CAPE TOWN - The COVID-19 Social Relief of Distress (SRD) Grant will be extended by another year, lasting until March 2026 in its current form.
Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana made the announcement in his 2025 Budget speech delivered on Wednesday.
R35,2 billion will be allocated to this grant.
During the State of the Nation Address, President Cyril Ramaphosa highlighted that the SRD grant would serve as a basis for a sustainable form of income support for unemployed individuals.
"The grant will be used as a basis for the introduction of a sustainable form of income support for unemployed people," he said
The future of the SRD grant has been a subject of debate, particularly regarding identifying a stable funding source to ensure it does not crowd out government spending.
"It has been a temporary grant, and we have been debating to find a funding source for it so that it should not continue to crowd out other spending,” says Godongwana.
“What we are attempting to do is to stabilise exactly that, to make sure that this grant does not crowd out other spending."
The Minister added that the future direction of the SRD grant will be determined by the outcomes of the active labour market programme, which is expected to be completed by September 2025.
[LIVE NOW 🔴] The Finance Minister says the COVID-19 Social Relief of Distress, in its current form, will be extended by a year to end March 2026. The future form of the SRD will be. The future form and nature of the SRD are expected to be completed by September 2025.… pic.twitter.com/4snF6420rM
— eNCA (@eNCA) March 12, 2025
Increase in Social Grants for 2025/26
Meanwhile, child support grants will rise by R30, bringing the total amount to R560 per month.
The old age and disability grants will increase by R130, taking the monthly payment to R2,315 starting in April.
The foster care grant will see a smaller increase of R70.
The total allocation for social grants in the 2025/26 year is R284.7 billion.