Not a US Student? What Actually Works

A lot of student discounts are written as if everyone studies in the US. Some really are US-only, some quietly cover dozens of countries, and some only care about your school email. We read the official pages on September 25, 2026 to sort out which student discounts outside the US actually work for you in India, the UK, the EU or anywhere else.

If you want the short list of tools that work where you are, our [students outside the US](/for/students-outside-us) page keeps it current.

What you need

• Your school email, if your school gives you one.
• A document with your **first name, last name, school name and a date showing current enrollment**. That's SheerID's list, and most checkers want the same things.
• A payment method, for offers that ask for one at sign-up.

Step 1: Work out who checks your status

Almost every offer uses one of four checks. Knowing which one tells you whether you're in.

1. **SheerID.** Used by ChatGPT and Perplexity, among others. SheerID's own FAQ says eligibility "may be limited to students in only certain countries" and the countries are the ones in the dropdown on the form. If your school isn't on the list, you aren't eligible for that offer right now (you can ask SheerID to add it). Acceptance letters and documents for future terms don't count.
2. **School email.** Notion checks your school email against a list of accredited institutions. No school email, no plan.
3. **The vendor's own review.** GitHub Education looks at your school ID, schedule, transcript or enrollment letter, and sometimes also wants an academic email.
4. **UNiDAYS.** A student deals platform that's free to join and claims 29m+ verified members. It verifies automatically through many institutions, or from a photo of your physical student ID, which can take up to 7 days at busy times.

Step 2: Check the offer's country list, not the headline

This is where most people outside the US get caught. The same brand can run very different offers by country.

• **ChatGPT:** the 2026 Back to School offer (4 months of Plus at $0) is for students at eligible **US** degree-granting schools only. From India, the pricing page showed us Go at ₹399/month and Plus at ₹1,999/month, with no student price. See [ChatGPT Plus](/tools/chatgpt-plus) and the [US student deal](/deals/chatgpt-plus-students).
• **Gemini:** Google has a separate student page per country, and the region picker lists a long list of them. In the US it's a year of Google AI Pro, then $19.99/month. In the UK it's a year of Google AI Plus, then £4.49/month. In India it's a year of AI Plus, then ₹399/month. The German page offers a year of AI Plus to students and apprentices, but its fine print mentions renewing into AI Pro at €21.99/month, so read yours carefully. All of them are 18+ and need a card. See [Gemini](/tools/google-gemini), the [AI Plus student deal](/deals/google-ai-plus-students) and the [US AI Pro student deal](/deals/google-ai-pro-us-students).
• **GitHub Copilot:** the Copilot Student plan comes through GitHub Education. The docs we read set eligibility by age (13+) and enrollment, and didn't name a country list. See [GitHub Copilot](/tools/github-copilot) and the [Copilot Student deal](/deals/github-copilot-student).
• **Notion:** Education Plus goes to students at accredited colleges and universities using a school email. It isn't described as US-only. See [Notion](/tools/notion) and the [Education Plus deal](/deals/notion-plus-students).
• **Perplexity:** Education Pro is verified through SheerID, so it comes down to whether your country and school are in the dropdown. See [Perplexity](/tools/perplexity-ai) and the [Education Pro deal](/deals/perplexity-education-pro).

Step 3: No school email? Use a document

Plenty of schools outside the US don't give students an email address, or give one that nobody recognises.

1. For SheerID offers, pick your school in the form and upload a document instead. SheerID checks for your first and last name, the school name and a date showing current enrollment, so any official school document with all four is the one to use.
2. For GitHub Education, you can upload proof such as a dated school ID. If your school doesn't issue email addresses, GitHub accepts official documentation that explains that policy.
3. For Notion there's no document route in what we read. It's school email or nothing.

Step 4: Know what ISIC is (and isn't)

The ISIC card is an international student ID card, issued in over 100 countries and endorsed by UNESCO since 1968. It proves you're a student when you travel and comes with its own discount network. None of the AI offers we checked this month said they accept ISIC as proof. We couldn't confirm the price or validity period from the ISIC homepage, and it depends on where you get it.

Step 5: Compare the regional price, not just the student price

Sometimes the normal local price beats a student offer somewhere else. Some examples we saw:

• **ChatGPT Go** at ₹399/month in India is a cheaper tier than Plus, and it has no student check at all.
• **Grammarly's** plans page served us an India-only Plus plan at ₹392 per member per month billed annually (₹1,000 monthly), payable only through local payment methods.
• **Gemini AI Plus** after the student year is £4.49/month in the UK and ₹399/month in India, well below the US AI Pro price of $19.99.

Pay in your own currency, through your own country's store. We don't cover VPN or region tricks, and they tend to break the terms you agreed to.

If it gets rejected

• **"School not found":** try the full official name of your school, then request that SheerID add it. Until then, that offer isn't open to you.
• **Document rejected:** the usual reasons are a missing date, a future term, or an acceptance letter. Upload something from the current term with your full name visible.
• **Wrong account:** SheerID offers apply to whichever account is signed in when you claim. Check before you start.

The catch

Country coverage changes more than prices do. An offer that's US-only today can open up next term, and the reverse happens too. We checked all of this on September 25, 2026, and the [AI student discount list](/blog/ai-student-discounts) is where we track the changes.

Checklist

• [ ] Find which checker the offer uses (SheerID, school email, vendor review, UNiDAYS).
• [ ] Confirm your country is in the offer's list or dropdown.
• [ ] Get a current-term document with your full name, school name and date.
• [ ] Compare the student offer with your normal local price.
• [ ] If a card is needed, note the date of the first charge.

FAQ

Does SheerID work outside the US?

It depends on the offer. SheerID shows eligible countries in the dropdown on each verification form, so one company's offer might include your country and another's might not.

Can I get ChatGPT's student offer in India or the UK?

Not this one. The 2026 Back to School offer is for students at eligible US degree-granting institutions.

Is ISIC accepted for AI student discounts?

None of the AI offers we checked this month mentioned ISIC. It's more useful for travel and the brands in its own network.

My school doesn't give me an email. What now?

Use the document route where there is one (SheerID offers, GitHub Education). Notion's education plan needs a school email.