Last month, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced a new temporary coronavirus unemployment grant of R350 a month for the next six months until October.
The special Social Relief of Distress grant will go to those who are unemployed and do not receive any other social grant or Unemployment Insurance Fund payment.
The South African Social Security Agency (Sassa) will screen applicants against other databases to see whether they qualify.
Sassa chief executive Busisiwe Memela described last month how the social security agency plans to identify and pay eligible beneficiaries.
Memela said these databases will include the SA Revenue Service (Sars), the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) and the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS).
WHO CAN APPLY?
Applicants must be unemployed, over 18-years-old and not be receiving any other state grant, ie, UIF, NSFAS assistance, Sassa grant.
HOW WILL THEY IDENTIFY LEGITIMATE BENEFICIARIES?
“You are going to be able to indicate ‘I’m not employed’, ‘I’m not getting UIF’, ‘I’m not getting an NSFAS fund’, ‘I’m a South African’. And then we will check all these [details] against the databases,” Memela explained.
“The system will automatically say whether you qualify or don’t qualify… Then we’ll put you to the back-end and process the payment.”
DO FOREIGN NATIONALS QUALIFY?
“If you have legal papers to be in South Africa, you would qualify. If you’re a registered refugee, you would qualify.”
HOW DO YOU APPLY?
- Applicants can apply via WhatsApp by sending a message to 082 046 8553.
- By using the following USSD code: 1347737#
- Sending an email to: srd@sassa.gov.za
WHAT DO YOU NEED?
- Identity document
- Banking details
- Contact number – cellphone number
- Proof of residential address
WHEN WILL PAYMENTS START?
“Once you’ve been processed, we will pay at that time. We won’t wait until the end of the month… As and when people get registered, we need to push out the payment and make sure we do it once a month for the next six months,” Memela said.
HOW WILL THE MONEY BE PAID?
Payments will be made through direct deposits into the bank account provided or a money transfer to a mobile phone.
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