The minister announced the Sassa grant increases when he tabled the 2025 Budget on Wednesday, 12 March 2025 after weeks of delay.
Sassa distributes over 18 million permanent grant payments, including the Older Persons pension grant, Disability grant, War Veterans grant, Care Dependency grant, Foster Child grant, Child Support grant, Child Support grant Top-Up and Grant-in-aid.
Minister Godongwana confirmed that all grants with the exception of the Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant will be increased in 2025.
How Much Sassa Grants Are Increasing
- Old age grant will increase from R2185 to R2315
- War veterans grant will increase from R2205 to R2335
- Disability grant will go up from R2185 to R2315
- Foster care grant rises from R1180 to R1250
- Care dependency grant will increase from R2185 to R2315
- Child support grant will go up from R530 to R560
- The grant-in-aid will increase from R530 to R560
Currently, there are 28 million social grant beneficiaries in South Africa. Minister Godongwana said the amount of grant beneficiaries reflects the government's commitment to addressing poverty and equality.
The truth is that ours is one of the most comprehensive social safety nets among emerging economies. This reflects our commitment to addressing poverty and inequality, while keeping our spending sustainable.
How Much This Costs
The government allocated R284.7 billion in 2025/26 to social grants. R117,4 billion is for Old Age grant payments, R90,4 billion for the child support grant and R77 billion on other grants.
The 2025 Budget Speech was written and set to be delivered to the country on 19 February 2025. However, minutes before Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana was set to speak, news filtered through that Government of National Unity (GNU) parties reached an impasse regarding the increase of Value Added Tax (VAT).
