part of a university budget. Families should plan for:

Living costs vary hugely by city — London is far more expensive than most other UK cities — and a student without access to UK student loans needs all of it funded by the family. It's sensible to budget at least as much again for living costs as for tuition at the home rate, and to check each university's own estimate.

Where your child might study

The UK

The natural choice for many British families, with world-class universities and degrees that usually take three years in England — shorter, and so cheaper, than in many countries. The key question is fee status.

Thailand

Thai universities offer international programmes taught in English, often at a fraction of UK international fees, and your child can live at home. Worth considering, especially for families settled in Thailand.

Australia, the US, Canada and Europe

Each has its own fees, entry routes and visa rules. US degrees typically last four years and can be very expensive, though scholarships are common. Some European universities teach in English at much lower fees.

Because the costs differ so widely, it's worth keeping options open and planning for a realistic range rather than a single number.

Where to start

A university fund for each child, and the right way to pay fees and allowances across currencies.

Why starting early matters so much

University is the ideal long-term savings goal: the date is known, and it's usually many years away. The earlier you start, the more of the bill growth can pay. To build £66,000 — three years of international tuition at £22,000 a year — growing at around 8% a year after charges, starting 13 years ahead takes about £242 a month: you pay in about £37,700 and growth provides around 43%. Starting 10 years ahead takes about £361 a month, with growth providing around 34%. Leave it until five years ahead and it takes about £898 a month, with growth providing only around 18%.

Growth isn't guaranteed — investments can fall as well as rise — which is why plans should be reviewed every year and moved to safer investments as university approaches.

Building a £66,000 university fund

Monthly saving needed to reach £66,000 at 8% a year after charges, depending on when you start.

Illustration only. Growth of 8% a year after charges is the level Lawrence's education plans typically aim for; it isn't guaranteed.

Planning school and university together

For families paying international school fees, university can feel impossible to save for at the same time. The answer is usually to plan both together: pay school fees mostly from income, and set up a smaller, separate monthly plan for university from a young age, so that growth has the longest time to work. As school fees end, the money freed up can top up the university fund or go straight to living costs. Our guide to saving for international school fees in Thailand covers the school years.

Currency: baht, pounds and the fee bill

University fees abroad are charged in that country's currency — pounds for the UK, dollars for the US and so on. If your income is in baht, or split between baht and pounds, exchange rates can change the real cost of a degree by thousands.

The simplest protection is to save in the currency you'll pay in — for a UK degree, a pound-based plan avoids converting twice. Once you know each year's tuition and accommodation bill, fix the rate, and use a specialist for large payments rather than a high-street bank. Monthly allowances can then go out cheaply through a low-cost provider.

Our guide to forward currency contracts explains how fixing a rate works.

Where to hold a university fund

Most families use a mix. A regular savings plan takes monthly contributions into an investment plan designed for a fixed goal and date, while an international platform account offers flexible, low-cost investing in several currencies. For larger sums and grandparents' gifts, an offshore bond in trust can be useful, with the money passing to the child as planned. And for the final year or two before fees are due, cash is best, so a market fall can't derail the plan.

Our regular savings solutions directory compares monthly plans, and our lump-sum solutions directory compares options for larger sums.

Help from grandparents

Grandparents often want to help with university, and it can be one of the most tax-efficient ways to pass on money. Regular gifts from surplus income can be free of UK inheritance tax, Thai gift tax exempts gifts from grandparents to grandchildren up to ฿20 million a year, and money placed in a trust or plan for a grandchild can be ring-fenced for education. A short conversation with Lawrence can help the whole family plan it.

Protecting the plan

If a parent dies or can't work, a university plan can stall. Life cover sized to the remaining education costs, written in trust, income protection for the main earner, and wills and guardianship in both countries keep your children's education on track whatever happens. We take leads for insurance and can introduce you to specialists who arrange cover for expat families.

Scholarships, bursaries and other help

Scholarships can reduce the bill, but they're rarely something to plan around. Many UK universities offer merit scholarships for international students, usually as a partial discount on tuition; some US universities offer generous need-based or merit aid; and some countries fund international students through government programmes. Competition is strong and awards are often decided late, after offers are made.

Treat any scholarship as a bonus rather than part of the core plan, and research early, because scholarship deadlines can come before the application deadline. Check whether your employer helps with children's education, as some do. And look at the total cost rather than tuition alone: a scholarship at an expensive city university may still cost more than a cheaper option elsewhere.

Don't forget postgraduate study

More and more graduates go on to a master's degree, and for some careers — law, medicine, academia, many professional fields — further study is expected. Postgraduate fees vary widely, international students rarely get loans, and a one-year master's in the UK can cost as much as a year or two of undergraduate study. Building a little extra into your university plan, or keeping the fund running beyond the first degree, gives your children choices later. Medicine, veterinary science and other long courses deserve special planning, as they can last five or six years.

A university planning timeline

From birth to around age five, start a monthly university plan — even small amounts benefit most from growth this early. Between five and twelve, keep contributions going, increase them as your income grows and add any lump sums. Between twelve and fourteen, think about fee status, and if a return to the UK is possible, consider the timing. From fourteen to sixteen, shortlist countries and universities and get realistic cost estimates. At sixteen and seventeen, move the money needed for the first years into safer investments and cash, and at seventeen ask universities about fee status and plan the currency for the first year's fees. Once your child is at university, fix rates for each year's fees and send allowances cheaply — and every year along the way, review the plan and adjust contributions.

The most common mistakes

1. Assuming a British passport means home fees.
2. Budgeting for tuition only, and forgetting living costs and flights.
3. Starting to save too late, when growth has little time to help.
4. Keeping university money in risky investments in the final years.
5. Converting currency at poor rates, year after year.
6. Using retirement savings to pay for university.
7. No protection if a parent dies or can't work.
8. Not asking universities about fee status until it's too late to plan.

Three real-world examples

Sarah and Krit: planning for international fees

Sarah and her Thai husband Krit, settled in Chiang Mai, assumed their son would pay home fees in the UK. A review with Lawrence showed he would probably be classed as international. They started a pound-based monthly plan when he was six, aiming for three years of international tuition, with growth expected to pay a large part.

David: the temporary posting

David was posted to Bangkok by his UK employer for four years, with a contract to return. Keeping evidence of the posting, the family home in the UK and UK tax records gave his daughter a strong case for home fee status when she applied.

Anna: university in Thailand

Anna's family weighed UK international fees against an English-taught programme at a Thai university, living at home. They chose Thailand for the undergraduate degree and saved for a master's in the UK instead.

Your university planning checklist

• I know my child's likely fee status — and I'm planning for international fees if unsure.
• I've estimated tuition and living costs for a realistic range of options.
• I've started a university plan for each child, as early as possible.
• I'm saving in the right currency for where they'll study.
• Money for the first years will move to safer investments in time.
• School and university are planned together.
• The plan is protected with life cover and wills.
• I review it every year.

Paying fees safely

Students and parents are targeted by fake accommodation listings and fraudulent "fee payment" requests. Always pay universities through their official channels, confirm bank details directly, and use a private, protected connection on public Wi-Fi — advice worth passing on to your student, too.

How we researched this guide

UK home fees come from UCL's and the University of Leeds's 2026/27 undergraduate fee pages; international fee examples from Keele University's 2026/27 bands; and fee status assessment from the University of Warwick's applicant fee assessment guidance, which refers to UKCISA. Savings illustrations assume growth of 8% a year after charges, the level Lawrence's education plans typically aim for; growth isn't guaranteed. Checked 14 October 2026. This guide is general information, not personal financial advice — always confirm fees and fee status with each university.