Declined: Alternative Income Source Identified

When the Department of Social Development set the current income limit in 2022, it said SASSA would decline an applicant who receives more than R624 into their bank account in a month, and that each month is assessed separately. A decline with this label is that rule at work. SASSA said in January 2026 that its eligibility criteria had not changed.

Two facts make it easy to be caught out. SASSA looks at the account, so money that was never yours to keep counts. And the check is a single month's total, so a one-off deposit can push an otherwise empty month over the line.

The SRD means test page adds up your own deposits. The decline overview covers the other reasons.

SASSA's officials told Parliament in June 2022 that the test looks at the amount received in the account, not who it came from. People have been declined for each of the following. The main groups:

• Money from other people. Transfers from family or friends, even once, and cash sent to a wallet or account.
• Earnings of any kind. Salary for part of a month, freelance or gig work, tips, piece-work, and sales of things you no longer need.
• Cash deposits. SASSA can't see where the cash came from.
• Stokvel and burial society payouts. Your turn to receive counts, even though it is your own savings coming back.
• Rent. Even a small amount from a lodger.
• Refunds and reversals. A returned purchase shows as a deposit.
• Insurance and lump sums. Funeral cover, a policy claim, or a UIF or pension lump sum.
• Loans paid back to you. And money you held briefly for someone else.
• Winnings. If paid into the account.

Two more catch people out. Deposits into an old or forgotten account linked to your ID, or into a shared account, can count.

For an SRD month, you can appeal. SASSA's appeals page says an appeal must be lodged within 30 days and not later than 90, and goes to the Independent Tribunal for Social Assistance Appeals. The SRD appeal guide has the steps and the timeline.

The evidence is what wins or loses it. Sites that have used the process agree that "I have no income" on its own doesn't work. Send:

1. Bank statements for the month that was assessed, and ideally the months either side. Mark up the deposit you are explaining so a reviewer can find it at once.
2. An explanation for each deposit with who sent it, when, how much and why. A one-off gift is not income, so say so.
3. An affidavit from you, and where a relative sent money, a short one from them confirming it was a gift.
4. Proof for the rest. A refund confirmation for a reversal, a letter from a stokvel or burial society for a payout, a screenshot of a sale.

A deposit that really was income, above R624, is unlikely to succeed on appeal. If that is what happened, the next month is assessed separately, and a later month may pass.

Don't pay anyone to write the appeal for you. SASSA says it never asks for your PIN.

Keep your SASSA-linked account for grant money only, if you can. Check your deposits against the R624 limit using the means test checker before the month ends.