The South African Social Security Agency SASSA issues various grants to people in need to provide them with the financial aid they need. However, everyone who applies for the SASSA grant does not get his/her application accepted. This is because every SASSA grant is approved on the basis of specific eligibility criteria set by SASSA. SASSA performs rigorous verification of the information provided by applicants to make sure the grant is only provided to deserving and needy people.
One of the criteria set by SASSA to approve an applicant’s application is to make sure that the applicant’s income is below the income threshold defined by SASSA if they apply for any SASSA grant such as a SASSA Child Support grant, Care Dependency Grant, Old Age Grant, Grant-In-Aid, Disability Grant, War Veteran Grant, etc. Therefore, to check if the applicant’s income is below the income threshold, SASSA performs a Means Test. Now let’s see how much you should earn to qualify for the SASSA grant.
Income Thresholds for SASSA Grants
Keep in mind that your income should not exceed the income threshold defined by the SASSA according to the grant you are applying for. These income limits are explained below:
SASSA Child Support Grant
The income threshold for the SASSA child support grant is given below:
For a Single Applicant
If the applicant (primary caregiver of the child) is single, then his income should not exceed R5,000 each month(R60,000 annually).
For a married Applicant
If the applicant is married, then the combined income of the couple should not exceed R10,000 each month (R120,000 annually).
SASSA Old Age Grant
The income threshold for the SASSA Old Age Grant is given below.
For a Single Applicant
If the applicant is single, then he must not earn more than R8,070 each month (R96,840 annually).
For a Married Applicant
If the applicant is married, then the combined income of the couple should not exceed R16,140 each month (R193,680 annually).
SASSA Disability Grant
The income threshold for the SASSA Disability Grant is given below:
For a Single Applicant
If the applicant is single, then he must not earn more than R8,070 each month (R96,840 annually).
For a Married Applicant
If the applicant is married, then the combined income of the couple should not exceed R16,140 each month (R193,680 annually).
SASSA Grant-In-Aid
The income threshold for the SASSA Grant-In-Aid is given below:
For a Single Applicant
If the applicant is single, then he must not earn more than R8,070 each month (R96,840 annually).
For a Married Applicant
If the applicant is married, then the combined income of the couple should not exceed R16,140 each month (R193,680 annually).
SASSA War Veterans Grant
The income threshold for the SASSA War Veterans Grant is given below:
For a Single Applicant
If the applicant is single, then he must not earn more than R8,070 each month (R96,840 annually).
For a Married Applicant
If the applicant is married, then the combined income of the couple should not exceed R16,140 each month (R193,680 annually).
SASSA Care Dependency Grant
The income threshold for SASSA care dependency grants is given below:
For a Single Applicant
If the applicant (parent or primary caregiver of the child) is single, then his income should not be more than R20,800 each month (R249,600 annually).
For a Married Applicant
If the applicant (parent or primary caregiver of the child) is married, then the combined income of the couple should not exceed R41,600 each month (R499,200 annually)
SASSA SRD(Social Relief of Distress) Grant
The income of the applicant should not exceed R624 each month. Also, the applicants have to make sure that their bank balance remains below this limit every month.
Foster Child Grant
As of now, there is no income threshold defined by SASSA for the SASSA foster child grant.
This is the only SASSA grant that does not require any income threshold. The approval of the applicant’s application depends on the legal order issued by the court that proves that the child is under the applicant’s care. Only the caregiver of a foster child can apply for this grant.
Once you know that your income is less than the income threshold set by the SASSA, you can proceed to apply for the grant according to your needs. After applying you have to wait for the verification process to complete and then perform the SASSA Status Check on a regular basis to get your grant payment date. If your SASSA status says “Pending”, this means that either your application is missing some information that you need to update or SASSA needs to perform some more verification of your application.
SASSA was introduced by the South African government to help people in financial crisis with grants that make it possible for them to strive in the world. However, to rule out any fraud and misuse of grant money and to ensure that the grant only reaches those who really deserve it, SASSA has introduced many processes for scrutiny. By knowing how much amount you need to make to qualify for the SASSA grant, you can apply for the SASSA grant according to your circumstances.