South African Social Security Agency (Sassa) said it has noted with concern the challenges faced by social grant recipients in replacing their expired gold cards.Many grant recipients are rushing to renew their gold cards before April ends.
A gold card is issued by Postbank, enabling grant recipients to transact using their card and PIN code within the National Payment System (NPS) at bank ATMs, South African Post Office branches, and Cash Pay Points (CPP).
Concerns grow as over 5 million Sassa gold cards will expire by June 2023
Visa and MasterCard cards expire after five years and must be renewed.The Sassa gold cards are used by approximately 5.9 million recipients of social grants, according to Sassa spokesperson Paseka Letsatsi.
Most gold cards will expire by June 2023, he said
- “Clients are urged to check their cards’ expiration dates. Payments will be processed as usual, and funds will be safely stored in client accounts
“To avoid not being able to access these funds in the client’s bank accounts, recipients are able to either replace their Sassa gold cards at SAPO branches or another venue provided by Postbank, a participating retailer, or use Postbank’s cardless withdrawal option.
“Alternatively, clients can use the services of another bank. Clients will have to request a change of payment method at their nearest local office or alternative venue that Sassa will make available specifically for this project,” Letsatsi said.
Sassa advises grant recipients to bring along the following documents if they choose to get their social grant payments through their personal bank account:
Bank statement or proof of bank accountA three-month bank statement detailing the client’s personal details and bank accounts and Identification proof.
It is necessary to submit the documents at the nearest Sassa office in order for Sassa to pay the social grant into the chosen bank account.Sassa recommends beneficiaries change their method of payment only once a month, regardless of how many times they can do so.
Sassa plans to increase its capacity to handle requests for change of payment method faster and extend its business hours to accommodate any increase in client requests.
