If my mother passed away after SASSA paid her grant, how can her family access the money?

The long answer

As it is linked to the Home Affairs population register, SASSA will be immediately notified when a death is registered, and will then cancel the grant on the last day of the month in which the person died. 

If your deceased mother had already drawn her pension in the month she died, the grant would be automatically cancelled at the end of that month and there would not be any other monies due.

If she had not withdrawn her pension in the month she died, SASSA will pay out the money as “unclaimed benefits”.

The family member who paid for the funeral can apply to SASSA for unclaimed benefits, and would need to bring the following documents to the office:

• Death certificate and ID card of your late mother

• ID of the person claiming the benefit

• Invoice and receipt of the funeral cost.

SASSA will only pay the unclaimed benefits amount, even if the funeral costs came to more than the unclaimed benefits.

For any other questions, you can call SASSA's help desk toll-free number at 0800 60 10 11.

Wishing you the best,
Athalie