Minister of Social Development Dina Pule has revealed that an estimated R1.28 billion in social grants and Social Relief of Distress payments was allocated to eligible foreign nationals during the 2025/26 financial year.
Pule revealed this in a written parliamentary reply after African Transformation Movement (ATM) MP Vuyo Zungula asked how much social grant funding was paid to foreign nationals during the financial year.
Permanent residents receive largest share
According to Pule, the largest portion of the estimated expenditure went to permanent residents, with R1.12 billion spent on social grants during the 2025/26 financial year.
This included R931.5 million for the Older Persons Grant, R134.5 million for the Child Support Grant, R31.7 million for the Disability Grant, R8.4 million for the Care Dependency Grant, R6.6 million for the Grant-in-Aid and R3.8 million for the Foster Child Grant.
A further R150.8 million was estimated to have been spent on grants for recognised refugees. Of this amount, R105.8 million was allocated to Child Support Grants and R32.7 million to Older Persons Grants.
R10.6 million paid through SRS
Foreign nationals who qualified for the Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant accounted for an additional R10.6 million.
The SRD payments included R9.18 million to Lesotho Exemption Permit holders, R448,810 to Zimbabwe Exemption Permit holders, R962,370 to asylum seekers and R24,420 to holders of the Special Angolan Dispensation Permit.
Taken together, the estimated expenditure on grants and SRD payments to these legally eligible categories of foreign nationals amounted to approximately R1.278 billion in 2025/26.
Pule said the expenditure represented less than 1% of South Africa’s social assistance budget, adding that the agency does not provide social grants to people who are in the country illegally.
“SASSA does not provide social grants or SRD benefits to illegal immigrants or any person unlawfully present in the Republic”, Pule said.
“The Agency’s eligibility verification processes, including verification against Department of Home Affairs records, are designed to ensure compliance with the legislative framework governing social assistance.”
IOL
Get your news on the go. Download the latest IOL App for Android and IOS now
