THIS is the outlook for SASSA grants in 2025

The outlook for SASSA grants in 2025 is a little clearer, following Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana’s somber Mid-Term Budget Statement (MTBS) back in October. Regarding the outlook for SASSA grants in 2025, the minister alluded to the fact there would be some ‘harsh truths’ contained in the next budget, and the National Treasury would be unable to ‘accommodate all demands on the fiscus’.

SASSA GRANTS IN 2025

As a result, the logical takeaway is that South African Social Security Agency grants might no longer be prioritised ahead of other portions in the national budget. Moreover, according to Business Tech, the imbalance between the grant recipients (29 million) and taxpayers (7.5 million) will only increase in 2025.

Nevertheless, let’s try and answer the all-important question: How much will SASSA grants in 2025 increase? According to SASSA’s CEO, social grants will cost the country R266 billion – or 3.6% of South Africa’s GDP in the next financial year – the highest ever. But there are plans for the National Treasury to decrease social welfare spending by 2027:

• 2023/24: R250 billion (current)
• 2025/25: R266 billion (next year)
• 2025/26: R246 billion
• 2026/27: R259 billion

WILL GRANTS MATCH INFLATION IN 2025?

Therefore, looking into our crystal ball, here’s how we see SASSA ‘core’ grants increasing in 2025. Across the board, we believe grants will increase by only 5% in April 2025. This is slightly more than 2024’s 4.8% increase. Therefore, they should breakdown like so:

• SASSA Old-Age Grants (aged 60 to 74) increase from R2 190 to R2 290 in April 2025. And again by R10 to R2 300 in October 2025.
• SASSA Old-Age Grants (75 and older) increase from R2 210 to R2 310 in April 2025. And again by R10 to R2 320 in October 2025.
• SASSA Disability and Childcare Dependency grants increase from R2 190 to R2 290 in April 2025. And again by R10 to R2 300 in October 2025.
• SASSA War Veterans increase from R2 190 to R2 290 in April 2025. And again by R10 to R2 300 in October 2025.

WHAT ABOUT CHILDCARE GRANTS?

Interestingly, the agency’s childcare bill – spread across three types of grants – actually pays out more to residents: 65% of total grant expenditure. Therefore, here’s what we anticipate will happen to SASSA grants in 2025 for parents taking care of minors:

• SASSA Child Support Grants will increase from R530 to R560 in April 2025. But not again in October 2025.
• SASSA Child Support Top-Up Grants will increase from R250 to R265 in April 2025. But not again in October 2025.
• SASSA Foster Care Grants will increase from R1 180 to R1 800 in April 2025. But not again in October 2025.
• SASSA Social Relief of Distress (SRD) will remain unchanged at R370 in 2025.

We reiterate, these outlooks are based on past budgets and the minister’s MTBS, and are not officially announced as yet.

FUTURE OF SOCIAL WELFARE

SASSA CEO Busisiwe Memela recently delivered her annual report before parliament. In it she revealed some telling figures about the agency’s inefficiencies in managing its R250 billion budget. Specifically, the Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant has been mired in accusations of data breaches and widespread fraud.

The CEO explained that 45% of the South African population receives social benefits. And there are currently 28-million beneficiaries countrywide. 19-million people make up the agency’s ‘core’ grants (Old Age, Child Support, Veterans and Disability). While the highest number of SASSA grants are disbursed in Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo and Eastern Cape respectively. 9-million recipients benefit from R370 SRD each month. And funding for SASSA grants is drawn from three sources. Namely, personal income tax – R739 billion. VAT – R467 billion, and corporate income tax – R303 billion.

HOW MUCH WOULD SHOULD SASSA GRANTS INCREASE BY?

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