UPDATE on latest April 2025 SASSA Children’s Grants

April 2025 SASSA Children’s Grants (of which there are three) are disbursed by the South African Social Security Agency. The most important of the April 2025 SASSA Children’s Grants is Child Support. This is paid to over 13 million beneficiaries and is the most expensive grant the government pays each month. Quite remarkably, the agency revealed earlier this year that more than 80% of National Senior Certificate (NSC) matriculants in 2024 were SASSA Child Support Grant recipients.

If you’ve just had a newborn child and need financial support, here’s how April 2025 SASSA Children’s Grants work. As mentioned, of the three stipends offered, Child Support is the most voluminous, Care Dependency is for mentally or physically impaired kids and Foster Child is for court-appointed foster parents only. Plus, if married, only one parent can claim a grant per child. But you should act quickly if you need Child Support for a newborn. Because, if you claim from year one and let it run all the way to the child’s 18th birthday, you will receive approximately R155 000 in taxpayer support (conservatively factoring in annual increases of 5% per annum). So, let’s explore the latest updates for April 2025 SASSA Children’s Grants …

APRIL 2025 SASSA CHILDREN’S GRANTS

First, following the postponed Budget Speech, let’s recount all the increases for April 2025 SASSA Children’s Grants that will go ahead this week, paid on Friday 4 April 2025. SASSA Child Support increases by R30 to R560. SASSA Care Dependency (disability for under 18s), increases by R130 to R2 310. Meanwhile, SASSA Foster Child increases to R1 250 from R1 180 last month. As promised by the minister, increases for April 2025 SASSA Children’s Grants beat current inflation (5.6% to 5.9%). By comparison, last year’s agency increases were a mere 4.9%. However, a proposed VAT hike of 1% over two years will quickly eat into these gains.

Nevertheless, SASSA is clearly doing all it can for poor young parents with newborns. In fact, the agency regularly calls on families with newborns to apply for the popular SASSA Child Support. It is also incentivised by the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) who want newborns registered on their system as soon as possible.

WHO QUALIFIES FOR CHILDREN’S GRANTS?

First things first, get your newborn’s unabridged birth certificate and identification document as soon as possible from the DHA. Once that’s done, you can apply for April 2025 SASSA Children’s Grants. Furthermore, to qualify you must pass the following means test. Note that there is no asset test in this case:

• Earn less than R8 800 per month if you’re married (R105 600 annually).
• Earn less than R4 400 per month if you’re single (R52 800 annually).

Of course, you child must be under the age of 18. Also note that applications take up to three months to be processed. However, you will be back-paid to the date of application if successful.

WHAT DO I NEED TO APPLY?

After you have been through Home Affairs, you can visit the upgraded SASSA online service portal to make an appointment online. Although, fair warning, it is often offline. Then you must visit a SASSA branch in-person with the following documents for your appointment:

• Valid identity documents of both the applicant (child) and spouse (if married).
• Proof of marital status (marriage, birth or death certificate of your spouse).
• Official birth certificate and ID of the child you’re applying for.
• Proof of income (both you and your spouse).
• An approved three-month bank statement (no older than three months).
• Proof of address (a utility statement with your name on it that’s not more the three-months’ old).

CARE DEPENDENCY AND FOSTER CHILD

As mentioned, April 2025 SASSA Children’s Grants also cater for mentally or physically disabled children and foster children. These do require additional paperwork though. A child must be declared disabled by a government-appointed doctor. Likewise, SASSA Foster Child Grants only go to court-appointed foster parents in accordance with the South African Child Care Act.

Child Grant payment dates for the next quarter fall on:

• Friday 4 April 2025
• Thursday 8 May 2025
• Thursday 5 June 2025

Note that payments may take up to 3 days to reflect in your account.

For further assistance will applications or queries, you can contact SASSA directly:

• SASSA Toll-Free Call: 0800 60 10 11
• SASSA Head Office: 012 400 2322
• Email SASSA: grantenquiries@sassa.gov.za
• Or email: president@presidency.gov.za