The Child Support Grant provides monthly financial support to a primary care giver of a child under the age of 18 years old, from lower-income households, who need financial assistance to help take care of a child. Age requirement: child must be 18 or younger. Amount: R580 and R280 top-up. Means test applicable: Yes. Next payment date: 4 September 2026 (last updated: 20 August 2026). WHO QUALIFIES FOR THE SASSA CHILD SUPPORT GRANT? WHAT IS THE MEANS TEST FOR THE CHILD SUPPORT GRANT? HOW CAN I APPLY FOR THE SASSA CHILD SUPPORT GRANT? WHICH DOCUMENTS MUST BE SUBMITTED WHEN APPLYING FOR A CSG? WHEN WILL I KNOW THE OUTCOME OF MY CHILD SUPPORT GRANT APPLICATION? HOW IS THE CHILD SUPPORT GRANT PAID? HOW CAN I CHANGE MY GRANT PAYMENT METHOD? WHAT IS A GRANT REVIEW? WHY WAS MY CSG SUSPENDED? HOW CAN I GET MY GRANT RESTORED? WHY WAS MY CHILD SUPPORT GRANT CANCELLED? CHILD SUPPORT GRANT NOTES WHO QUALIFIES FOR THE SASSA CHILD SUPPORT GRANT? In order to apply for the SASSA Child Support Grant, you must meet all of these criteria: You must be a South African Citizen, a Permanent Resident or a Refugee You and the child must both reside in South Africa You must be the primary care giver of the child (you may be the parent, grandparent or anyone over 16 years old that is the main person responsible for caring for the child) You must NOT be receiving any payment to care for the child The child must be under 18 years old The child must be attending school, if they are of school going age The child must NOT be receiving care in a state institution You and your spouse must meet the requirements of the means test (see more below) Each primary care giver may receive a Child Support Grant for up to 6 children, who are not their legal or biological children. READ ABOUT: Other types of grants SRD R370 Grant Care Dependency Grant Child Support Grant Foster Child Grant Disability Grant Older Persons Grant Grant-In-Aid War Veterans Grant WHAT IS THE MEANS TEST FOR THE CHILD SUPPORT GRANT? SASSA awards social grants based on a means test. A means test is a method of evaluating an applicants income to determine whether they qualify for a grant. (These are the thresholds as of 1 April 2026 ) . The means test is based on household income: Single applicants must not earn more than R69 600 per year (R5 800 per month). Married applicants must not earn more than a combined income of R139 200 per year (R11 600 per month). Applicants who are married will have half of the annual joint income taken into consideration. The asset threshold test is not applicable for this grant type. HOW CAN I APPLY FOR THE SASSA CHILD SUPPORT GRANT? Apply at a SASSA office: Visit a SASSA office close to you and complete an application form in the presence of a SASSA officer. If you are unable to visit the SASSA office yourself, due to being too sick, old or disabled, you may have a family member or friend apply for you, by way of a power of attorney . This person is your procurator and they will be able to legally apply or receive your social grant on your behalf. A SASSA officer will be able to assist you or your appointed person, to complete the application form if you or they are unable to do so. You will receive a dated stamped receipt after completing your application, with the name of the SASSA official who assisted you. You will need to keep your receipt as proof of application. Apply on the SASSA website: Read instructions on how to apply online via the SASSA services website here. The application process is completely FREE. WHICH DOCUMENTS MUST BE SUBMITTED WHEN APPLYING FOR A CSG? Applicants must take along the following documents when applying for the child support grant through SASSA (these must be original documents or certified copies): The child’s birth certificate (if you do not have this document available, a SASSA official will assist you in filling out a sworn statement or affidavit form ) Your South African Identity Document (if you do not have this document available, a SASSA official will assist you in filling out a sworn statement or affidavit form) Your spouses South African Identity Document, if you are married (if you do not have this document available, a SASSA official will assist you in filling out a sworn statement or affidavit form) Proof of all household income – any of the following: Payslips if employed or 3 months bank statements UIF card if receiving UIF Affidavit or a discharge certificate from your previous employer, if unemployed and not receiving UIF Pension receipt if on pension Proof of any child maintenance or proof that you have tried but are unable to receive maintenance from the other biological parent Payslips if employed or 3 months bank statements UIF card if receiving UIF Affidavit or a discharge certificate from your previous employer, if unemployed and not receiving UIF

Pension receipt if on pension Proof of any child maintenance or proof that you have tried but are unable to receive maintenance from the other biological parent Proof that you are the child’s primary care giver (if you are not the child’s parent) – any of the following: affidavit from a police station social worker’s report affidavit from the child’s biological parent letter from the child’s school principal affidavit from a police station social worker’s report affidavit from the child’s biological parent letter from the child’s school principal WHEN WILL I KNOW THE OUTCOME OF MY CHILD SUPPORT GRANT APPLICATION? Applications are assessed within 90 day , after which time you will be informed in writing, whether your application was approved or rejected. If you were rejected, SASSA will provide a reason for your rejection. You will be able to request SASSA to reassess your application if it was rejected. Download the Application for Reconsideration of SASSA Grant here. If after reconsidering, your application is still rejected, you may appeal to the Minister of Social Development. Applicants will receive a notification in writing from SASSA, 3 months before applications are to be reviewed. The notification will inform you when and where the review will be conducted and what will happen after the review. Applicants who are bed-ridden will receive a home visit. After the review has been completed, you will receive a receipt of compliance. HOW IS THE CHILD SUPPORT GRANT PAID? After your grant is approved, you will be paid on the date on which you applied. You can find the SASSA payment date here (it is usually around the 5th day of each month). Your Child Support Grant will be paid in any of these 3 ways (depending on your preference): Directly into your bank account (this must be a bank account in your name) Collected in cash from approved pay points (using your SASSA gold card) From specific institutions HOW CAN I CHANGE MY GRANT PAYMENT METHOD? Recently, a Postbank payment glitch left many grant recipients stranded and unable to access their grants. For this reason (or perhaps another reason), you may wish to change your grant payment method from the SASSA Gold Card into your own personal bank account. If you would like your grant to be paid into your bank account, you will need to complete the Consent Form for Bank Payment of SASSA Grant , as well as provide the following documents: proof of identity (ID document/ birth certificate/ drivers license) and proof of bank account in your name (received from the bank) or 3 months bank statement showing your personal details (name and bank account number). All of these documents must be submitted to a SASSA office near you. Alternatively, you may visit your nearest SASSA branch and they will assist you in how to change your payment method. Note that the new payment method will come into effect the following month. If you are unable to collect your grant yourself, you may nominate someone to collect it for you. The grant must be collected each month – if it is not collected for 3 months in a row, the grant will be cancelled and you will have to reapply. WHAT IS A GRANT REVIEW? You must provide proof of all incomes you receive in your application. Applications are reviewed to verify that grant-holders still meet the criteria of the grant, to continue receiving the grant. Applications are reviewed to assess whether your circumstances have changed. Applicants will receive a notification in writing from SASSA, 3 months before applications are to be reviewed. The notification will inform you when and where the review will be conducted and what will happen after the review. After the review has been completed, you will receive a receipt of compliance. Applicants who are refugees will have their application reviewed when their refugee status expires. WHY WAS MY CSG SUSPENDED? Your grant may be suspended due to the following reasons: Your financial circumstances change and you no longer pass the means test You provided false or incorrect information in your application You failed to co-operate when the grant is reviewed Outcome of a review The grant was approved when it should not have been HOW CAN I GET MY GRANT RESTORED? If your grant was suspended due to any of the reasons above, you may apply to have the grant restored within 90 days of receiving the suspension. WHY WAS MY CHILD SUPPORT GRANT CANCELLED? Your grant may be cancelled due to the following reasons: The child no longer resides in South Africa The child has reached 18 years of age – the grant will lapse on the last day of the month in which they turned 18 The child has died – the grant will lapse on the last day of the month in which they died The child was admitted into a state-funded institution – the grant will lapse on the first day of the seventh month after the date they were admitted The primary care giver does not claim the grant for 3 months in a row CHILD SUPPORT GRANT NOTES As a grant holder, it is your responsibility to: keep SASSA updated with regards to changes to yours or the child’s personal and financial circumstances keep SASSA updated with regards to changes to your physical address or contact details Applicants must inform SASSA immediately of any changes to the above, as official notices are sent to your most recent address by registered mail. If you do not receive or act upon the notices, your grant may be suspended. SASSA will not tolerate any fraudulent activities. For any further queries, please contact SASSA directly: Contact the SASSA Toll Free Call centre on: 0800 60 10 11 Contact the SASSA Head Office on: 012 400 2322 Email SASSA Head Office at: Grantsenquiries@sassa.gov.za Contact details of SASSA offices across the country: SASSA offices article source: SASSA official website and SASSA official Facebook page written by: Thabo Maseko