Editorial Policy — SASSA Status Check
By the SASSA Status Check Editorial Team · 13 August 2026
This policy explains how the SASSA Status Check Editorial Team produces, sources, reviews, and corrects the information on this site. It is public so readers can evaluate our process — and so we are bound by it.
How content is produced
Each page starts as a research brief: what question the page must answer, who it serves, and what must be verified before a single sentence is published. Research notes are kept for every topic, with a claims table that records the exact figure, the source, the date checked, and a confidence level. Content is written from those notes in plain language and checked against the notes again before publishing.
How content is sourced
We gather information from:
- Official SASSA channels: sassa.gov.za and the SRD portal at srd.sassa.gov.za.
- South African government publications: including National Treasury documents such as the Budget Review.
- Reputable South African news outlets: used to corroborate official announcements.
We do not treat anonymous tips, social media posts, or paid content as sources for facts.
How claims are tracked
Every claim on this site is traceable to a line in our research notes. Claims are tagged High, Medium, or Low confidence. Claims with conflicting sources are recorded as conflicts, with both versions listed. Claims we cannot verify are placed on a do-not-publish list — they never reach a page.
Two examples of how this works in practice:
- The SASSA WhatsApp number. Sources cite both 082 046 8553 and 082 054 0016 as official. We cannot confirm which is current, so our pages state the conflict openly and tell readers to verify the number on sassa.gov.za before messaging either one.
- USSD codes. Several codes circulate, including *120*69277# and *120*3210#. SASSA changes these without public notice. We list the codes most consistently referenced and state plainly that the active code must be confirmed on sassa.gov.za.
How content is reviewed
Core pages are reviewed monthly against official sources. Payment schedules and grant amounts are re-checked whenever SASSA publishes an update — for example, the August 2026 payment schedule was verified against SASSA announcements and cross-checks on 11 August 2026. Every substantive change is recorded with a date in the Updates & Changelog.
Corrections
When an error is reported or found:
- It is fixed immediately. We do not batch corrections.
- The correction is logged in the Updates & Changelog so the change is visible and dated.
- Where a correction changes the meaning of a page, the page is re-checked against its research notes before the corrected version is final.
To report an error, use our contact page and include the page URL and, if you have one, the source for the correct information.
Editorial independence
checksassa2026.co.za is not affiliated with SASSA or the South African Government. No government body commissions, pays for, or approves our content. We do not accept payment to change a fact, a recommendation, or a rating. The site does not collect personal data, so no commercial incentive exists — ours or a partner's — to gather readers' information.
What we will not publish
- Claims we could not verify, even when they would make a stronger story. The do-not-publish list currently includes the exact current USSD code, the definitive SASSA WhatsApp number, and the exact number of SASSA offices in South Africa.
- Rumours presented as news. SASSA has publicly denied claims of a R700 grant and a R5,000 food voucher; we do not repeat those claims as fact.
- Content that requires readers to hand over personal information to access. We never ask for an ID number, phone number, or banking details.
If you have questions about this policy, contact us.