Child Support Grant

The 2008/9 Child Support Grant is R240 a month per child and in the 2008/09 budget the government paid out a total of R22.3 billion for this grant, reaching around 450,000 children. You can be paid a Child Support Grant if you are the primary caregiver of one or more children. You do not have to be related to the child or children, but you must be the person who looks after them and takes responsibility for their everyday needs such as food, clothing, schooling and health care. The primary caregiver can be a sister or brother, a grandparent, a friend or a neighbour.

NOTE: Under new regulations dating from January 2010 vulnerable children under the age of 16 (born on or after October 1994) will now be eligible.  The government has undertaken to extend the grant to children under 17 years by January 2011 and to children 18 by 2012.  Some teenagers will have
fallen off the SASSA system when they turned 15 in 2009 (before this amendment was introduced) so their parents or caregivers need to re-apply for the grant as soon as possible

• You are a South African citizen
• You live in South Africa
• The child you are caring for is under 16 years (January 2010 amendment; this will change to 17 years in 2011 and 18 years in 2012)
• The child is a South African citizen and is living in South Africa
• You are the legal guardian of the child, if you are not the parent, and you are at least 16 years old
• You have permission to look after the child (such as a court order), if you are not the parent
• You are not receiving any other form of grant for the child, such as a Foster Care or Care Dependency Grant
• You are not paid to look after the child or children
• You meet the requirements of the Means Test

• Your Identity Document (ID) book (with the 13-number bar code)
• The child’s birth certificate or ID book (with the 13-number bar code)
• Proof of your regular income such as bank statements (for three months), pay slips or a letter from an employer
• Proof of your spouse's income (pay slip or a sworn statement) if you are married and he or she is working
• A copy of your discharge certificate if you were retrenched or fired from your previous work
• Your UIF book or certificate, or a sworn statement to prove you are unemployed
• Papers to prove that you are the child’s legal guardian
• Papers to prove that you have permission to look after the child

If you do not have all of these papers, contact your social worker, local advice office or one of the NPOs in the AIDSbuzz directory that help with social grants. You can also phone the Department’s free hotline 0800 601 011 or go to www.sassa.gov.za

• Complete the Child Support application form in the presence of an officer from the department
• Submit the completed application form together with your ID document and the child’s birth certificate
• Obtain a receipt once your application has been submitted
• Keep this receipt as proof of your application

What happens next?

• The application may be processed within three months but sometimes it takes much longer
• You will receive a letter telling you whether or not your application has been successful
• If your grant is approved, you will be paid from the day you applied
• If the SASSA office does not approve your application, you will be informed in writing as to reasons why your application was unsuccessful. If you disagree with the decision, you need to lodge an appeal to the Minister through the national or provincial office in writing and within 90 days of receiving the letter

• Cash at a specific pay point on a particular day
• Electronic deposit into your bank account (the bank may charge you for the service)         
• Post Office         
• Institution (e.g. a children’s home)

The Child Support Grant falls away one month after the child turns 16 years. If the child gets a different primary caregiver when he or she is still under 16 years, the benefits to the previous caregiver will stop and the new caregiver must apply for the grant.