How is SASSA's old age grant payment calculated?

The long answer

As you know, to qualify for a SASSA pension, a single person may not have an income of more than R86,280 per year or have assets worth more than R1,227,600. 

Assets can be the value of any property that you own, excluding the house that you live in, which is not counted as an asset. Assets can also be cash in the bank or investments like shares or unit trust funds. Income can be any money received, whether from work, children or other relatives, maintenance payments from a spouse, renting out a room in one’s house and so on.

SASSA works out the amount of the pension by using a sliding scale, whereby the closer you get to the maximum allowed income, the less pension you will receive. 

Marius Cornelissen explains in a 2015 IOL article that the full pension amount is typically only received by people who have very little or no income. SASSA would calculate the amount of your grant using your net income and allowable deductions, such as medical aid contributions. For that reason, he says, it is important to notify SASSA of any changes to your income and deductions as they will affect the amount paid to you.

As your private pension of R6,970 amounts to R83,640 a year, this is quite close to the maximum allowed of R86,280 and may explain why you only receive R220.

Perhaps the best advice is to go personally to the SASSA office and ask them to explain how they have arrived at the figure of R220.

Wishing you the best,
Athalie