South African Social Security Agency (Sassa) would like to inform the public that all those who have been struggling to apply for child support, care dependency or foster care grant because of the unavailability of birth certificates and identity documents are now allowed to apply.

Regulation 13(1) (b) states that: “Provided that if no valid proof is obtainable, an affidavit in a format prescribed by the agency may be accepted.”

Similarly, applicants who apply for an older person grant, disability grant or war veteran’s grant can apply for a grant in the absence of supporting documents.

The policy places a responsibility on the applicant to apply for an ID or Birth Certificate and provide proof to Sassa of such an application within three months.

If the applicant does not provide the requested proof, the grant will be lapsed.

The Agency is urging all those qualifying community members to start visiting Sassa local offices to do their applications or people who have internet access can apply online.

Online applications assist beneficiaries to avoid travelling long distances to Sassa offices, avoid standing in long queues and also to access the Sassa services in their comfort zone.

The introduction of online applications does not mean that beneficiaries must not visit Sassa offices.

All applicants who wish to do face-to-face application are welcome at Sassa local offices.

For more information contact our toll-free number: 0800 60 10 11 or 013 574 9428/9363 from 08:00 to 16:00 during weekdays Monday to Friday.

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