Free Basic Electricity

Are you battling to afford electricity for your home?

Free basic municipal services are services provided at no charge by the Government to poor households. The services currently include water and electricity. The general rule is that indigent households are entitled to 6 kl of free water per household per month and 50 kWh of free electricity per household per month.  These services are provided by municipalities and include a minimum amount of electricity, water and sanitation that is sufficient to cater for the basic needs of a poor household. 

Only indigent households (who can prove that they cannot pay and who earn less than a certain amount per month) qualify for free basic services. Municipalities have criteria to qualify for indigent status. Municipalities determine who qualifies to receive the 50kWh per month of free basic electricity using the qualifying criteria outlined in their respective indigent policies.

Free basic electricity – what can you do with it?
Municipalities determine who qualifies to receive the 50kWh per month of free basic electricity using the qualifying criteria outlined in their respective indigent policies. In some municipalities, households qualify for a 100% FBE allocation while in others it is only 50kWh as per the policy or an additional top-up called Municipal funded FBE is provided. The free electricity is given on the 1st of every month.  Some municipalities give different top-up options or free kWh units.
FBE users who have pre-paid meters will be able to see when their free electricity is finished and will then have to buy more electricity.
If you do not receive FBE yet, go to your local municipality and register for FBE.  You can claim your FBE token by using the following options: dialing *130*869# or *130*269# or contact your local municipality to find out if you qualify and how to apply.  Just note that they only give FBE to people who earn less than a certain amount per month.

What can you power at home for 50 kWh in a month?
This amount of electricity will be sufficient to provide basic:

  • 4 lightbulbs for 4 hours
  • TV for 3 hours
  • Iron for 10 minutes
  • Cellphone charger for 24 hours
  • Fridge for 20 minutes

Who qualifies for FBE?

  • The national government has developed the FBE policy, giving direction to this initiative. Municipalities, in line with the national policy, have set various qualification/selection criteria that they use to determine whether a household qualifies for FBE  or not. Households that qualify are then included in the Indigent Register enabling them to claim FBE.
  • 20 Amp prepaid electricity customers/households qualify for FBE, as per government Department of Energy policy. 60 Amp prepaid customers can qualify if identified as indigent. Conventional electricity customers using less than 150 kWh (units) a month on average qualify for FBE.

How would I know whether I qualify for FBE or not?

  • Customers are advised to contact their local municipal offices and enquire about their qualifying status. Eskom records can be checked once eligible customers have been configured on Eskom’s billing system.


When and how do I get FREE units?

  • Prepaid electricity customers must claim FBE units every month at their local vendor. FBE tokens can be claimed without the purchase of electricity units. That is, customers do not have to pay or purchase any electricity units to claim FBE tokens.
  • Conventionally metered electricity customers’ accounts are credited with an amount of electricity (units) as prescribed by the municipality every month. That means a customer account is billed for the amount of electricity consumed, less the free allocation in terms of the FBE policy.

Hints and Tips on FBE

  • FBE tokens can be claimed without the purchase of additional electricity units
  • A household is entitled to claim only one FBE token a month. Households are not allowed to claim more than one token from different municipalities, each month.
  • FBE tokens do not accumulate when not claimed, therefore customers must claim their tokens on a monthly basis to avoid forfeiting them.
  • Customers will forfeit the FBE units if they do not use the token within the calendar month it is claimed. Unused tokens become invalid when used in the following month(s).
  • No cash voucher or service will be paid in lieu of FBE tokens.
  • Customers in default will not receive FBE until the customer has met all the requirements to have their electricity supply restored.
  • The application of energy efficiency measures, such as the use of energy saving lamps can help to make FBE units last longer.
  • Municipalities are tasked to identify indigent households that would receive services – such as water and electricity – for free or at substantially subsidised rates.

*NB: Municipalities are tasked to identify indigent households that would receive services – such as water and electricity – for free or at substantially subsidised rates, Eskom does not determine or own the indigent lists as these lists are just submitted to Eskom by the respective municipalities as per the Service Level Agreement.