How to appeal a declined SRD grant

A declined SRD result applies to the month shown on your status. If you think the reason is wrong, you have the right to appeal. The SRD website says you lodge the appeal with the Department of Social Development, for each month you were declined.

First check your SRD status and write down the month and the exact reason. If you haven’t applied yet, start with how to apply: an appeal can’t replace an application.

Who decides your appeal

SASSA decides on your application. Your appeal goes to the Independent Tribunal for Social Assistance Appeals (ITSAA), part of the Department of Social Development, not back to SASSA. The “Lodge Appeal” link on the SRD website opens the tribunal’s appeals website, srd.sassa.gov.za/appeals. Messages to SASSA, or applying again, don’t count as an appeal.

When to appeal

The SRD regulations give you 90 days from the date of SASSA’s decision to lodge an appeal, and the tribunal doesn’t consider an appeal lodged after that. The days count from SASSA’s decision, not from the day you see it, so appeal as soon as you see a declined month.

The appeals website also asks you to appeal within 30 days. The regulations set only the 90-day limit, but appealing within 30 days keeps you well inside it.

Appeal each declined month

SASSA assesses SRD applications every month, so one month can be approved and another declined. Appealing one month does not appeal the others. Keep a private list with four columns: month, status, reason and appeal reference.

Read the reason first

Your appeal should answer the reason given for that month. A common reason is income: SASSA has said it can decline an application when it finds another source of income, including in bank records. Other reasons can be about your identity record, another grant or UIF. See what each decline reason means.

Ask yourself:

1. Is the information SASSA used wrong for that month?
2. Did your situation change before or during that month?
3. Can you show the real situation if you are asked?

Appeal only if the decision is wrong. An appeal doesn’t change the rules.

What you need

• Your ID number, or the permit or file number you applied with.
• The cellphone number you applied with, to receive a one-time PIN.
• The declined month and its reason.

Give only true information. Never change a bank statement, payslip or ID document. If the decline is about banking details, changing your account won’t reverse it: see how to change SRD banking details for that separate process.

How to appeal online

1. Open the SRD appeals website, or follow “Lodge Appeal” on the SRD website. Check that the address starts with srd.sassa.gov.za/appeals.
2. Enter your ID number and cellphone number, then the one-time PIN sent to your phone.
3. Choose the declined month.
4. Choose the reason that is true for you, and add information only if the form asks for it.
5. Check everything, submit, and save the reference or a screenshot of the confirmation.
6. Repeat for every other declined month you want to challenge.

The website can change. Follow what it shows now, not an old video. Never give your one-time PIN to someone who offers to appeal for you.

How long it takes

The regulations say the tribunal must finalise an appeal within 90 days of receiving it, and tell you its decision and reasons electronically. The appeals website says it aims to do this within 60 to 90 days. It reassesses SASSA’s decision with the information it has, and checks the databases SASSA used again, including the bank checks. Check the appeals website for your result, and don’t submit the same appeal again: it makes it harder to see which one is being decided.

What the outcomes mean

• Appeal approved: the month is treated as approved. Payment still needs your identity and banking details verified, so check your SRD status. See approved but no payment date.
• Appeal declined: the tribunal kept the decision for that month.
• Still pending: the appeal hasn’t been decided yet.

If you have no smartphone

SASSA has said its offices help people without a smartphone or data to do the facial check. Phone 0800 60 10 11 first to ask what to bring.

Appeal scams

Appealing is free. Don’t pay anyone who promises to win your appeal, and don’t give anyone your ID number, one-time PIN or banking password. Report fraud to SASSA on 0800 701 701.