Where can I replace my mother's SASSA gold card?

The long answer

After months of chaos, long queues and repeatedly extending the deadline to replace cards, Postbank announced in April that it would be suspending the replacement of cards until further notice. This was because it was in discussions with the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) about “embedding additional controls” in the black cards. 

On 7 June 2025, a GroundUp article by Marecia Damons explained that Postbank had not yet applied for a full banking licence. Postbank told GroundUp that they would be applying for a full banking licence, but that they were legally allowed to issue cards under the National Payment System Act. 

The Postbank CEO, Nikki Mbengashe, said that the gold cards would continue to work, as well as the black cards that had already been issued, while people waited for the temporary suspension of issuing new black cards at its sites to be lifted. 

The suspension is still ongoing and SASSA spokesman, Paseka Letsatsi, said SASSA would notify the public when the talks between the SARB and Postbank conclude. Until then, there would be no new black cards issued by Postbank at any of their sites (like shops).  

Postbank encouraged beneficiaries to continue using either card: “Whether a Postbank customer uses a Black Card or is still using their SASSA Gold Card, they have no need to change banks as their cards are working and they have access to their grants.”

IOL News reported on 16 April 2025 that Bridget Masango, the Chair of the Portfolio Committee on Social Development in Parliament, encouraged people who had not yet replaced their gold cards for the black Postbank cards, to apply to a bank of their choice to receive their social grants. 

So, in the meantime, your mother can still use her gold card and can also apply to a bank to receive her grant, if she so wishes.

Wishing you the best,
Athalie