The South African Social Security Agency (SASSA) is the government body that pays social grants on behalf of the Department of Social Development. It handles applications, checks who qualifies, pays the money every month and reviews grants over time. This section of bursaryforms.co.za collects plain guides to dealing with SASSA. We are an independent site, not SASSA, and we cannot see or change anyone’s grant.
Use this page as a map: find the grant or the task you have in mind, then follow the link to the guide that covers it properly.
Grants SASSA administers
SASSA pays two kinds of grant. The permanent grants below are paid every month on fixed days once approved, and you apply for them at a SASSA office or, where the option exists, on the online services portal. Applying costs nothing, processing can take up to three months, and an approved grant is back-paid to the date you applied. The SRD grant works differently: it is a temporary grant, applied for online only, and SASSA assesses each month separately.
- Older persons grant for people aged 60 and over who pass the means test. Pay day details: the R2,400 older persons grant.
- Disability grant for adults aged 18 to 59 whose disability is confirmed by a medical assessment. Following an application: Disability Grant status, from assessment to approval.
- Child support grant for the primary caregiver of a child under 18. Monthly date and amount: the R580 grant pay day.
- Foster child grant for foster parents of a child placed with them by a court order; it has no means test. See foster care grant pay days and court orders.
- Care dependency grant for caregivers of a child under 18 with a severe disability that needs permanent care.
- War veterans grant and grant-in-aid, the second being an extra amount for grant holders who need someone to look after them full-time.
- Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant of R370 a month for unemployed adults aged 18 to 59 with little or no income. It is extended to 31 March 2027 and is applied for and checked online only.
What do you want to do?
Check where an application or grant stands
- SRD R370 applicants: the SRD status check walkthrough, or every way to check status compared.
- Parents and caregivers: tracking a Child Support Grant application.
- Older persons, foster and other permanent grants: permanent grant status online.
Make sense of an SRD result
Because every SRD month gets its own result, a March approval says nothing about April, which may still be waiting or may be turned down. A month marked pending usually means SASSA’s checks have not finished, while referred points to a possible identity problem that you may need to clear. A declined month always shows a reason, and our page on SRD decline reasons explained one by one covers what each one means.
Know when the money comes
- All permanent grants, month by month: the 2026/27 SASSA payment schedule.
- An approved SRD month without a date yet: finding your R370 pay day.
- A payment that did not arrive: steps for an unpaid grant.
Challenge a decision
Formal appeals are decided outside SASSA, by the Independent Tribunal for Social Assistance Appeals at the Department of Social Development. For the SRD, each declined month needs an appeal of its own, lodged within 90 days. Our guide to the appeal process for a declined month walks through it, and if you are not sure an appeal is worth it, read appeal or reapply? first.
Update your details or verify who you are
- New cellphone number: every route to change the number SASSA holds.
- Bank account for the SRD: submitting or changing banking details.
- Selfie verification request: why SASSA asks for biometric checks.
- Proof-of-life notice: e-Life certification and who needs it.
- Still holding a gold card: swapping to the Postbank card.
Where to reach SASSA directly
- R370 grant portal: srd.sassa.gov.za (R370 applications, status, bank and contact details)
- Online grant services: services.sassa.gov.za (applications for other grants, e-Life certification)
- Main site: www.sassa.gov.za
- Toll-free call centre: 0800 60 10 11 (weekday office hours, 8am–4pm)
- WhatsApp: 082 054 0016
- Email: GrantEnquiries@sassa.gov.za for grants, SRD@sassa.gov.za for the SRD
- Fraud and corruption: 0800 701 701
Applying for any grant, and every SASSA service, is free. SASSA does not ask for your PIN, and it does not ask for your ID or bank details through social media or websites other than its own. Any other site, app or number offering SASSA results is not SASSA. Our page on telling the genuine SRD site from fakes shows what to look for.