The Social Relief of Distress (SRD) Grant is a critical support mechanism for millions of adults living in South Africa. The South African Social Security Agency (Sassa) revealed that more than 10 million people apply for the grant every month.
To qualify for the SRD grant in South Africa, applicants must meet the R370 certain criteria.
They need to be citizens, permanent residents, or special permit holders, but they shouldn't be receiving other government support in the form of UIF benefits or NSFAS bursaries. Their bank account should have less than R624 to be eligible for the R370 grant.
The Social Relief of Distress Grant (SRD Grant) is meant for South African Citizens, Refugees, Asylum Seekers and Special Permit Holders who are between the ages of 18 and 60 years, who have insufficient means, who do not receive social grants on behalf of herself/ himself or who are not contributing to or eligible for UIF payment and have no financial support from any other source.
Sassa conducts verification checks in collaboration with the Department of Home Affairs for identity and citizenship checks and shares bank details with the Department of Treasury for income verification. Income verification is needed to ensure applicants don’t exceed the R370 grant income threshold of R624.
Once Sassa has confirmed that the applicant meets the eligibility criteria, Sassa proceeds with grant payments.
When Does SRD Grant Applications Close?
The good news is that there is no set application period for the R370 grant. Individuals can apply for the grant once, and Sassa will evaluate their applications monthly to ensure the applicant complies with the eligibility criteria.
This means that there is no closing date for SRD grant applications. Applicants will be considered for SRD grant payments for the next payment run and will not be paid for past months before when they first applied for the grant.
Every month, SRD grant applications are open. However, you can only apply for the current month or future months.
How to Apply for the SRD Grant
There are two convenient ways to apply for the SRD Grant. Applications can be submitted through the official SRD grant website or on Whatsapp using the Sassa number (082 046 8553).
SRD Grant Increase
In March 2024, Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana announced that the SRD grant payment would be increased from R350 to R370. This represents an increase of 5.7% for the grant.
Social Development Minister, Lindiwe Zulu confirmed the grant increase of R20 in Government Notice No. R. 3210 of 29 March 2023.
The SRD grant increase will come into effect on 1 April 2024 and all subsequent grant payments will be R370.
