SASSA Queue-Selling Scams: What to Know

In April 2026, SASSA said people were selling places in queues at its offices, mostly to elderly people and people with disabilities. Its chief executive promised tighter security, help from law enforcement, and action against everyone involved, including SASSA officials found to be complicit. The Witness reported his statement on 28 April. He also promised better queue management and priority channels for older, disabled and vulnerable people.

On 6 August 2026, EWN reported that the Minister of Social Development and SASSA's chief executive arrived unannounced at the Pretoria Central office. An electronic queue management system is now in use there. You get a number when you arrive and are called to a counter in order, and security staff register beneficiaries as they walk in. The EWN report described the aim as ending the practice and restoring fair access.

What the reports leave out is how much people were charged. They name no one, either. Don't trust a website that claims to have those details.

Long queues create the market. SASSA has said queues and service problems contribute to it, and that it is speeding up digital options so fewer people need an office. One of them is the online e-Life Certification platform. According to the reports, it lets beneficiaries verify their details from home using biometric electronic Know Your Client technology.

• Ask whether you need to go at all SRD is applied for and checked online. Some grant tasks can be done on SASSA's online platform or on WhatsApp, and biometric verification can sometimes be done from home. See the guide to WhatsApp self-service.
• Arrive with the right papers, so one visit is enough. The document checklist lists them by grant, and the offices page shows where to go.
• Join the queue yourself Don't hand money to anyone outside the building, whatever they say or wear. Where an electronic queue system exists, take the number it gives you.
• Ask an officer if you can't wait, and say if you are elderly or have a disability. SASSA says it has priority channels for you, but it hasn't said how they work or which offices have them, so ask the officer.

SASSA's booklet lists three ways to report suspected fraud or corruption, and says reports can be anonymous:

• SASSA's toll-free line: 0800 60 10 11
• the National Anti-Corruption Hotline: 0800 701 701
• email: GrantEnquiries@sassa.gov.za

Tell the police as well. Write down the office, the date, the time and what was said. Don't confront anyone. If a SASSA official is involved, say so when you report it.

Queue sellers are not the only people who ask for money. SASSA says it never asks for your PIN, and the government says applying for a permanent grant is free. Anyone asking you to pay to apply, or to be served, is not acting for SASSA. The guide to fake SASSA websites covers the online version of the same trick.