Millions of individuals rely on the Social Relief of Distress grant to purchase basic goods and essentials monthly. Before beneficiaries can receive their grant payments, the agency responsible for distributing the grant must ensure applicants meet the qualifying criteria.
The Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant was introduced in 2020 to assist unemployed individuals who were unable to work due to the Covid-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdowns. Beneficiaries of the grant received R350 monthly.
The SRD grant is still available and individuals who want to receive SRD grants payments can submit an application to the South African Social Security Agency (Sassa). The agency will undertake several checks before SRD payments are processed to successful applicants.
Here’s How Your SRD Grant Payments Are Processed
The first step in the grant payment process starts when an individual submits an SRD grant application. When individuals submit an application, they are required to provide their Name and Surname, ID number, Mobile number and banking details.
SRD grant applications are submitted on the Sassa SRD grant website, which can be found on https://srd.sassa.gov.za/
When Sassa receives an SRD grant application and the information provided by the applicant, they check if the client meets the qualifying criteria for the SRD grant.
To qualify for the SRD grant, a client must be a South African citizen, permanent resident or permanent refugee. Applicants must also be unemployed, and be between the ages of 18 and 59-years old.
Sassa will verify that the applicant falls within these groups using the information provided by the applicant and verifying it against data from the Department of Home Affairs and other government agencies.
Applicants cannot receive any other financial support from the government, including from the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (Nsfas) and the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF). The information applicants provide will be sent to government agencies including the UIF and the South African Revenue Service (SARS).
Applicants may not have an income of more than R624 to qualify for the SRD grant. In terms of the SRD grant, income refers to money an applicant has in their bank account. Sassa will send the applicant’s details to the National Treasury, then to the bank chosen by the applicant to be verified.
The client’s details will then return to the treasury and then will be handed off to Sassa so the grant payment can be processed.
The applicant’s ID number and Mobile number are also checked against approved databases for Fraud Risk Scoring, which is done with Fraud prevention partners.
Once Sassa is satisfied that the client has met all the qualifying criteria for the SRD grant, their money will be processed. It’s important to note that the SRD grant does not have a fixed payment date, and beneficiaries must therefore wait for an SMS notifying them that their money is ready.
Beneficiaries can choose to have their grant paid directly into their bank account, collect their grant at the Postbank or collect their money at selected retail stores. These retail stores include Shoprite, Pick N Pay, Checkers, Boxer and Usave stores.
