The South African Social Security Agency (SASSA) has started the process of increasing the investments that were indicated in the 2025 budget, by gradually dispensing more money for social grants from October 1, 2025. This small increment will be dedicated to the needy ones who are living in a very expensive place, just like the previous case when the grant had been increased considerably in April 2025.
When & How Grants Will Be Paid in October
SASSA has released the following payment schedule:
- Old Age Grants will be given out on Thursday, October 2, 2025
- Disability Grants will be given out on Friday, October 3, 2025
- Children’s and all other Grants on Monday, October 6, 2025
The beneficiaries need not rush to collect their money at the beginning of the day, as it not only will be available at the paypoints and ATMs on the redemption date but also after the redemption date.
Who Qualifies: Eligibility & Means Tests
Normally, social grants recipients of SASSA need to fulfill the following basic requirements:
- A South African citizen, or a permanent resident, or a refugee who is living in South Africa.
- Old-age grants category, qualifying disability, or child support.
Means & Assets Tests
The majority of the grants are imposed scrutiny of means, i.e., the applicant’s resources will be measured in terms of income and property, to direct the aid to the most deserving ones. A media release from SASSA remarked that as of July 2025, the limits concerning income and assets for the old age, disability, and war veterans grants are as below:
- The limit of assets for single persons is R1,524,600; and for married persons, it is R3,049,200.
- Single person’s annual income limit is R107,880 (around R8,990 per month); for married coupl2025es it is R215,760 per year.
In the case of Care Dependency Grants, the means test basically examines the caregiver’s income and not much on assets. The same holds true for Child Support Grants. SASSA has guaranteed that the social grants review will not disturb the payments to the beneficiaries who are already eligible during the review process.
Context, Implications & Challenges
- The tiny increase of October 2025 still ranks among the measures of the twofold approach mentioned in the budget for 2025, albeit being very tiny. The highest increase happened in April when many of the main grants (old age, disabled, war veterans) got an extra R130 or even more. The R10 extra allocated in October corresponds with the VAT alterations and is to help absorb the inflation.
- For the majority of low-income beneficiaries, even a R10 rise may not be sufficient to meet the basic needs such as transport, medicines, and food. Nevertheless, there are some critics who state that compared to the living costs the rise is too small.
- On the contrary, several issues that are related to the operations must be resolved:
- Beneficiaries are to be informed that their biometric data and personal information are correct and up to date to avoid any delays in payment
- SASSA is still facing the complications resulting from the public being misinformed and spreading false stories about grants and is advising the beneficiaries to wait for and rely solely on the official announcements.
- With more rigorous means testing, some recipients might have to endure the increased scrutiny or even go through the reconsideration of their status again.
also read:South Africa October 2025 School Holidays: DBE Officially Releases Dates