Enoch Godongwana, the Finance Minister, announced that 46% of South Africans are beneficiaries of social grants.
One of the grants distributed by the South African Social Security Agency (Sassa) is the Social Relief of Distress (SRD) R350 grant.
The grant was introduced during the Covid-19 pandemic and subsequently renewed in August 2021. It was set to come to an end in March 2022 but was then extended by 12 months.
The current cycle is set to end in March 2023.
Applicants need to meet the following requirements to be eligible for the grant:
- A South African Citizen, Permanent Resident or Refugee registered on the Home Affairs database.
- Currently residing within the borders of the Republic of South Africa.
- Above the age of 18 and below the age of 60.
- Unemployed
- Not receiving any social grant in respect of himself or herself.
- Not receiving any Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) Support.
- Not receiving a stipend from the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) and other financial aid.
- Not receiving any other government Covid-19 response support.
- Not a resident in a government-funded or subsidised institution.
Those who do not qualify for the grant may have received a “Debtor” application status. The agency has stated that the “Debtor” status means that during the first cycle the recipient received the grant when they were not deserving of the grant.
Beneficiaries with a “Debtor” status will need to pay the money back before they can benefit from the current round of SRD grant payments.
