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South Africa provides a number of Social Grants, described below along with their respective eligibility requirements.

Old Age Grant

• must be a South African citizen / permanent resident
• must be resident in South Africa at the time of application
• if a male, must be 65 years or older
• if a female, must be 60 years or older
• spouse must comply with the means test
• must not be maintained or cared for in a State Institution
• must not be in receipt of another social grant
• must submit a 13 digit bar coded identity document

Disability Grant

• must be a South African citizen / permanent resident
• must be resident in South Africa at the time of application
• must be between 18 to 59 years of age if a female
• must be 18 to 64 years of age if a male
• must submit a medical / assessment report confirming disability
• spouse must meet the requirements of the means test
• must not be maintained or cared for in a State Institution
• must not be in receipt of another social grant
• must submit 13 digit bar coded identity document

War Veteran's Grant

• must be a South African citizen / permanent resident
• must be resident in South Africa at the time of application
• must be 60 years and over or must be disabled
• must have fought in the Second World War or the Korean War
• spouse must meet the requirements of the means test
• must not be maintained or cared for in a State Institution
• must not be in receipt of another social grant

Foster Child Grant

• child/applicant must be resident of South Africa at the time of application
• must provide 13 digit bar-coded ID document (applicant)
• must provide court order indicating foster care status
• must have valid RSA / non RSA 13 digit ID number for each child
• foster child must pass the means test
  

Care Dependency Grant

• must be South African citizens except for foster parents who have foster children who also qualify for a care dependency grant;
• the applicant and child must be resident in South Africa / permanent resident
• age of child must be from 1 to 18 years
• must submit a medical / assessment report confirming disability
• applicant, spouse and child must meet the requirements of the means test (except for foster parents)
• the care-dependant child/children must not be permanently cared for in a State Institution
• 13 digit bar coded ID document (applicant)
• 13 digit birth certificate (child)

Note: the income of foster parent will not be taken into consideration

Child Support Grant

• the child and primary care giver must be a South African citizen and resident in South Africa
• applicant must be the primary care giver of the child/ children concerned
• the child/children must be under the age of 14 years
• the applicant and spouse must meet the requirements of the means test
• 13 digit bar coded ID document (of the care giver)
• 13 digit birth certificate (of the child)
• cannot apply for more than six non biological children

Grant-in-aid

• must require full-time attendance by another person owing to his/her physical or mental disabilities
• must not be cared for in an institution that receives subsidy by the State for the care/housing of such beneficiary
• must be a social grant recipient, not a child grant recipient
• A grant- in- aid is an additional grant awarded to persons who are in receipt of Old Age grants

Social Relief of Distress is temporary provision of assistance intended for persons in such straits that they are unable to meet their families' most basic needs. The Social Relief of Distress may be in the form of a food parcel or a voucher to buy food. Some provinces give this assistance in the form of cash. Social Relief of Distress is given for a short time only - usually for up to three months, although in extreme cases aid can be provided for as long as six months.

The following list is provided for example of cases which would qualify for Social Relief of Distress

• You need help while you wait for the children's grants to be processed by government
• A crisis or disaster has occurred, (e.g. your house has burnt down)
• You do otherwise not qualify for a grant, but you are in a desperate situation
• You are unable to work because you are medically unfit - this means you are sick for less than six months
• You are unable to obtain maintenance from the other parent of the child or children
• The breadwinner in the family has died
• The breadwinner has been sent to prison for a short time (less than six months)
• You have been affected by a natural or other disaster, but the area or community in which you live has not been declared a disaster area

Apply for Social Relief of Distress at your nearest Social Security office. Submit your application with your 13-digit bar-coded identity document and you children's birth certificates If you do not have an identity document and birth certificates, an affidavit from your local police station, chief, councillor or religious leader may be enough proof. Your application will be processed immediately. Once your application is submitted, it will be assessed for credibility and your genuine need for the service.

One month's food parcel, voucher or cash grant will be provided in all circumstances, even without the necessary documentation.  However, full documentation should be provided to the officer before the second month's payment is due. No further aid will be provided without them.  Once your case has been established, if there is no change in your circumstances after you have received the grant for three months, you may apply to have the grant extended for another three months.

When applying, provide proof one or more of the following, as applicable to your particular case.

• you have applied for a grant
• you have had an emergency (e.g. provide a police report that your house burnt down)
• you have tried to get maintenance
• you have no other support
• you have no income
• you have a short-term medical disability

Social Assistance Act, 2004 (Act 13 of 2004)

Social Relief of Distress - Enquiries: 0800 60 10 11
http://www.dsd.gov.za/dynamic/dynamic.aspx?pageid=459&id=910

Where Do You Apply for a Grant?

You apply at SASSA Offices nearest to where you live
- If you are too old or sick to travel to SASSA Offices to apply for a grant, then a family member or friend can apply on your behalf
- Your application form will be completed in the presence of an officer from SASSA
- When your application is completed you will be given a receipt
- Keep this receipt - it is your only proof of application
- You do not have to pay any money to apply
- If your application is not approved, you must be informed in writing as to why your application was unsuccessful
- You have the right to appeal to the Minister for Social Development in writing, explaining why you disagree with the decision. This appeal must be lodged within 90 days of notification of the outcome of your application.