How can I register my father's death and cancel his grant without having to go to SASSA?

The long answer

The first thing you need to do is to report his death to the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) to get the official death certificate.

The Department of Home Affairs will issue a death certificate when they receive a Notice of Death / Still Birth form (DHA-1663/BI-1663, which must be completed by an authorised medical practitioner) and the Death Report (Form BI-1680, which is also issued by Home Affairs). You will need to provide the original ID of the deceased and a certified copy of your own ID. 

If you need a replacement copy or a full death certificate, you can apply for these at your nearest Home Affairs office by completing form BI-132. There may be an additional fee. 

I do not understand why the hospital doctor said that they would keep the doctor’s note. Perhaps it means that you have to first get the DHA-1663 form from Home Affairs and then take it to the doctor to complete it. 

As SASSA 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 father had already drawn his pension in December, the grant would be automatically cancelled at the end of December and there would not be any other monies due. If he had not claimed his pension in December and the family was paying for his funeral, SASSA would pay out the December pension as “unclaimed benefits” to the family member who had paid for the funeral. 

In that case, the family member could apply to SASSA for unclaimed benefits, and would need to bring the following documents to the SASSA office:

• Death certificate and ID card of your late father

• 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.

In terms of the pauper’s or indigent funeral, if the body is unclaimed or no one can afford the burial, the hospital typically transfers it to a state mortuary. As a family member, you need to apply directly to the local municipality, for a pauper’s or indigent burial, not the hospital. You would need to show proof that your father was unemployed, getting a SASSA grant and had no funeral policies. 

You will need to complete an official application form for Indigent Burial or Cremation.

You will also need to provide these documents to prove that you can’t afford the burial:

• Your ID

• The deceased person's ID or birth certificate

• An affidavit made at a South African Police Service (SAPS) station by a family member or relative, declaring the inability to afford burial/cremation due to lack of income.

• A confirmation letter from a local ward councillor confirming the financial status.

• The deceased's death certificate

In terms of closing all your father’s accounts:

If you report your father’s death to the Master of the High Court, a deceased estate comes into being, which means that all your father’s bank accounts are frozen. If the deceased estate is valued at less than R250,000, the Master appoints a person with the letter of authority to wind up the estate, pay all the debts and see that the right heirs inherit. The person with the letter of authority must open a new bank account in the name of the deceased estate. 

Only the person with the letter of authority has the right and responsibility to first settle the debts and then see that the right people (beneficiaries) inherit the rest. 

If your father left a will, he would probably have named the person to wind up his estate in the will. If he did not leave a will, he is said to have died intestate and the estate would be inherited by his family members, in this order: surviving spouse, children. 

Family members can nominate a person to have the letter of authority, and if the Master thinks the person is suitable, he or she will be given the letter of authority by the Master’s Office.

Should you report the death to the Master of the High Court?

On 12 March 2024, a report from the Parliamentary Monitoring Committee said that there is no system linking SASSA and the Office of the Master of the High Court. PMG went on to say that most families of SASSA beneficiaries made no effort to wind up an estate with the Office of the Master (estates valued between R125,000 and R250,000) or with the Magistrate’s Court (estates below R125,000), as is required by law. Therefore, if no “case file” is created, no one can register as a creditor.  

The Department of Justice and Constitutional Development says that, in terms of the Administration of Estates Act, an estate should only be reported to the Master if the deceased left assets (money, property, insurance, etc.) or a will. If your father did not leave any assets or a will, you are not required to register the deceased estate with the Master/Magistrate, as there is nothing to wind up or administer. But the estate would need to be reported if there are any assets, even small ones. 

Wishing you the best,
Athalie