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What happens when I visit my nearest Welfare Office to apply for a grant?
A social worker will ask you questions about your financial situation, your work, your child or children (if you are applying for one of child grants), and your disability (if you are applying for a Disability Grant). You might also need to have your fingerprints taken. The social worker will only give your answers to the Welfare Office – he or she will not tell other people your answers.
The social worker or welfare officer will then help you fill in an application form. If you are too sick or weak to visit the Welfare Office yourself, a family member or friend can fill in the application form for you. The Welfare Office will give you a receipt after you have completed the application form. Do not lose this receipt. It is proof that you have applied for a grant.
Do I have to pay money to apply for a grant?
No. But remember that if the money is paid into your bank account, you will have to pay all the usual bank charges for withdrawing and depositing money.
How long will I have to wait for the grant to be paid?
Some Welfare Offices are very busy, and you might have to wait for three months. Other offices are less busy and you may only have to wait for two months, or less.
How will the grant money be paid?
You will need to discuss this with the Welfare Officer. The money can either be collected in cash once a month from the Welfare Service Office or the Post Office, or it can be paid straight into a bank account if you have one. If you choose to collect the money from the Welfare Office or Post Office, you must take your Identity Document (ID) book with you to prove your identity. You must also make sure you have received the correct amount of money before signing for it.
How will I know that my grant has been approved?
The law in South Africa says that you have to be informed in writing, before 30 days, whether your grant has been approved or not. That is why you need to give your postal address to the Welfare Office. If you do not have a postal address, you can visit the office after three months to ask about your grant, or ask your social worker or community organisation to help you.
When you get the money for the grant, it will be ‘backdated’ to the time of your application. This means that if you have waited for three months, you will get three months of grant money at your first payment.
Can I receive any help while I am waiting for the grant?
Yes. The Department of Social Development will provide a temporary Social Relief Grant to those people who are in a crisis situation and need money immediately in order to survive.
What happens if I am refused at grant?
You can appeal to the MEC for Social Development in your province. You have to do this within 90 days (three months) of receiving the letter that informed you of the refusal. Ask your social worker, local advice office or community organisation to help you write your appeal.
What happens if I move to a different area?
If you are receiving some form of grant and move to another town or district you must inform the Welfare Office of your new address. Your details will then be sent to the Welfare Office nearest to your new address so that you can continue to collect your grant money.
What is the Means Test?
A Means Test is the way the Department of Social Development checks that you do not have enough money to look after yourself or your family. You will have to provide bank account and salary information to the Department.
Can my grant be taken away from me?
Yes. You will lose your grant if one of the following events happens:
- You have a disability (for adults) or care dependency (for children) grant but cease to be disabled after receiving treatment. For instance people with AIDS qualify for a Disability Grant. However if they start receiving antiretroviral treatment, they lose their grant as soon as their health begins to improve.
- You start to earn enough money to support yourself or your family and therefore no longer pass the Means Test. This does not apply to the Foster Care Grant, which is provided for the period the child is in foster care.
- The child exceeds the age requirements (older than 14 years for the Child Support Grant, 18 years for the Care Dependency Grant and 18-21 years for the Foster Care Grant.
- You (or the child) are admitted to a state institution (for example, a prison, an old-age home or a psychiatric hospital).
- You do not collect your payment for more than three months in a row.
- You stay out of South Africa for more than six months.
- You (or the child) pass away.
Grants are reviewed once a year by the Welfare Office to make sure you still qualify for the grant you are receiving.
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