The agency said the delay is due to administrative processes that must be completed.
By Oratile Mashilo at The Citizen
With less than three weeks until millions of beneficiaries would usually collect their money, the South African Social Security Agency (SASSA) has yet to formally confirm social grant payment dates for April.
SASSA typically pays out grants over three consecutive days, usually a Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, during the first or second week of each month. These staggered payments apply to older persons, disability grants and children’s grants.
The last officially published payment schedule covered the period from 2025 through to March 2026, meaning the dates for payments from April on are not public.
Speaking to The Citizen, Andile Tshona, senior media relations manager, reassured beneficiaries that disbursements will proceed as normal once the dates are finalised.
“The fact that we have not yet published them should not alarm our eligible beneficiaries as they will receive their grants as per usual,” he said.
Payment dates still pending approval
According to Tshona, the delay is due to administrative processes that must be completed before the schedule can be released.
“SASSA has proposed dates for social grant payment for the 2026/2027 financial year, but they have to be approved by the National Treasury before publishing,” Tshona said.
He explained that this approval process is a standard procedure and forms part of aligning payment schedules with broader government systems.
“This is a formality that we have to follow to ensure that we align with the government.”
Sassa grants
The agency administers more than 19 million grant payments, including the Older Persons’ Pension Grant, Disability Grant, War Veterans Grant, Care Dependency Grant, Foster Child Grant, Child Support Grant, Child Support Grant Top-Up, and Grant-in-Aid.
Sassa grant amounts:
- Old Age Grant (60-74 years) and Disability Grant – R2 315
- Old Age Grant (75 years and older) – R2 335
- War Veterans Grant – R2 315
- Care Dependency Grant – R2 315
- Child Support Grant – R560
- Foster Care Grant – R1 250
- Social Relief of Distress (SRD) Grant – R370
‘No need to panic’
Tshona emphasised that beneficiaries will not lose out on their grants, and payments will continue without disruption once the process is complete.
“For now, we are still finalising a few things with National Treasury, then the dates will be made public,” he said.
The National Treasury plays a key role in approving government expenditure schedules, including social grant disbursements, to ensure proper financial planning and accountability.
This article was first published in The Citizen here.
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