GOOD and BAD news for new 2026 SASSA income support grants
· The South African
2026 SASSA income support grants are a go, according to President Ramaphosa’s State of the Nation Address (SONA) last week. But it is still unclear how it will be funded, and how much such a scheme will end up costing the fiscus, considering the country’s high unemployment figures.
Moreover, there is concern 2026 SASSA income support grants will negatively impact existing social welfares like Old Age and Childcare. All is expected to be revealed at this week’s critical 2026 Budget Speech by Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana on Wednesday 18 February 2026.
Visit catcross.biz for more information.
2026 SASSA INCOME SUPPORT GRANTS
However, roughly 20-million people already receive core grants from the South African Social Security Agency. When implemented, the new grant will effectively supersede the old ‘temporary’ R370 SRD. This benefitted from a separate budget laid out for the Department of Social Development (DSD).
Nevertheless, by what mechanism can the National Treasury reasonably fund 2026 SASSA income support grants? How much could they be and will they have a negative impact on allowances for existing core grants like Old Age and Child Support? As it turns out, there are some lessons South Africa can learn from other countries …
OTHER NATIONS WITH UNEMPLOYMENT GRANTS
President Ramaphosa is adamant that a new income support grant will be implemented in 2026. Image: FileBRICS+ partners Brazil and Iran became the first countries to introduce nationwide basic income grants back in the 2010s. Civil activists say they offer the most instructive case studies for 2026 SASSA income support grants. In Iran, for example, a quasi-cash-transfer model that provided approximately $40 (R640) per month. So, not dissimilar to our current SRD.
Likewise, Brazil’s Bolsa Familia scheme serves roughly 11-million jobless families, with monthly payments ranging up to $182 (R2 900). This one is funded primarily through general tax revenues and accounts for 0.4% of national GDP. Importantly, payments are conditional on things like school attendance and regular health check-ups for beneficiaries.
WHAT’S NEXT FOR 2026 SASSA INCOME SUPPORT GRANTS?
However, each nation faces unique challenges and 2026 SASSA income support grants won’t come easy if the National Treasury gets its way. Which is telling when you remember that last month, the DSD, SASSA and National Treasury appealed a high court ruling that declared the existing SRD regulations unconstitutional.
Judge Twala decreed that SRD should be expanded to include all 18-million eligible applicants (these were actively limited to 8 million). However, in papers filed to the court, the Treasury argues it simply cannot afford to expand SRD and loosen eligibility requirements.
It says, expanding the grant to 18-million beneficiaries, and increasing the value to account for inflation, would raise the total cost as high as R93 billion. Meanwhile, the current ‘temporary’ budget sits only at R35 billion. Which brings us back to the workability of this ambitious but divisive intervention …
HOW CAN 2026 SASSA INCOME SUPPORT GRANTS BE FUNDED?
How will the National Treasury secure the extra billions needed for funding the income support grant? Image: FileWithout significant additional revenue – whether through subsidy reform, progressive taxation or huge economic growth – 2026 SASSA income support grants face a difficult trade-off. Will a too-small grant even benefit the country’s jobless if it puts fiscal sustainability at risk? If too high, will it breed a system of dependency?
Plus, what about the inevitable issue of administrative inefficiency, fraud and corruption? Just last month the agency said it had identified nearly half-a-million suspect SASSA grants for review. How effectively can it safeguard the coffers with the door open to millions more unemployed beneficiaries?
All will be revealed the week when Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana outlines his plans for 2025 SASSA income support grants. We will keep you up to date with all the latest news.
But what do you think? Are 2026 SASSA income support grants just another well-intentioned thing that will never happen? Or can government actually pull it off for the betterment of the country?