Eligibility
Care Dependency Grant Eligibility: Who Qualifies?
Use this checklist to understand the main qualification conditions for the Care Dependency Grant.
Reviewed 2026-09-23
Eligibility rules and qualification checklist for the Care Dependency Grant.
01
Eligibility checklist
- Be the parent, primary caregiver or court-appointed foster parent.
- The child must be under 18 and need full-time special care because of severe disability.
- The child must be assessed by a state medical officer.
- Caregiver and child must live in South Africa.
- Meet the caregiver means test; the income limit does not apply to foster parents.
02
Means test and verification
Income, assets or other qualifying information can be checked where the grant is means-tested. Meeting one condition does not override the other requirements.
03
What can make an application fail
- Age or care conditions are not met.
- Residence/status requirements are not met.
- Means-test information exceeds the applicable limit where relevant.
- Required medical or court evidence is missing where relevant.
- Identity or supporting documents cannot be verified.
How this page is verified
Amounts, dates, eligibility rules and process details on this page are checked against current South African government, Department of Social Development and SASSA publications. We publish the useful data directly here and review it when official information changes.
Last editorial review: 2026-09-23