A social grant is a financial aid program provided by the South African Social Security Agency for people with low incomes. South Africans can apply for eight grants.
Introduction
South African Social Security Agency (SASSA) provides social grants to the country’s most vulnerable citizens, usually those with low incomes.
The South African government currently offers eight social grants. South Africans are to benefit from the grants in the best way possible.
The Sassa payments for July began this week, on Tuesday, July 4
The Older Persons Grant will be paid from Tuesday, 4 July, the Disability Grant from Wednesday, 5 July, and the Children’s Grant from Thursday, 6 July.
The payment dates and schedule for R350 grants are not set, but Sassa assures that you will receive your grant if you are approved.
Here are each of the social grants explained:
The Social Relief from Distress Grant (SRD)
SRD grants (also known as R350 grants) were created and implemented during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020. As a result of the lockdown, unemployed citizens had no other source of income, so the grant was primarily intended to provide support to them.
The R350 grant is given every month to beneficiaries, which is why it is often called the R350 grant.
SRD grants were initially intended to be temporary, but have grown significantly, with millions relying on the money for their overall survival as a result of poverty, unemployment, and high living costs.
The following are the requirements for becoming an SRD grant beneficiary:
- Must be unemployed
- A monthly income of R624 or less is required
- A South African citizen, permanent resident, refugee, a holder of a special permit under the Special Angolan Dispensation, the Lesotho Exemption Permit Dispensation, the Zimbabwe Exemption Permit Dispensation, or an asylum seeker with a valid section 22 permit or visa is required.
- Be between the ages of 18 and 59 years old
- Reside within the borders of South Africa
- Register in the Home Affairs database or Sassa’s social grant database if you do not have an ID document.
- A resident of a non-government institution or a subsidized institution
- Grants for Social Relief of Distress under COVID-19 are not being received
- The recipient does not receive Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) benefits or National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) support.
The Child Support Grant (CSG)
Child Support Grants are provided by Sassa to primary caretakers who meet the following criteria:
- Under 18 years of age is required
- The person must not be in the care of a state institution
- The primary caregiver must look after the child without compensation.
The following are the criteria that should be met by the primary caregiver:
- A South African citizen or permanent resident is required.
- You cannot earn more than R48 000 per year (R4 000 per month) if you are single. A married couple’s income shouldn’t be more than R96 000 a year (R8 000 a month).
If you are not the child’s parent, you must prove that you are their primary caregiver. As proof, you can use an affidavit from a police official or the biological parent, a report from a social worker, or a letter from the principal. Grant eligibility requires both the child and the applicant/recipient to meet the requirements.
You cannot get the grant for more than six children who are not legally adopted or your biological children. If someone else is already receiving a grant for the child, you may not qualify for the grant.
Additionally, SASSA conducts a means test to determine whether a grant applicant’s income is less than a certain level.
The grant will pay you an amount of R440 per month per child once it is approved. When completing your application, you must specify how you want the grant paid.
The “Top-Up grant”, launched on 1 June 2022, allows caregivers to receive an additional R240, on top of the R480 basic CSG amount. Top-Up will therefore be subject to the same eligibility requirements as CSG, according to the Department of Social Development (DSD).
The Disability grant
The SASSA has been providing necessary grants to low-income South African citizens with mental and physical disabilities for almost two decades.
Applicants for the Disability Grant must meet certain criteria in order to be considered for the grant. A successful grant application may entitle them to receive payments of up to R2 080 per month.
It is necessary for the applicant to undergo a medical assessment before applying for the grant. To do this, they will need to download the Medical Assessment: Referral Form and take it to a medical institution.
Medical assessment results will only reveal whether the applicant is eligible to apply for a disability grant once they have been received.
To qualify for the grant, the applicant must:
- You must be a South African citizen, permanent resident, or refugee.
- Currently residing in South Africa.
- Ages 18 to 59 are eligible.
- A medical / assessment report confirming permanent, severe disability is required.
- Medical assessment must be no older than 3 months at the time of application.
- Be eligible for the means test (including spouse), which requires that the beneficiary not earn more than R86 280 if single, or R172 560 if married.
- Neither be maintained nor cared for in a state institution.
- Having no other social grants in his or her name.
The Foster Child Grant
A Foster Child Grant (FCG) is a payment from the South African government to a foster parent of a child under the age of 18. Foster parents who need financial assistance to take care of foster children can apply for the grant.
A Foster Child grant is paid to the foster parent pursuant to a court order.
To qualify for this grant, you must meet the following requirements:
- There must be a South African citizen, permanent resident, or refugee as the foster parent.
- The applicant as well as the child must reside in South Africa.
- The child must remain in foster care with foster parent(s).
The Child Foster Care grant will provide applicants with R1050 per month.
The Old Person’s grant
The Older Person’s Grant provides financial assistance to people 60 years and older who may not be able to work. Pensioners’ grants are normally worth R2080 per month, but those older than 75 years of age will receive up to R2100.
To qualify for the Older Person’s Grant the applicant must:
- You must be a South African citizen, a permanent resident, or a refugee.
- You must be a South African resident.
- The age must not be less than 60.
- Be ineligible for another social grant.
- An applicant and spouse must comply with the means test, which stipulates that if a beneficiary is single, their income cannot exceed R86280, and if they are married, their income cannot exceed R172595.
- Neither be maintained nor cared for in a state institution.
- A 13-digit barcoded identity document must be submitted.
Care and Dependency Grant
Those who take care of a child with a severe disability and who require full-time, special care are considered Care Dependents. Care Dependency Grants cover disabled children from birth to 18, but older people can also apply.
The requirements to qualify for this grant are:
- Applicants must be South African citizens, permanent residents, or refugees.
- Both the applicant and child must reside in South Africa.
- A child must be under the age of 18.
- There must be a medical or assessment report that confirms that the applicant is permanently disabled.
- A means test must be met by the applicant and spouse (exceptions are made for foster parents).
- In the case of a dependent child or children, they should not be permanently placed in a state institution.
- If you are single, your income should not exceed R223 200 a year. If you are married, your combined income should not exceed R446 400. The income limit does not apply to foster parents.
The grant will pay a monthly amount of R1890 to those who qualify.
Sassa can decide whether your grant needs to be reviewed. This decision will be based on the income you declared when you applied for the grant.
You will be notified three months in advance of the date the review will take place or when the life certificate is due. Every year, if you receive money through a bank, an institution, or a Sassa procurator, you must fill out a life certificate.
War Veterans grant
War Veterans Grants are available to former soldiers who fought in the Second World War (1939-1945) or the Korean War (1950-1953) and cannot support themselves.
The following requirements must be met by the applicant to qualify for the grant:
- A South African citizen or permanent resident is required
- Must live in South Africa
- Applicants must be 60 years of age or older or disabled
- Served in the Second World War or the Korean War
- You cannot receive any other social grant
- Cannot be cared for in a state institution
- The maximum income you can earn as a single person must not exceed R86 280, or as a couple must not exceed R172 560
- The value of your assets cannot exceed R 1 227 600 if you are single or R 2 455 200 if you are married.
Those who qualify will receive R 2 100 a month as part of this grant.
Grant-in-Aid
Along with another grant, the Grant in Aid is used to help pay medical bills, buy nutritious food, and compensate the person taking care of the frail.
The person taking full-time care of you can get an additional grant if you live on a social grant but are unable to take care of yourself.
To qualify for this grant, you must meet the following requirements:
- An older person grant must be received by the applicant.
- Applicants must receive a disability grant or a war veteran’s grant, and another person must accompany them full-time.
- Affected by a physical or mental disability.
- Beneficiaries must not be cared for in institutions that receive subsidies from the government.
The amount of the grant is R460 per month for those who qualify. Your grant will be paid along with your social grant.
Payments can be made in cash on certain days of the month or can be deposited into your bank account electronically.
The grant can be received directly into your bank account or through an alternative method, such as a retail merchant, a Sassa card, or through CashSend.
Changing the payment method is possible at any time by filling out a form, but the change won’t take effect for a month.
Final Words
Sassa payments can be made in a variety of ways. They can be paid with a bank account, a Sassa card, in person, or through CashSend. The Sassa grant is there to help you meet your basic needs.
Sassa also offers Sassa grant applications that have been rejected a second chance through an appeal.
