How Much Money You Need to Migrate: Proof of Funds by Country

Almost every serious migration route asks the same uncomfortable question before it lets you in: can you prove you have money in the bank? Not a payslip, not a promise, but a bank balance you can show on paper. This is the settlement-funds or proof-of-funds requirement, and it is the single most common reason otherwise-qualified applicants stall or get refused.

The frustrating part is that the money you must show is separate from the money you actually spend. A country might ask you to prove £1,300 or CA$15,000 sitting in your account, but the true cost of getting there and setting up a life on the other side is many times higher. Confuse the two and you will either under-save and get refused, or over-save and delay your move by years for no reason.

This guide separates the two clearly. First, the exact proof-of-funds figures by major destination and what counts as acceptable evidence. Then, the full realistic budget — visa fees, tests, flights, and the cash buffer you genuinely need to land safely. If you are still deciding where to go, pair this with our list of the cheapest countries to migrate to, because the proof-of-funds bar varies enormously and can quietly rule out destinations you assumed were affordable.

Proof of funds vs settlement funds vs living costs

Three phrases get used interchangeably and mean different things. Getting them straight will save you a lot of confusion.

• Proof of funds (settlement funds): money you must demonstrate you have available, usually as a bank balance held for a set period, to qualify for a visa. In some routes it is a hard threshold; in others the government keeps the money on your behalf (a blocked account).
• Maintenance funds: a subset of the above used mostly for study and job-seeker visas — enough to support yourself for a defined number of months without working.
• Actual living costs: what you will really spend once you arrive: rent deposits, furniture, transport, food, and the gap before your first salary lands.

The government figure is a floor, not a budget. Meeting it exactly is legal but reckless. Below we give both numbers so you can plan with your eyes open.

Proof of funds by country: the headline figures

Figures below are current for 2026 and drawn from published government requirements. They change with exchange rates, annual reviews and family size, so always confirm against the official source before you transfer anything. Amounts are shown in the destination currency because that is how the requirement is set.

A few of these deserve unpacking, because the table hides important nuance.

Canada — the clearest number

Canada's Express Entry system sets settlement funds by family size, updated annually against the low-income cut-off. For a single applicant it sits around CA$15,000, rising for each additional family member. You must show the money is available and unencumbered — not a loan, not tied up in property. Bank letters and statements are standard evidence.

The important exception: if you have a valid Canadian job offer and are authorised to work there, the funds requirement is waived. For the Canadian Experience Class, applicants already working in Canada are also exempt. So the CA$15,000 primarily bites for Federal Skilled Worker candidates arriving cold.

As a rough guide, Canada's per-family-size figures step up meaningfully: two people sit closer to CA$18,000–19,000, a family of three around CA$23,000, and a family of four in the CA$28,000 region. Treat these as illustrative rather than exact — the numbers are re-published each year — and always read the current table before you transfer, because being CA$500 short can cost you the whole application round.

Australia — no single magic number

This surprises people. Most points-tested skilled visas (subclass 189, 190, 491) do not carry a fixed proof-of-funds figure. What matters is your points score, skills assessment and occupation. That said, some state and territory nomination programmes ask you to declare you have enough to establish yourself — often expressed as a suggested AU$20,000–35,000 range for a single applicant — and student and some provisional visas do have genuine funds tests. Read the specific stream's criteria on the Australia migration route before assuming you are exempt.

The student route is where Australia's funds test becomes explicit. Student visa applicants are generally expected to show enough to cover twelve months of living costs (a benchmark figure that is reviewed periodically and currently sits in the AU$29,000+ range for the primary applicant), plus travel and course fees. If your skilled route later depends on Australian study, budget as though the student-visa funds test applies from day one.

United Kingdom — small threshold, big asterisk

The UK Skilled Worker visa maintenance requirement is modest: £1,270 held in your account for at least 28 consecutive days, ending no more than 31 days before you apply. Add roughly £285 for a partner and £315 for a first child, then £200 per additional child. The catch is elsewhere: the visa fee, the Immigration Health Surcharge (charged per year of visa, per person) and the salary threshold make the UK expensive overall even though the cash-in-bank test is small. Many employers on the sponsor register certify maintenance, which removes the £1,270 test entirely — worth asking about.

The UK student route is a different animal. Student applicants must show course fees for the first year plus living costs for up to nine months, held for the same 28 consecutive days. In London the monthly living-cost figure is higher than outside it, so a year of study in the capital can require you to season a five-figure sterling balance. If you are weighing a study-to-work pathway, price the student funds test, not the Skilled Worker one, because it is the larger of the two by a wide margin.

Germany — the blocked account model

Germany does not ask you to simply show a balance; for the Job Seeker visa and the newer Chancenkarte (Opportunity Card), you deposit money into a Sperrkonto (blocked account) from which you can only draw a set monthly amount once you arrive. For 2026 the benchmark is roughly €1,027 per month, so a full year runs to around €12,324. This money is genuinely yours — you spend it after landing — but it must be locked before the visa is issued. See the Germany migration route for the current figure and approved providers.

Budget for the blocked-account provider's own fees on top of the deposit. Opening and running a Sperrkonto through one of the common fintech providers typically costs a modest setup fee plus a small monthly service charge, and the money can take a week or two to clear and be confirmed. Start that process early, because a delayed blocked-account confirmation is a classic reason a visa appointment slips by a month.

Ireland, New Zealand and the study routes

Ireland's student route asks you to show roughly €10,000 to cover living costs for the first year, alongside evidence that your fees are paid or covered. Work-permit routes lean on the job offer and salary rather than a savings threshold, so the €10,000 figure is really a student-and-visitor benchmark. New Zealand similarly sets funds tests mainly for students and some work and working-holiday visas — often expressed as a per-month or per-year maintenance figure (commonly cited around NZ$20,000 per year of study, or NZ$4,200+ where accommodation is already arranged) rather than a lump-sum settlement number for skilled migrants.

The pattern across the English-speaking destinations is consistent: skilled-worker routes with a job offer tend to waive or ignore savings, while study and job-seeker routes carry the real funds tests. Knowing which bucket your route falls into tells you immediately whether savings are a gate or a footnote.

Portugal and the passive-income routes

Portugal's D7 visa and similar passive-income or "digital nomad" style routes work differently again: they test stable recurring income more than a frozen lump sum. The D7 broadly expects income at least at the level of the Portuguese national minimum wage, with proportional add-ons for a spouse and children, plus some savings in the bank as a cushion — often around a year of that minimum-wage income held as a buffer. If your money is a salary or pension that lands every month rather than a pile of savings, an income-tested route like this can be far easier to satisfy than a balance-check one.

The blocked-account countries vs the balance-check countries

It is worth grasping this split as a category, because it changes your cash-flow planning:

• Balance-check countries (Canada, UK) ask you to prove money exists. You keep control of it and spend it however you like after arrival.
• Blocked-account countries (Germany, and Austria for some routes) make you park money in a controlled account and drip-feed it monthly. The total is similar but your liquidity is worse, because a chunk of your savings is frozen for months.
• Income-test countries (Portugal D7, various passive-income visas) care less about a lump sum and more about a reliable monthly inflow. Savers with irregular balances but steady income are advantaged here.

If cash flow during the move is tight, a balance-check or income-test destination is gentler on you than a blocked-account one, even at the same headline number.

What actually counts as proof of funds

Meeting the number is only half the battle. Visa officers reject evidence that does not meet the format rules constantly. General principles across most countries:

• Liquid and available. Cash, savings and current accounts count. Property, cars, pensions and cryptocurrency usually do not, because they cannot be spent immediately.
• Held for a minimum period. The UK's 28-day rule is typical. A balance that appeared last week looks like a loan; officers want to see it seasoned.
• In your name (or a spouse's). Money in a parent's or friend's account is generally not accepted unless there is a documented, legitimate sponsorship arrangement.
• Documented on official letterhead. A bank letter stating your balance, account age and currency, plus statements covering the required period, is the gold standard. Screenshots are not.
• Not borrowed. Large recent deposits raise flags. If a relative gifted you money, expect to explain and evidence it with a gift letter and their own bank trail.

The single most common self-inflicted refusal is a big lump sum landing days before applying. If you know a route needs seasoned funds, move the money in early and leave it untouched. For the paperwork side of all this, our guide to the documents you need to migrate abroad covers bank letters, gift declarations and how to get them accepted.

A practical detail that trips people up: the bank letter and the statements must agree with each other and with the application form, down to the currency and the account number. If your statements are in your home currency, officers convert at the rate on the day they assess — so leave a margin above the threshold rather than sitting exactly on it. And keep the account active but stable: a completely dormant account can look as suspicious as a brand-new one, while normal salary in and modest spending out reads as a genuine, lived-in balance.

The number that matters more: your real total budget

Proof of funds is a gate. Your real budget is what gets you through the gate and keeps you alive for the first few months. Here is the honest structure of the total, for a single applicant to a typical high-income destination.

The pattern is clear: the government-mandated proof of funds is often the smaller line, not the biggest. The landing buffer and the frozen settlement money together dominate. Families multiply almost every row. For a full country-by-country breakdown of the process costs, see our companion piece on the real cost of migrating abroad.

Worked example one: single skilled worker to Canada, no job offer

Meet Priya, a 31-year-old software developer applying through Express Entry with no Canadian job offer. Her gate is the CA$15,000 settlement fund. Her real spend looks nothing like that number alone:

• Language test (two sittings, to lift her score): ~US$450
• Educational Credential Assessment: ~US$220
• Express Entry and permanent-residence fees, plus the right-of-permanent-residence fee, for one person: ~US$1,000
• Medical exam, police certificates from two countries, biometrics: ~US$500
• One-way flight with extra baggage: ~US$900
• Settlement funds she must show (CA$15,000): ~US$11,000
• Landing buffer — first and last month plus deposit on a rented room, a phone plan, transit pass, winter clothing: ~US$5,000

Her process costs come to roughly US$3,000, but the settlement funds and landing buffer push her genuine all-in requirement to around US$19,000. The CA$15,000 she was fixated on is only part of the picture — and critically, that CA$15,000 is not spent on fees; it converts into her landing buffer once she arrives. The mistake would be treating the CA$15,000 as both the gate money and the buffer. In practice they overlap, but only if she keeps it liquid.

Worked example two: couple to Germany via the Chancenkarte

Now take Marco and Lena, a couple moving together on Germany's Opportunity Card to job-hunt on the ground. Their situation is dominated by the blocked account:

• Two blocked accounts at roughly €12,300 each: ~€24,600 frozen
• Blocked-account provider setup and monthly fees for two: ~€200
• Visa fees for two applicants: ~€150
• Health insurance for the initial period, before employment: ~€200/month each
• Translations and document certification: ~€400
• Flights for two: ~US$1,800
• Landing costs — a furnished short-let while searching, deposits, Anmeldung and setup: ~€4,000

Their frozen funds alone are nearly €25,000, and although that money is theirs and gets drip-fed back monthly, it is unavailable during the exact weeks they most need liquidity. Their true "cash you must be able to lock up" figure is far higher than a single applicant's, and the couple's biggest planning risk is not the fees but the liquidity crunch of having €25,000 frozen while paying rent from the trickle it releases. This is the practical difference between balance-check and blocked-account routes made concrete. Before committing, it is worth checking how the two countries stack up side by side on total entry cost using our country comparison tool.

Why the landing buffer is non-negotiable

New arrivals routinely underestimate the gap between landing and their first salary. Even with a job offer, you may wait four to eight weeks for a first pay run, and before that you face upfront costs stacked on day one:

• A rental deposit of one to three months' rent, plus the first month up front.
• Agency or guarantor fees in markets like Germany and Japan.
• Furniture and appliances if the let is unfurnished (common in Germany and much of Europe).
• A phone plan, transport pass, and often a laptop or work equipment.

Budget as if your first salary will arrive two months late, because for many people it effectively does. A landing buffer that only covers two weeks is how well-qualified migrants end up in debt in their first month abroad. For a country-specific view of what those first weeks actually demand, our arrival guide for Canada walks through the day-one and week-one costs newcomers hit before their salary starts.

How proof-of-funds bars change where you should aim

Because the settlement-funds figure swings so widely, it should actively shape your shortlist — not just your paperwork. Three practical takeaways:

If your savings are thin but your skills are strong, chase a job offer first. A valid offer waives Canada's CA$15,000 and often removes the UK's £1,270 test. An employer-sponsored route like the Netherlands highly skilled migrant scheme tests your salary, not your savings, so you need almost nothing in the bank up front. This is the single biggest lever for cash-poor, skill-rich applicants.

If you have savings but no offer, blocked-account routes are viable. Germany's Chancenkarte lets you move to look for work provided you can fund the Sperrkonto. You are effectively pre-spending your own living costs, but you get to arrive and job-hunt on the ground.

If your money is income rather than savings, target an income-tested route. Passive-income visas like Portugal's D7 reward a steady monthly inflow — a salary, pension, rental income or remote contract — over a frozen lump sum. If your bank balance is modest but your income is reliable, these routes can be dramatically easier to satisfy than a settlement-funds threshold.

If you are comparing destinations, price the whole gate, not the headline. A country with a low visa fee but a high frozen-funds requirement can cost more to enter than a pricier visa with no savings test. Run the numbers side by side with our country comparison tool, and if you are unsure which routes you even qualify for, start with a free migration assessment.

Common mistakes that sink applications

A short list of avoidable errors we see repeatedly:

1. Seasoning too late. Moving funds in the week before applying. Move them months early.
2. Confusing gross savings with liquid funds. Property equity and pensions rarely count. Officers want cash you can spend now.
3. Ignoring exchange-rate drift. You must meet the threshold in the destination currency on the day of assessment. A 10% currency swing can quietly put you under.
4. Forgetting the family multiplier. Every additional person raises the settlement figure. Two adults and a child can nearly double the single-applicant number.
5. Budgeting the floor, not the buffer. Showing the minimum and arriving with nothing left. Meeting the threshold does not mean you can afford to live there.
6. Assuming a loan will work. Borrowed lump sums are frequently detected and refused. Officers can and do ask for the money's origin.
7. Overlooking the blocked-account timeline. Assuming a Sperrkonto opens instantly. Provider verification can take weeks and holds up the visa appointment.
8. Mismatched paperwork. A bank letter that disagrees with your statements or the application form. Officers cross-check, and a discrepancy reads as fabrication.

A simple savings plan

If you are starting from zero, work backwards from a realistic total rather than the headline figure:

• Target: the proof-of-funds requirement plus a landing buffer of three to six months' living costs in your destination.
• For a single applicant to Canada or Australia, that means aiming for roughly US$18,000–25,000 all-in, not the CA$15,000 threshold alone.
• For a couple to a blocked-account country, plan for the two frozen deposits plus a shared landing buffer, and accept that a large slice of the total will be illiquid during the move itself.
• For a lower-cost route with an employer sponsor, you might get away with US$6,000–10,000 because the savings test is waived and your salary starts sooner.

Save the proof-of-funds portion first and leave it untouched to satisfy the seasoning rule. Keep the buffer in an accessible account. Track the exchange rate as you approach your target so a bad currency week does not push you under the line. If you are saving over many months, revisit the official figure once more before you apply, because annual reviews and currency moves can shift the target while you are still building toward it.

Frequently asked questions

Does proof of funds need to be my own money? Generally yes. It must be in your name, or jointly with a spouse. Money in a parent's or friend's account is usually rejected unless there is a formal, documented sponsorship arrangement accepted by that specific programme.

How long must the money be in my account? It varies. The UK requires 28 consecutive days; other routes want to see the balance across several months of statements. As a rule, treat any funds you plan to rely on as needing to sit untouched for at least a month, ideally longer.

Can I use a loan or borrowed money? Usually not. Most programmes require funds to be genuinely yours and available. Large recent deposits attract scrutiny, and undisclosed loans are a common cause of refusal. Gifts can sometimes be used but must be evidenced with a gift letter and the giver's own bank records.

Does a job offer remove the proof-of-funds requirement? Often, yes. Canada waives settlement funds for candidates with a valid job offer and work authorisation, and many UK employers certify maintenance so the £1,270 test does not apply. Employer-sponsored routes frequently test your salary instead of your savings.

Do blocked-account funds actually get spent, or are they lost? They are spent. A German Sperrkonto holds your own money and releases a fixed amount to you each month after you arrive. It is a liquidity constraint, not a fee — you get the full amount back over your first year in the country. The only true cost is the provider's modest setup and monthly service charges.

How much extra do I need per family member? Every additional person raises the settlement figure and multiplies most other costs. Canada and the UK publish per-dependant add-ons; as a rough guide, plan for a partner and child to increase your total budget by 50–100%.

Does the proof-of-funds figure change every year? Yes. Canada re-publishes its settlement-funds table annually against the low-income cut-off, and blocked-account benchmarks in Germany are reviewed periodically. Currency movements also change what you must hold in your home currency. Always confirm the current figure shortly before you apply rather than relying on last year's number.

What if my savings are in cryptocurrency or property? They usually do not count. Officers want funds that are liquid and immediately spendable. If your wealth is in crypto or property, you generally need to convert it to cash and then let it season in a normal bank account for the required period, keeping a clear paper trail of where it came from.

Do income-tested routes still want savings? Often a smaller cushion, yes. Routes like Portugal's D7 lead on stable recurring income but typically also expect some savings in the bank — commonly around a year of the qualifying income level — as evidence you can absorb a gap. The income is the main test; the savings are the backstop.

Is meeting the minimum enough to be safe? No. The government figure is a qualifying floor, not a survival budget. Add a landing buffer covering three to six months of local living costs on top, or you risk arriving legally compliant but financially stranded.

The bottom line

The proof-of-funds requirement is a gate with a published price, and it is usually smaller than people fear — often between US$1,300 and US$12,000 depending on the route. The number that actually determines whether your move succeeds is the total: the frozen settlement money plus the buffer that carries you from landing to your first pay cheque. Save for the total, season the proof-of-funds portion early, and let the size of each country's gate help you choose where to aim.

Start by narrowing your options with the cheapest countries to migrate to, pressure-test the full costs against the real cost of migrating abroad, and when you are ready, take a free assessment to see which routes fit both your skills and your savings.