Cost of studying in Canada for Indian students in 2026: tuition, living costs and four budgets in rupees

Canada is often sold as the affordable option. For a one-year college certificate it can be. For a master’s at a well-known university, the 2026-27 fees tell a different story: tuition alone runs from about ₹13 lakh to over ₹50 lakh a year, before you pay a rupee of rent.

We put this guide together from the fee pages of twelve Canadian universities and colleges, IRCC’s funds rules, and official rent data. It shows tuition, living costs, health insurance, the money you must show for the study permit, and four full budgets in rupees. Every figure comes from an official or university source, listed at the end, and was checked on 7 October 2026. Rupee amounts use C$1 ≈ ₹68; the Bank of Canada rate on 6 October was about ₹67.75.

How much does it cost to study in Canada for Indian students?

About ₹28 to 55 lakh for a year, and close to ₹68 lakh at the University of Toronto. A one-year college certificate comes to about ₹30 lakh in total, a two-year college diploma up to about ₹57 lakh, and our two university master’s budgets about ₹55 lakh and ₹68 lakh. Each budget is published tuition and fees, living costs for the length of the course, and C$235 for the study permit and biometrics; flights, separately billed health insurance and rent deposits are extra. They are illustrations, not quotes.

What is the tuition at Canadian universities for international students?

For a master’s, roughly C$19,000 to C$55,000 a year at the universities we checked, and C$76,090 at the University of Toronto. Fees differ more between universities than between subjects, so always read the fee page for your exact programme.

Two things change the real cost. First, some fees are per term, and a Canadian master’s often runs three or more terms a year. Second, course-based master’s seldom come with university funding: UBC says financial aid is generally not available to M.Eng. students. Research master’s are different: U of T Engineering, for one, provides financial support to all MASc and PhD students. Our MS after BTech guide explains the difference.

How much do Canadian colleges charge international students?

About C$18,000 to C$21,000 for a one-year programme, or a year of a diploma, at the Ontario colleges we checked, and about C$51,000 for a two-year diploma at BCIT in Vancouver. A one-year graduate certificate is the cheapest way into Canada, but it also earns the shortest work permit.

Colleges also ask for a deposit before they request your provincial attestation letter: Conestoga takes C$2,500, non-refundable unless your visa is refused, when it is returned less a C$200 fee, and Humber C$2,000; both count towards your tuition. Fanshawe raised international tuition by three per cent from September 2026, and added C$375 a term, so expect fees to rise each year of a two-year diploma.

How much does it cost to live in Canada as a student?

More than the IRCC minimum in the big cities. The University of Waterloo estimates C$25,452 to C$36,852 a year for a graduate student, about ₹17.3 to 25.1 lakh, and rent is most of it:

Rent depends on the city. These are the average monthly rents for purpose-built apartments in CMHC’s October 2025 rental market survey. They are averages across all tenants, so a new tenant usually pays more; many students share.

Montréal is the cheapest of these. Concordia’s 2026 estimate for an international student renting there comes to about C$26,521 a year before tuition, about ₹18 lakh, of which C$8,760 is rent. In Kitchener-Waterloo, Conestoga puts a private room in a shared unit at about C$750 a month, and warns that most landlords require you to pay your first and last month’s rent upfront.

How much does a student need a month in Canada?

Budget about ₹1.3 to 2.1 lakh a month. IRCC’s minimum works out to about C$1,954 a month (₹1.33 lakh); Waterloo’s estimate for a graduate student is C$2,121 to C$3,071 a month (₹1.44 to 2.09 lakh). A private room in a shared unit around Conestoga’s campuses is about C$750 (₹51,000) of that. Your first month costs more: with first and last month’s rent due together, keep at least two months’ rent aside when you arrive.

How much is health insurance for international students in Canada?

It depends on the province. At Ontario universities it is a separate bill of about ₹64,500 a year:

• Ontario: universities enrol you in UHIP, which costs C$948 for September 2026 to August 2027 for a single student. Colleges run their own plans; Conestoga’s 2026-27 fee table lists C$680 for its international health plan, already included in its C$19,908 programme fee above.
• British Columbia: a health fee of C$75 a month, with private insurance needed for the waiting period of up to about three months.
• Alberta: students who will live there for at least 12 months, with a valid study permit, can be eligible for the provincial plan.
• Nova Scotia: with a permit valid for 12 months or more, you can apply for a health card on the first day of the 13th month after you arrive, so you need private cover until then.

How much money do you need to show for a Canadian study permit?

Your first year’s tuition, your travel to and from Canada, and C$23,448 (about ₹15.9 lakh) for living costs, for a single student applying on or after 1 September 2026 outside Quebec. IRCC says these amounts do not include tuition and transportation costs, and that you must be able to pay them without working in Canada.

• Quebec is separate. For applications from 1 January 2026, Quebec asks a single student for C$24,617, about ₹16.7 lakh, which includes health insurance costs.
• Bank statements cover six months. IRCC asks for statements for the past six months, including the month you apply or the month before, showing where the money came from.
• Other proof counts too: an education loan from a bank, a GIC from a Canadian financial institution, paid tuition receipts, a scholarship or a sponsor’s letter.

Our proof of funds guide compares this with the UK, Australia, Germany and the USA, and covers large deposits and parents’ accounts.

Is the GIC an extra cost?

No. A guaranteed investment certificate is your own living money, held by a Canadian bank and paid back to you after you arrive. It is not compulsory, and has not been since the Student Direct Stream closed in November 2024, but in our experience it is the cleanest proof of funds, and most of our students deposit the IRCC living-cost amount, C$23,448 for applications from 1 September 2026; Scotiabank’s GIC takes up to C$50,000. The only cost is the bank’s fee, which varies:

• Scotiabank: C$200 to cover processing and wire transfers; on arrival you choose to take the money at once or in monthly payments over a year.
• ICICI Bank Canada: a C$200 processing fee plus C$25 for bank charges, non-refundable.
• CIBC: part of the money is paid into your account when you arrive and the rest in 11 monthly payments; CIBC charges no processing fee for funds sent in foreign currency.
• RBC: “No program or handling fees apply.”

Can part-time work pay for living costs in Canada?

Partly, but not on paper. You can work up to 24 hours a week off campus during term, and without a limit in scheduled breaks such as summer and winter holidays. But IRCC wants proof you can pay your way without working, so earnings cannot replace the funds you show. In our experience, students who rely on finding work in the first term are the ones who run short.

How much more does it cost with a spouse?

A spouse adds C$5,744 to the funds you show, about ₹3.9 lakh: two people need C$29,192 on top of tuition. Work rights are also narrower than before. Since 21 January 2025, a spouse can get an open work permit only if the student is in a master’s programme of 16 months or longer, a doctoral programme, or certain professional programmes. A spouse of a college or shorter master’s student cannot count on earning.

What does it cost to send money from India?

Money paid from an education loan by a financial institution carries no tax collected at source. From your own savings, TCS is 2% on the amount above ₹10 lakh in a financial year, from 1 April 2026, and it is credited against the sender’s income tax. Each resident can send up to US$250,000 a financial year under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme. Our education loan guide covers loan amounts, margins and sanction letters.

Are there scholarships that reduce the cost?

Small ones, mostly at colleges. Seneca and Centennial give international entrance scholarships of C$2,000 for a one-year programme and C$3,000 for a two-year one, and Fanshawe gives C$2,000, applied to first-term tuition. Centennial’s terms are on its entrance scholarships page. Course-based university master’s rarely come with funding.

Is studying in Canada worth the cost?

It depends on the work permit your course earns, so check that before the fee. A master’s of at least 8 months can earn a post-graduation work permit of up to 3 years. A college programme of 8 months to under 2 years earns up to the length of the programme, and one of 2 years or more up to 3 years. Every graduate must also meet a language level, CLB 7 after a university programme and CLB 5 after a college programme, and college graduates must have studied an eligible field. So the ₹30 lakh two-term certificate can earn a work permit only as long as the programme, under a year, while the ₹57 lakh two-year diploma can earn up to three years because Seneca marks it PGWP-eligible. Many college programmes are not: Seneca’s own list of PGWP-eligible programmes leaves out its International Business diploma, for example. Check the list for your programme before you pay a deposit. If a permit is refused, our Canada study permit refusal guide explains what to do next.

Places are also limited. IRCC expects to issue up to 408,000 study permits in 2026, 7% below the 2025 target. Master’s and doctoral students at public universities have not needed a provincial attestation letter since 1 January 2026; most college students still do.

For how Canada compares with the UK, Germany, Australia and the USA, see our cost of studying abroad guide, or our page on studying in Canada.