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Introduction to Fees

Payment of Fees

University and College fees are paid to a student's College, rather than the central University. If you have any queries about payment options and timeframes, please contact your College Accounts office. Fees for current undergraduate and postgraduate students are updated annually and published on the Academic and Financial Planning and Analysis (AFPA) website. 

  • For undergraduate fees, including estimates of living costs, visit the Undergraduate Study Fees and Finance page. Information about other undergraduate costs is provided by Colleges, including information about students loans managed by the Student Loan Company (SLC), the Cambridge Bursary Scheme, and studying for a second degree. Fees for students receiving student finance support are aligned with SLC payments and are charged in three instalments per year: 25%, 25%, and 50%.
  • For postgraduate fees, including estimates of living costs, visit the Postgraduate Study Finance page. 

Non-Payment of Fees

University governance on the non-payment of tuition fees is available in Ordinances, Chapter I; the policy and guidance are published in full in Reporter, 6724, 10 January 2024 (with an amendment Notice published in Reporter, 6729, 14 February 2024). Operational documents can be obtained from the University's Fee Policy Manager at feestatusandpolicy@admin.cam.ac.uk.

Students who enrolled on their course prior to the introduction of the new policy in January 2025 will be covered by either their College's or their postgraduate admissions team's non-payment procedures and terms of admission. If the student's full tuition fees remain unpaid by the end of this process, their College will need to contact Student Registry via degreecongregations@admin.cam.ac.uk, copying in the University Fee Policy Manager (as above), to confirm that the student will not be graduating due to non-payment.  

Tuition Fee Status

Every student offered a place on a degree course at a UK university has their fee status assessed and confirmed as part of their offer. Your fee status determines the level of fees you are charged and the financial support available to you, and will be included in your offer letter/email if you are offered a place. Your assessment will be made in line with UK Government fee status legislation (see the Legislation section below) and is based on three factors: your nationality, your UK immigration status, and where you have been 'ordinarily resident' during the three years leading up to your course start date. Please refer to the menu links on the left hand side of this page for further information. 

At the University of Cambridge, undergraduates are assessed by either their College or the central University. For postgraduates, the relevant admissions team handles the assessments. Your fee status will be assessed as one of the following - there are no other options:

  • Home (the regulated fee, capped by the UK government)
  • Home ELQ (if you are applying for an Equivalent Level Qualification to one you already hold)
  • Overseas (which is not capped by the UK Government).

Students not classified as Home will be classified as Overseas. 

Legislation

The University must follow UK Government rules on fee eligibility when making an assessment. The relevant sections of legislation are:

Please note that a student's or offer holder's personal finances (and those of their family) do not affect their fee status. Universities will NOT change a student's fee status if their financial circumstances change. 

Guidance to help students and families understand the legislation is freely available from UKCISA (UK Council for International Student Affairs). This guide is updated regularly. While all English universities are governed by the same national fee legislation, each university is required to conduct its own assessments and disregard assessments made by other institutions - including any decisions made by Student Finance England (SFE). An offer holder may be considered eligible for Home fees by their chosen university, but not by Student Finance England. For more information, please visit Student Finance - tuition fees, loans and funding (ucas.com).

How am I assessed?

The appropriate University Admissions Office will determine an applicant’s fee status from the information in their University of Cambridge application. If it's unclear, the applicant will need to submit a Fee Status Assessment Questionnaire to their Admissions Office with supporting documents.

Data Protection

Any data collected from an applicant or current student during their assessment will be managed in accordance with the University’s Data Protection policies. For details on how the University handles applicant data and documents, please refer to the Statement from the University's Information and Compliance Office.

Staff Fee Scheme and Staff Bursary Scheme

Information on the Staff Fee Scheme and forthcoming Staff Bursary Scheme for University postgraduate students employed by the University is available on the Staff Fee Scheme and Staff Bursary Scheme page.​

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