Social grant recipients can now find solace in the recent announcement by the Postbank, as it states that the expiry date of SASSA Gold Cards will be extended beyond December. This extension of the validity period ensures that the cards will no longer cease to be functional at the end of the year, as initially intended.

By Lezeth Khoza 

The Postbank has announced that the expiration date of SASSA gold cards will no longer be enforced in December, allowing cardholders to continue using them beyond this specified date.

“Postbank is pleased to announce the great news that millions of SASSA grant beneficiaries will continue collecting their grants safely and reliably with their SASSA Gold Cards. 

“This important development means that millions of social beneficiaries do not have to change their SASSA Gold Cards to the cards of other banks,” Postbank said in a statement.

This announcement brings a sense of relief to the beneficiaries who have experienced distress in recent months due to various payment errors associated with social grants.

Postbank was engaged in facilitating the card replacement process for beneficiaries, thereby deploying their personnel to various communities nationwide to ensure comprehensive coverage.

Despite being informed about the presence of Postbank workers at the local community hall, pensioner Gilbert Magagula (68) was unable to personally visit the venue and seek information regarding the card replacement procedure.

“I thought I would go closer to the expiring date as I saw the queues were long, we were also told at the community hall that Postbank workers will be at the local clinic in the coming days, that was also an option.

“I have recently opted to use the EasyPay method for receiving my social grant, as I encountered delays or partial payments for the months of August and September. This latest development is favourable, as I have not yet made any changes to my card,” he said. 

As previously reported, Minister of Social Development Lindiwe Zulu will seek Cabinet approval for the draft version of the basic income grant policy before its complete implementation.

Minister of Finance Enoch Godongwana is expected to announce the extension of the Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant during the Medium Term Budget Policy Statement in November. 

The SRD grant has over 10 million beneficiaries between the ages of 18 and 59. According to media reports, Zulu said that moves were already afoot to extend the SRD grant of R350 to the unemployed until 2026.