Maybe you applied for the R350 grant during lockdown, got paid for a while, and then the SMSes stopped. Before you start a new application, find out whether SASSA still holds your old one. The answer depends mostly on when you applied and what the status page shows for recent months.
First question: did you apply before August 2021?
The original SRD grant expired on 30 April 2021. When the President reinstated it, applications reopened on 6 August 2021, and the then Minister of Social Development said that everyone who had applied before had to apply again so SASSA could reassess them. If your only application dates from 2020 or early 2021 and you did not apply again from August 2021, that application did not carry over. You need a new one.
Applications made from August 2021 onwards were assessed month by month, and the 2024 rule change that raised the grant to R370 kept those assessments running without a break. The story of that change is on our R350-to-R370 page.
Reading the signs on the status page
Go to srd.sassa.gov.za and run a status check using your ID and whichever phone number you gave SASSA back then. What comes back tells you where you stand:
- Recent months listed, approved or declined: your application is alive and SASSA is still assessing it every month. A run of declines means you did not qualify for those months, not that the record has gone.
- Reapplication pending: SASSA’s status guide says this appears when no fresh application has reached SASSA. Reapply on the same website.
- Canceled: you cancelled the application yourself, or SASSA cancelled it for suspected fraud or because you no longer qualify. Contact SASSA to find out which before you apply again.
- No application found for your ID: check the 13 digits again. If they are right, SASSA has no current application for you.
- The PIN goes to a number you no longer have: the record exists, but you must update your cellphone number before you can see it.
If the old application has gone
Apply again as a new applicant. The rules are much the same as in the R350 days, but there are two differences. You will have to pass a facial selfie check against your Home Affairs photo before approval, and the system now checks every month that your income stays below R624. Our first-time application guide lists what you need.
Do not try to open a second application while an old one still exists under your ID. SASSA’s system can flag an ID that is already registered, which leaves the application “referred” and slows everything down. If you are not sure, phone SASSA on 0800 60 10 11 and ask before applying.
Old details that probably need changing
Years-old applications tend to carry stale contact and payment details. Check these three:
- Cellphone number. SASSA identifies you by your ID number plus the six-digit application ID (AppID) from your original application, and changing the number triggers facial-recognition verification. Every route, including what to do without the old SIM, is set out in our guide to changing your SASSA number.
- Bank account. SASSA pays only into an open account held in your name, and the bank confirms that before any money moves. An account you closed years ago will make approved months fail. Capture new details as shown in the SRD banking details update guide.
- A Post Office payment choice. Many early applicants chose to collect at the Post Office. Post Office branches no longer hand out grant cash: that ended during 2024, and Postbank pulled its remaining cash services out of the branches in May 2026. If that was your choice, change to a bank account or to whatever cash option the SRD site now offers.
Also ask whether you still qualify. Once you turn 60 the SRD no longer applies, and SASSA’s older persons grant may fit you instead. A job registered with UIF, a bursary from NSFAS, or regular deposits above R624 will also lead to declines.