The South African Social Security Agency (SASSA) manages grants and allowances for groups in South African society needing assistance. This includes grants for children, the older persons grants and disability grants. SASSA also manages the R350 grant for the special relief of distress during the Covid-19 crisis.
Keep reading to find out the requirements for SASSA grants and who is eligible to receive them.
Child Support Grant
The Child Support Grant is there for lower-income households to help parents with the costs of their child’s basic needs. You will get R460 a month per child.
The requirements are:
- A primary caregiver who is responsible for the child
- South African citizen or Permanent Resident
- If the caregiver is single, they must earn R4000 or less per month
- If the caregiver is married, the couple’s combined monthly earnings must be less than R8000
- The child must be younger than 18 years old
- The child must not be in the care of a state institution
- The child must live with the primary caregiver in South Africa who isn’t paid to look after the child
You can’t get the grant for more than 6 children who aren’t your legally adopted or biological children.
Older Persons Grant
People who qualify for the SASSA older persons grant, need to meet a certain criteria. There is a set of requirements that the person needs to pass in order to receive the grant. You will get between R1890 and R1910 depending on your age.
To qualify for the older persons grant the applicant must:
- Be a South African citizen, permanent resident or refugee.
- Be resident in South Africa.
- Not be less than 60 years.
- Not be in receipt of another social grant for him or herself.
- The applicant and spouse must comply with the means test.
- Not be maintained or cared for in a State Institution.
- Submit a 13 digit bar coded identity document.
To know more about SASSA’s Older Persons Grant, click here.
Disability Grant
The person who receives this grant lives with a disability and will receive R1890 per month.
To qualify for the grant, the applicant must:
- Be a South African citizen, permanent resident or refugee.
- Be resident in South Africa.
- Be 18 to 59 years of age.
- Submit a medical / assessment report confirming permanent, severe disability.
- Provide a medical assessment that is not older than 3 months at date of application.
- Meet the requirements of the means test (including spouse).
- Not be maintained or cared for in a State Institution.
- Not be in receipt of another social grant in respect of him or herself.
Head to the SASSA website to know more about SASSA’s Disability Grant.
War Veterans Grant
This grant is geared towards those who were former soldiers who fought in the Second World War (1939-1945) or the Korean War (1950-1953) and are unable to support themselves.
The requirements to get this grant are:
- be a South African citizen or permanent resident
- live in South Africa
- be 60 years of age or older or be disabled
- have fought in the Second World War or the Korean War
- not receive any other social grant for yourself
- not be cared for in a state institution
- not earn more than R 86 280 if you are single or R172 560 if married
- not have assets worth more than R 1 227 600 if you are single or R 2 455 200 if you are married.
Click here to know more about the War Veterans Grant.
Care Dependency Grant
You can receive this grant if you take care of a child who has a severe disability and is in need of full-time and special care. Beneficiaries of this grant receive R1890 per month.
The requirements for this grant are:
- The applicant must be a South African citizen, permanent resident or refugee.
- The applicant and child must be resident in South Africa.
- Child must be under the age of 18 years.
- The applicant must submit a medical / assessment report confirming permanent, severe disability.
- The applicant and spouse must meet the requirements of the means test (except for foster parents.
- The care-dependent child/children must not be permanently cared for in a State Institution.
Visit the SASSA website here to know more about SASSA’s Care Dependency Grant.
Foster Child Grant
A child foster care grant is paid per court order to the foster parent. They will receive R1050 per month.
The requirements for this grant are:
- The foster parent must be a South African citizen, permanent resident or refugee.
- Both the applicant and the child must reside in South Africa.
- Child must remain in the care of the foster parent(s).
To know more about the Foster Child Grant, click here to go to the SASSA website.
Grant In Aid
This is used to assist with medical bills, nutritious food purchases, and compensating the person taking care of the frail, in addition to another grant. Beneficiaries of this will receive R460 per month.
Applicants must meet the following requirements:
- The applicant must be in receipt of a grant for Older Persons.
- Disability grant or a War Veteran’s grant, and require full- time attendance by another person.
- Owing to his/her physical or mental disabilities.
- Must not be cared for in an institution that receives subsidy from the State for the care/housing of such beneficiary.
Go to the SASSA website by clicking here to learn more about the Grant.
Covid-19 Special Relief of Distress Grant
The Special Relief of Distress grant was introduced during the Covid-19 pandemic to unemployed individuals. They would then receive R350 per month.
The requirements are as follows:
- The applicant is awaiting payment of an approved social grant.
- The applicant has been found medically unfit to undertake remunerative work for a period of less than 6 months.
- The bread winner is deceased and application is made within three months of the date of death.
- No maintenance is received from parent, child or spouse obliged in law to pay maintenance, and proof is furnished that efforts made to obtain maintenance have been unsuccessful.
- The bread winner of that person`s family has been admitted to an institution funded by the state (prison, psychiatric hospital, state home for older persons, treatment centre for substance abuse or child and youth care centre).
- The applicant has been affected by a disaster as defines in the Disaster Management Act or the Fund Raising Act, 1978.
- The person is not receiving assistance from any other organization or.
- Refusal of the application for social relief of distress will cause undue hardships.
