Sassa offices remain open for grant applications under alert level 4

The South African Social Security Agency (Sassa) offices will remain open and operate with a reduced staff complement under Adjusted Alert level 4 regulations.

“Applications for social grants at all local offices will be staggered according to grant type, for instance Mondays will be for older persons, Tuesdays for disability grants, Wednesdays and Thursdays for child grant applications, and Fridays for appointments and spillover from the week,” said Minister of Social Development, Lindiwe Zulu.

Some of the changes that were made by the Department of Social Development during its response to Covid-19 has enabled the department to fast-track the digitisation of its services.

These include the online booking system for disability grants, which has significantly cut down on the amount of time and costs for both Sassa and grants applicants.

“We take great pride with the significant progress we have made since the launch of the online booking system in April this year. We therefore would like to encourage disability grant applicants to make use of the Sassa online booking system, which can be accessed through the agency’s website on www.sassa.gov.za.

“This will allow applicants to book assessment dates for the disability assessments. Our staff at Sassa offices can also assist clients with this system to ensure that they avoid repeated visits to local offices,” the minister said.

Sassa will continue with the staggered payments of grants, first for older persons, followed by disability grants and the payment of all child grants.