The SA Social Security Agency (Sassa) has responded to frustration from those who have waited months for their R350 social relief of distress grant application to be approved or reconsidered.

Millions have been paid to those in need, but social media has been flooded with complaints about applications taking months to be considered.

Responding to these complaints, Sassa said those whose application status still says “pending” should be patient.

“Pending means your application has not yet been approved, your details still need to be screened and verified first.”

It said that once you are approved you will get an SMS from them requesting your banking details, before you will be paid.

Others complained they had been approved but had not been paid. Sassa said there are several reasons for this and urged people to contact it for clarity.

“Non payment reasons differ from applicant to applicant. Some have provided the wrong bank details or contact numbers if they chose the cash send option. Others keep updating their bank details, which in turn delays their payments. You may DM us your ID number to track your approved payments,” it said on Twitter.

Those who are approved for the grant and have chosen to collect it at the post office or a Pick n Pay or Boxer store must wait for an SMS before going to get their money.

Those who chose a bank account or cash send as their payment method will receive their money through the bank they chose, and not at the stores.

The cash send option has experienced issues since it was introduced several months ago, with Sassa spokesperson Paseka Letsatsi telling TimesLIVE nearly 1.5-million R350 beneficiaries who chose the option have not been paid. 

He said this was because Sassa had to go through a procurement process with the bank to use this method and National Treasury approval is needed.

“As soon as Treasury approves our request, we will pay every cent owed to this category of beneficiaries without wasted time. We empathise with them but we have a responsibility to follow the law,” he said. 

Letsatsi advised applicants who chose the cardless payment option at ATMs to provide their bank details to ensure speedy payment. 

When can I collect my payment at a post office?

Recipients can collect their payments at post offices by using the ID number system, which determines payment dates according to the last three digits of beneficiaries’ identity numbers.

Here is when you can collect your approved R350 grant from a post office (based on ID numbers): 

080 — November 9, 16, and 23

081 — November 10, 17, and 24

082 — November 11, 18, and 25

083 — November 12, 19, and 26

084 — November 8, 15, 22, and 29

085 — November 9, 16, and 23

086 — November 10, 17, and 24

087 — November 11, 18, and 25

088 — November 12, 19, and 26

089 — November 8, 15, 22, and 29