Can Sassa Applications Be Done Online?

In South Africa, social grants are administered by the South African Social Security Agency (Sassa). The social grant initiative is the government’s biggest poverty alleviation and redistribution intervention.

Sassa’s role is to manage and distribute social grants to people who are “vulnerable to poverty and are in need of government support” that will help improve their standard of living.

Government makes provision for social assistance in form of the following:

Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant

During the height of the pandemic, government rolled out the SRD grant as a temporary programme intended for people who are in need and are unable to meet their families’ most basic needs. The grant pays out R350 to qualifying citizens.

To quality for the grant you must meet the following requirements:

• Be Unemployed
• Must have income of R624 or less per month
• Be between the ages of 18 and 59 years old
• Reside within the borders of South Africa
• Be a South African citizen, permanent resident, refugee and be registered on the Home Affairs database or Sassa’s social grant database for individuals without ID documents

How to Apply for The Srd Grant Online

1. Go to srd.sassa.gov.za
2. Scroll to the ‘How do I apply for this SRD Grant’ section
3. Click on the yellow bar which says ‘click here to apply online’
4. Enter your mobile number
5. Click “send sms”
6. Then enter the one time pin that Sassa has sent to the number
7. Continue the application process by filling in the steps required by Sassa

How to apply for the SRD grant on WhatsApp:

1. Add 082 046 8553 as a contact on your phone
2. Go on WhatsApp and send a message saying ‘hi’ to this number
3. You will then receive a response and you should then respond saying ‘help’
4. You will be given various options, reply saying ‘4’
5. This will lead you to the Unathi Sassa platform message which you should reply ‘SRD’ to
6. You then have to confirm whether you’re applying for yourself or someone else
7. Now the actual application begins and you’ll have to submit your name, surname and ID number in the message.
8. You will then receive a message on Whatsapp stating the next steps.

Grant for older persons

The older persons grant is provided to people who are 60 years or older. Beneficiaries of this grant will receive an amount of R1 980 per month and If you are older than 75 years, you will receive R2 000. To quality for the grant, you need to meet the following stipulated requirements:

• Be a South African citizen, permanent resident, or refugee
• reside in South Africa
• not receive any other social grant for yourself
• not be cared for in a state institution
• not earn more than R86 280 if you are single or R172 560 if married.
• not have assets worth more than 1 227 600 if you are single or R2 455 200 if you are married.

How To Apply

Application forms for the older persons grant are not available online, so applicants will have to visit their nearest Sassa office to apply. To apply the application form needs to be completed in the presence of the SASSA officer. When visiting the Sassa offices make sure to bring along the following documentation:

• Your 13-digit bar-coded identity document (ID). If you don’t have an ID: you must complete an affidavit on a standard SASSA format in the presence of a Commissioner of Oaths who is not a SASSA official
• Proof of your marital status (if applicable).
• Proof of residence.
• Proof of your private pension (if any).
• Your bank statements of the previous three months.

Once you have completed your application you will received a receipt as confirmation which you need to retain. The application takes up to three months to be processed and finalised.

Child Support Grant

The child support grant is aimed at lower-income households to assist parents with the costs of the basic needs of their child if they are under the age of 18.  Each year the child support grant amount changes, but currently recipients receive R480 per month per child.

To qualify for the grant, you need to meet the following stipulated requirements:

• Be the primary care giver of a child who lives with you in South Africa
• Not earn more than R52 800 a year (R4 400 a month) if you’re single. If you’re married, your combined income shouldn’t be above R105 600 a year (R8 800 a month).

How To Apply

You can apply for the grant by visiting your nearest Sassa office where you will be assisted by a Sassa official when submitting your application. Make sure to bring along the following documents when going to apply:

• your South African identity document (ID), which must be bar-coded,
• the child’s birth certificate, which must have an ID number,
• your salary slip, bank statements for 3 months, or pension slips, and any other proof of income,

Should your application be approved, you will receive within 3 months and the payments will be backdated to the day you applied for the grant.

Disability Grant

The disability grant is provided to people who have a physical or mental disability which makes them unfit to work for a period of longer than six months. Qualifying citizens receive a monthly grant of R1985.

To qualify for the grant, you need to meet the following stipulated requirements:

• be a South African citizen or permanent resident or refugee and living in South Africa at the time of application
• be between 18 and 59 years old
• undergo a medical examination where a doctor appointed by the state will assess the degree of your disability
• bring along any previous medical records and reports when you make the application and when the assessment is done.

How To Apply

To complete the disability grant application, you would have to visit the nearest Sassa offices where an official will guide you with the application process. Make sure to bring along the following documents when going to apply:

• Your 13-digit bar-coded identity document (ID). If you don’t have an ID: You must complete an affidavit on a standard SASSA format in the presence of a Commissioner of Oaths who is not a SASSA official.
• A medical report and functional assessment report confirming your disability.
• Proof of marital status (if applicable).
• Proof of residence.
• Proof of income or dividends (if any).

The application may take up to three month to be processed and should your application be successful, you will be paid from the day you applied.

Foster Care Grant

This social grant is intended to provide for the basic needs of foster children who have been placed in the care of foster parents by a Children’s Court. Foster parents receive a monthly grant of R1070 per month if their children between the ages of 0 and 18 years old.

To qualify for the grant, you need to meet the following stipulated requirements:

• you must be a South African citizen, permanent resident, or refugee
• you and the child must live in South Africa
• the foster child must be legally placed in your care and the child must remain in your care
• the child must be younger than 18.

How To Apply

The application form is not available online so to apply for this grant, foster parents should visit their nearest Sassa offices to submit their application. The application will be processed in the presence of a Sassa official. Make sure to take the following documents when going to apply:

• Your 13 digit-bar-coded identity document (ID) and the birth certificate for the child.
• Birth certificate/s of the child/ children, or their identity documents from their country of origin
• Court order that placed the child in your care
• Proof of your marital status.

The application takes up to three months to be finalised and if foster parents are approved they will be paid from the date the court placed the child in your care.

War Veterans Grant

Government provides social assistance to former soldiers who fought in the Second World War (1939-1945) or the Korean War (1950-1953) and are unable to support themselves. Qualifying citizens will receive R2000 per month.

To qualify for the War Veterans Grant you must:

• 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.

How To Apply

War Veterans can apply by visiting the nearest Sassa offices where a Sassa official will assist them with the application, and the following documentation is required:

• Your 13-digit bar-coded identity document (ID. If you don’t have an ID: You must complete an affidavit on a standard SASSA format in the presence of a Commissioner of Oaths who is not a SASSA official.
• Proof of your war service, e.g. certificate of service.
• If you are under 60, a medical assessment or report stating that you cannot work.
• Proof of your marital status. If:
  • you are single, an affidavit stating that you are single
  • you are married, your marriage certificate and your spouse’s identity document

Once you have completed the application form you will receive a confirmation receipt and the application takes up to three months to process. Successful beneficiaries will be paid from the date they submitted their application.