SASSA Care Dependency Grant

Taking care of a child with a disability is a difficult job in itself. Therefore, when a financial struggle is involved in the process, it becomes nearly impossible for the caretakers. However, the South African government has come up with a solution for that in the form of the Sassa care dependency grant.

Along with financial comfort, it also makes it possible for the parents to take care of their child properly. However, the issue here is that not many people are aware of the care dependency grant application process.

This leads to either their application getting rejected, or completely missing the timeframe of application submission. The article below will help you tackle these issues as it states how the application process should be done. Read it to find out what you need to do to receive this grant.

SASSA Caregiver Grant for Adults

Some blogs circulated misinformation that there is a Sassa caregiver grant for adults which is not true. SASSA hasn’t announced any such grant for adults.

There are three grants for adults by SASSA, the SRD grant, disability grant, and an old age grant but no specific grant by the name of “Caregiver Grant”

What Does This Grant Provide?

This grant provides financial assistance to those families that have severely disabled children at home. The applicants can apply for the grant right after the birth of the disabled child and start receiving money. The total amount of money the caretaker receives is R2080 per month.

This allows the caretaker to tackle the hospital bills, medicines, and other items needed to take care of the disabled child. Sassa keeps giving this grant to the caretakers every single month till the child turns 18.

Eligibility Criteria for Care Dependency Grant

The first requirement that the person applying for the grant must meet is that the child should be a registered citizen of South Africa. This grant is not for foreigners who are living in the country.

In addition to that, this grant is for those who are under the age of 18. So, if a disabled child is even 17, they are still eligible for the care dependency grant by Sassa. However, the day they turn 18, the flow of funds will be stopped.

Furthermore, the person applying for the grant on behalf of the child should be a certified caretaker of the disabled child. This means that they should be either a birth parent, adopted or foster parent, or a primary caretaker in case of the absence of parents. If they are not the child’s certified caretakers, then they are not eligible for the care dependency grant by Sassa.

Another critical part of the eligibility criteria is the earnings of the caretakers. If the applicant is a single parent, then their annual earning should not exceed R223,200. However, if they are co-parents or both caretakers are involved in the process, then their combined earning needs to be a maximum of R446,400 at most.

If their annual earning exceeds this limit, then they are not eligible for receiving the care dependency grant of Sassa. Another important requisite is that the child should not be a permanent resident of any state institution. If they are in any state institution, then they will not qualify for the grant.

This leads us to the last requirement which is that the child should be severely disabled. For instance, they should need full-time, and round-the-clock assistance and care. Moreover, if an applicant fails to meet even a single requirement from the eligibility criteria set by Sassa, they will not qualify for the grant, even if the child is severely disabled.

Documents Required

Now that you are aware of the eligibility criteria, there are a few things that you need to know about the documents. Every grant needs a different set of documentation to prove the validity of the case and the eligibility of the applicant for the grant.

The same is the case with the care dependency grant provided by Sassa. The first document that the applicant must submit is their proof of nationality. As it is only for registered South African citizens, then the person needs to submit their identity card details.

Another important document that the person needs to submit is the medical record of the child proving the disability. The medical reports should prove the permanent disability of the child.

The next document that they need to submit should be the birth certificate of the child, along with their identity card proving their age. As it has been stated above that the grant is only for children who are under the age of 18, so the birth certificate will prove this point.

In addition to that, you also need to submit your financial status such as a job payslip, or bank statement. It will allow the Department of Sassa to assess the annual earning of the family. Proof of the spouse relationship is also required by Sassa, so a marriage certificate, divorce papers, or death certificate in case of spouse death should be submitted.

The applicant also needs to submit an affidavit that should state the income of the caretaker and the spouse. All of these are critical documents that Sassa needs for the care dependency grant.

You can contact them on their phone number or through email to ask for details about other documents for the application. However, the department usually does not ask for any other ones aside from the ones mentioned above.

Application Process

To begin the application process for the grant, you need to visit the nearest office of Sassa. You can ask the representatives for an application form for the care dependency grant, and they will provide you with one.

Then you need to fill out the application form accurately. There are two factors that should be kept in mind here, the first is that the form must be filled with careful attention to detail. The second important factor is that the application form must be filled in the presence of a Sassa officer.

After the application has been filled out completely, you will need to attach all the required documents to it. Make sure to ask the assistance of the Sassa officer to ensure that you do not miss any important documents. Otherwise, your application for the grant will either be delayed or rejected completely.

Submit the application to the officer. Once you have completed the process, then you will be given a stamped receipt. The receipt will have the date of application submission and the name of the officer who assisted you and who watched over the application form being filled out.

After this, the application goes for review. They check the application form, and the rest of the documents to make sure they are accurate. A medical officer also comes to check the condition of the child.

When the Department deems your application eligible for the grant, they approve it. The approval of the application results in the person receiving the money in their bank account.

The money is sent to them from the date of the application submission. Therefore, even if the department takes nearly 60 days to review and approve your grant application, you will receive money from the beginning of those 60 days.

Benefits of Care Dependency Grant

The major benefit of a care dependency grant is that it allows caretakers to offer better care to the disabled child. Taking care of a permanently and severely disabled child means handling hefty hospital dues, medicine bills and often requiring the assistance of a nurse.

Moreover, the monthly assistance takes the load off the caregivers and makes room for better arrangements for the child. Basically, the care dependency grant allows individuals to handle the care of their child without facing any financial issues.

Grant Reviews

Even after the application gets approved and you receive the grant, the threat has not passed. The Department of Sassa keeps reviewing the applications to make sure that the caretakers continue to fall under the required criteria or not. For instance, if the child is bedridden, then the Department sends their officers for home visits to confirm the condition of the child and make sure that the applicants continue to remain eligible for the grant or not.

In case there is any better change in the condition, or the child is not as severely disabled as it was mentioned in the application, the grant will be halted immediately. Sassa notifies the caretakers at least 3 months prior to the review of the application.

Suspension of Grant

It is critical to note that just because an applicant receives a grant once, it does not mean that their request can not be suspended. Even after getting approved by Sassa, a care dependency grant application can be suspended.

This happens due to a few reasons. When the medical situation of the child changes, then the grant is suspended. For instance, if the child’s condition starts to get better, then they no longer qualify for financial aid.

In addition to that, if the financial situation of the family changes, it can also result in the grant getting suspended. This means that if a caretaker or both parents start to earn more from their jobs, and their annual earnings exceed the maximum amount, the department of Sassa will suspend the grant.

Furthermore, another major reason behind the grant getting suspended is the presentation of false information. If the caretaker submits false documents or medical records of the child, then the Department has the authority to suspend the grant.

In case of any error from the Department of Sassa in the original review of the application can also result in the grant getting suspended immediately. In case a caretaker feels as though the grant was suspended under false grounds, then they have a window of 90 days to submit an application for restoration. After the 90-day period passes, the department will not restore their grant and they will need to apply from scratch.

Sassa sends out all the important documents to the caretakers through mail mostly. Moreover, they also conduct home visits at the address given on the application.

So, if there is a change in the residential situation and the address of living changes, then it is critical that the applicant must notify the department. The Department has the authority to suspend the grant on the grounds of failure to inform about the change in residence.

Grant Lapse

The child turning 18 is a major reason behind the grant getting lapsed. As stated in the eligibility criteria of this Sassa grant, it is only for those children who are under the age of 18. Therefore, when a child becomes 18, the caretakers no longer get financial assistance from Sassa.

Moreover, the department also has the right to lapse the grant in case of the death of a disabled child. If the caretaker does not claim the grant for 3 months straight will result in the grant getting lapsed.

In addition to that, if the child leaves the country, it will also result in the grant lapse, as this grant is only for the residents of South Africa. The admission of a disabled child in a state institution will also cause a grant lapse.

The care dependency grant is one of the many financial aids that Sassa provides to the citizens of South Africa. It helps the caretakers in taking care of the disabled child.

However, failing to understand the Sassa care dependency grant application properly will result in the request getting rejected. The steps mentioned above will help you make sure your request does not get rejected.