Millions of people living in South Africa will be eligible to receive grant payments from the South African Social Security Agency in January 2023. However, there’s a reason why grants are being paid later than they usually are
The South African Social Security Agency (Sassa) administers millions of social grants monthly throughout the country. However, the agency did begin distributing grants as usually scheduled on the second day of the month.
Sassa will begin distributing January 2023 grant payments on Tuesday, 3 January 2023. Normally, Sassa begins distributing permanent social grants on the second day of the month, however, the agency could not do this as the second day of 2023 was a public holiday.
New Year’s Day, 1 January 2023 fell on a Sunday. When public holidays fall on a Sunday, it is observed on the following Monday. This resulted in Monday, 2 January 2023 being observed as a public holiday. This subsequently meant that Sassa could only begin distributing permanent grants on Tuesday 3 January 2023.
Permanent grants distributed by Sassa include the Older Persons Grant, Disability Grant, Child Support grant, Foster Care Grant, Grant in Aid, War Veterans Grant, and the Care Dependency grant.
Here Are The Sassa Grant Payment Dates For January
- Older Person’s Grants – 03 January 2023
- Disability Grant – 04 January 2023
- Children’s Grants – 05 January 2023
Sassa spokesperson, Moabi Pitsi assured grant beneficiaries that the agency has resolved issues which resulted in delayed grant payments in November and December 2023.
Pitsi said, “Those issues have been cleared and thus we can confirm to our clients that from Tuesday other grants like older persons grant, the disability grant and the child support grants will be paid from the third up to the fifth.
From Sassa’s side it’s all systems go and we are ready to pay grants.
They called on permanent grant beneficiaries to make use of the different grant payment options available to them.
Grant beneficiaries can collect their grants using three different methods, which include receiving their grant directly into their bank account, via the CashSend option or using their Sassa cards at retailers.
These retail stores include Pick n Pay, Shoprite, Boxer, Checkers and Usave stores. Beneficiaries will not be charged for swiping their Sassa cards at these retail stores.
Beneficiaries of the Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant, commonly known as the R350 grant are reminded that it does not have a fixed payment date.
It’s important to note that the date that appears on the status of the R350 grant application is not a payment date but it is a date when the grant was captured in the system. Beneficiaries of the grant will receive an SMS that indicates their money is ready for collection at retail merchants or banks.