Proposal for monthly SASSA Grant to increase to R624

The proposal for monthly SASSA Grant to increase to R624 from R350.

The proposal for monthly SASSA Grant to increase to R624 from R350 is good news for many and if the draft regulations are accepted, it is also hoped that more South Africans will qualify for the monthly SASSA grant.

SASSA proposed a Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant increase from R350 to R624 per month, which is South Africa’s current level of the food poverty line, according to a draft regulation published last week by South Africa’s Minister of Social Development, Lindiwe Zulu.

Discussions are held between SASSA and the Department of Social Development and it is believed that raising the monthly threshold to R624 would allow a greater number of applicants to qualify.

The proposed changes for the monthly SASSA Grant to increase are:

A proposal for SASSA Grant to increase from R350 to R624, South Africa’s food poverty line. Applicants receiving more than R624 into their bank account will be denied by SASSA for each relevant month;
Each applicant will be assessed
monthly. The applicant will qualify for the SASSA Grant for a month in which he/she received less than R624;
Minister Zulu said that applicants will have to confirm their need for the grant after every three months and that assessments will based on maximum allowable income and bank verifications;
The monthly SRD grant amount remains R350 per person between 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2023. The 2nd amendment hopes to make away with the 3-monthly need for applicants to state whether they need the grant every three months;
The 3rd amendment makes away with the clause that puts the bank verification process in place as the main determining factor for grant eligibility. This is to make certain that SASSA applies the bank account income checks and all the database checks, prior to approving or declining the application.

Due to tougher eligibility requirements, around half of the 11.3 million candidates who submitted applications for the recent R350 Social Relief of Distress (SRD) SASSA Grant were successful.

Regulations state that applicants must have insufficient means, not merely be unemployed, in order to qualify for the subsidies, which were designed to be given to the poorest of the nation.

Strict cross-checking bank accounts evaluation is in place to assess each applicant’s financial support and those earning more than R350 per month, including support from family members, are ineligible for the stipend.

“The additional measure is intended to exclude married applicants who have employed spouses who are in a position to financially support them, or full-time learners or students whose parents are in a financial position to support them if they are not supported through NSFAS”, said South Africa Social Security Agency (SASSA).