Sentrix Digital · RiskAtlas · Compass · government support

Social Security Compass

Start with how things are for you. We show the state payments that may apply, with conditions and rates.

Private insurance (a policy or medical scheme) is a different contract. This is South Africa’s state system.

The Compass is for

SASSA grants · UIF / COIDA · Centrelink payments · Medicare / PBS / WorkCover

What describes you?

Pick one or more. You can also type a word — disability, child, job, UIF.

Or search

Filter by kind of payment

Social assistance

I am 60 or older · check sources

Older Persons Grant

SASSA

R2,400 / month

Monthly social assistance for people aged 60 and over who pass the means test. Not a private pension.

Conditions and rates →

I cannot work because of a disability · check sources

Disability Grant

SASSA

R2,400 / month

Monthly social assistance for people aged 18–59 whose disability is assessed as lasting six months or more. Not a private disability policy.

Conditions and rates →

I am a war veteran · check sources

War Veterans Grant

SASSA

R2,420 / month

Grant for veterans of World War I, World War II or the Korean War who meet the means test.

Conditions and rates →

I care for a child with a severe disability · check sources

Care Dependency Grant

SASSA

R2,400 / month

For a caregiver of a child with a severe disability who needs full-time care.

Conditions and rates →

I am a foster parent · check sources

Foster Child Grant

SASSA

R1,295 / month

Paid to a foster parent with a court order. Not means-tested in the same way as Child Support.

Conditions and rates →

I look after a child · check sources

Child Support Grant

SASSA

R580 / month

Monthly amount per child under 18 for a primary caregiver who passes the means test. A top-up exists for orphans in kinship care.

Conditions and rates →

I already get a grant and need daily care

Grant-in-Aid

SASSA

R580 / month

Add-on for someone already on Older Persons, Disability or War Veterans grant who needs regular care.

Conditions and rates →

I have almost no income

Social Relief of Distress (SRD)

SASSA

R370 / month

Temporary distress grant, still at R370. Extended in the 2026 Budget until 31 March 2027.

Conditions and rates →

I lost my job · calculator

UIF — unemployment benefit

UIF / Department of Employment and Labour

38%–60% of reference earnings

Contributory social insurance for employees who lose work. Paid from credits built up while contributing. Ceiling on insurable earnings: R17,712 a month.

Conditions and rates →

I cannot work because I am ill · check sources · calculator

UIF — illness benefit

UIF / Department of Employment and Labour

38%–60% of reference earnings (ceiling R17,712)

Contributory benefit when an employee cannot work because of illness and is receiving less than normal wages.

Conditions and rates →

I am on maternity leave · calculator

UIF — maternity benefit

UIF / Department of Employment and Labour

38%–60% of reference earnings (ceiling R17,712)

Contributory maternity benefit, capped at 121 consecutive days.

Conditions and rates →

I was injured at work

COIDA — temporary disablement

Compensation Fund

75% of earnings

No-fault statutory compensation for occupational injury or disease. Temporary total disablement is 75% of earnings, after a three-day waiting period.

Conditions and rates →

I was injured in a road accident

Road Accident Fund

Assessed loss (medical, loss of earnings, general damages where allowed)

Statutory compensation for bodily injury caused by the driving of a motor vehicle in South Africa. Not a SASSA grant and not private motor insurance’s passenger liability in the same sense.

Conditions and rates →

Core ZA · live

OECD and international context

South Africa is not in OECD SOCX country tables. Live OECD averages and World Bank country series are stored on Core ZA.

OECD average — public social spending 21.2 % of GDP 2024 coreza_ss_oecd.socx_oecd_avg
OECD average — old age 7.75 % of GDP 2021 coreza_ss_oecd.socx_oecd_old_age
OECD average — incapacity / disability 2.04 % of GDP 2021 coreza_ss_oecd.socx_oecd_incapacity
Unemployment (ILO modelled) 32.4 % of labour force 2025 coreza_ss_oecd.wb_unemployment
Gini index 54.1 0–100 2022 coreza_ss_oecd.wb_gini

Sources (on Core)

OECD Social Expenditure Database (SOCX) coreza_ss_oecd.socx_oecd_avg
OECD SOCX coreza_ss_oecd.socx_oecd_old_age
World Bank / ILO modelled estimate coreza_ss_oecd.wb_unemployment
World Bank coreza_ss_oecd.wb_gini

How we set the numbers

Methods live in Core SA tables so a later change is made once. Hover an amount such as a grant maximum to see four other currencies at a live rate.

core_ss_issa.za

ISSA Country Profiles

Primary source for how South African social security is structured — branches, qualifying design, and how schemes sit together. https://www.issa.int/databases/country-profiles Amounts can lag the Budget; SASSA and DEL remain the rate tables.

coreza_ss_methodology.sassa_grant_rates

SASSA grant amounts

Headline amounts are the National Treasury 2026 Budget figures from 1 April 2026. Cross-checks are stored on each grant. Sliding-scale means tests can pay less than the maximum.

coreza_ss_methodology.uif_benefit

UIF benefit estimate

Estimate only. Uses the Department of Employment and Labour sliding Income Replacement Rate on earnings capped at the UIF ceiling. Credit days follow UI Act s13(3) as amended (one day of benefit for every four days worked, maximum 365 in four years).

Private medical schemes are insurance, not this navigator. CMS schemes directory →

Sentrix Digital, Melbourne · ABN 29 203 554 753. Not medical, legal, or financial advice. Organisation and drafting only. Verify with clinicians, schemes, and policy documents. South African complaints: insurer internal review, then the National Financial Ombud (NFO). · info@sentrixdigital.com · +61 (03) 9088 1341 · Admin login