All services provided by UNHCR and its partners are free of charge!
UNHCR uses cash-based interventions to provide support with meeting basic needs, protection, assistance, and services to the most vulnerable. Cash helps the displaced meet a variety of needs, including access to food, water, healthcare, shelter, that allow them to build and support livelihoods.
Multipurpose Cash Assistance: cash for basic needs provided on bi-monthly basis or once-off during the winter months to the most vulnerable registered refugees and asylum seekers, according to the results of the vulnerability assessments.
Other cash grants: such as livelihood and cash for education are provided as once-off following sectoral criteria applied by UNHCR and other relevant partners (such as the Catholic Relief Services).
Multipurpose Cash assistance is provided only to the most vulnerable refugees based on specific eligibility criteria and on the availability of funds.
As a first step you must register yourself and your family with UNHCR in Egypt. If you already have your UNHCR card you covered this step.
You may contact Caritas Basic Needs directly to schedule an appointment for the assessment interview in case you have not made any vulnerability assessment interview before, or if there was a significant change to your financial situation (such as loss of main source of income) since the last assessment interview. Due to the large number of people requesting support, please book an appointment for a vulnerability assessment interview with Caritas Basic Needs. Caritas may not have room to serve you if you approach their offices without an appointment. Please note that completing the interview does not mean you will be automatically included in cash assistance. Also note that Caritas Basic Needs is responsible only for data collection through interview and providing you with important information, feedback and response mechanism for cash assistance. Caritas does not make any decisions related to cash eligibility. UNHCR is the final decision maker for both initial and appeal decisions related to cash assistance.
If you are found eligible to receive cash assistance UNHCR will notify you via SMS to the phone number registered by you at UNHCR. Please always keep your phone number updated at UNHCR and ensure checking it regularly for any SMS from UNHCR.
UNHCR relies on multiple sources of information to reach eligibility decisions related to cash assistance. Information used for selection includes the information recorded during your registration with UNHCR and during the interview conducted by Caritas staff as well as other information recorded. The decision takes into consideration several factors like: financial, well-being and risk profiles. Variables including refugee/asylum-seeker’s age, place of residence, number of family members, education level, financial status, access to other types of assistance, specific needs, medical and employment status among others are considered. Each refugee and asylum seeker’s profile is compared against other refugees and asylum-seekers registered with UNHCR and the one who is more vulnerable is selected. Any eligibility decisions related to cash does not deny or enhance access to other assistance programs.
Eligibility determination process and eligibility decision takes at least three (3) months. If you are found eligible to receive cash assistance UNHCR will notify you via SMS to the phone number, you registered at UNHCR. The SMS will include details on how to collect assistance (where to collect assistance, what documents (if any) you will need to show to verify your identity), as well as the deadline for receiving the cash assistance. You may also receive a follow up call from Caritas staff.
Please make sure you keep your contact information up to date with UNHCR, so we are able to reach you. If you change your telephone number, please make sure to inform us the soonest via UNHCR Infoline.
If you want to inquire about the results of your assessment, you may contact Caritas at least three months after your assessment interviews, but not before that as the decision may not be available.
Most interviews are conducted at Caritas premises either in Nasr City, 6 October, Alexandria or Damietta. However some interviews may take place at your home. Families will be informed in advance of the date and time of interview, and of any documents that will be needed during the interview. In case of home-based interviews please make sure to provide Caritas with your accurate address and a clear landmark and please make sure you are available at the time of the scheduled home visit.
All Caritas staff will start the interview by introducing themselves, their occupation in Caritas and the purpose of the call. In case of home visits, they will present a proof of identity. They will also review your registration information with you. Caritas staff member will ask you questions about you and your family as part of the pre-developed questionnaire by UNHCR to determine your eligibility for cash assistance. Please make sure you provide accurate and full information during the interview as this will affect the results. If you do not understand any of the questions, do not hesitate to ask Caritas staff member for more clarification.
The interview will take around one hour, depending on the family size.
The principal applicant registered with UNHCR must fill the interview questionnaire with the data collector, s/he will be responsible to provide accurate information on all members registered on his/her file and will be required to present their IDs before the interview. If a home visit is required for the interview, all members are encouraged to attend the interview and fill their data with the interviewer directly.
Non-registered families will not be included in these interviews and are not eligible for the regular multi-purpose cash assistance.
Yes. If you need to reschedule your appointment, please inform Caritas at least two days prior to the date of your interview. You can reschedule by calling these phone numbers: All governorates: 15946
If Caritas is not informed of a cancelation in advance, there will be significant delays in conducting your interview and you may not be contacted by Caritas.
Eligibility determination process and eligibility decision takes at least three (3) months. In case you are selected to receive cash assistance, UNHCR will send you an SMS on your registered phone number with the amount of your entitlement and the details on how you can collect your cash assistance. In case you want to inquire about your eligibility decision after the interview, please contact Caritas at least three months after conducting the interview and not before that.
Being on the waiting list means that your case meets UNHCR eligibility criteria, however, due to funding limitations other cases who were found to be more vulnerable have been prioritized to receive regular cash assistance. UNHCR is doing very effort to advocate for the needs of refugees with donors, and if UNHCR receives additional funds in future, and your case still meet UNHCR eligibility criteria at that time, you may then be included in the assistance, and you will then receive an SMS on your registered phone informing you of this decision.
All the interview questions are designed to collect important and necessary information that help UNHCR to determine your economic situation, and hence your eligibility to cash assistance. However, if you felt uncomfortable during the interview, please contact Caritas with your concerns. If you can, ensure to provide the name of the data collector/interviewer with whom you have concerns.
Please do not trust anyone who claims to be able to directly add you to the list of beneficiaries in exchange of money. The eligibility determination process is automated using desk formula and no human intervention is possible. UNHCR is the final decision maker related to inclusion to cash assistance.
UNHCR services are free of charge. Do not pay for the interview and report the incident to UNHCR Infoline immediately.
We ask you not to deal with anyone claiming to provide or expedite any of UNHCR services and to report the incident as a case of fraud to: [email protected]
UNHCR will send you an SMS with your cash assistance amount. The cash assistance amount varies from one family to another depending on the number of family members (as registered at UNHCR)
UNHCR provides cash assistance based on a scale that takes your family size into consideration. The amount you get may change due to changes in your family size.
The cash assistance is provided only for limited period based on your continued eligibility and on availability of funds. If you are no longer eligible to the assistance according to UNHCR criteria , UNHCR will send you the following SMS to inform you about the date of stopping the cash assistance.
“Your case [INSERT CASE NUMBER] is no longer eligible for regular cash assistance according to UNHCR criteria. Your assistance will be stopped from [MM/YY].
If you are no longer eligible to cash assistance according to UNHCR eligibility criteria, UNHCR will send you an SMS with your cash assistance end date on the telephone number registered at UNHCR.
“Your case [INSERT CASE NUMBER] is no longer eligible for regular cash assistance according to UNHCR criteria. Your assistance will be stopped from [MM/YY]”
If your assistance is stopped unexpectedly and you did not receive a text message on your registered phone with the assistance end date, please contact Caritas Basic Needs.
You can collect your cash assistance at post office branches in Egypt. Once your assistance is ready at Egypt Post, you will receive a notification SMS from UNHCR on the phone registered at UNHCR indicating the amount of money you should receive and the deadline for receiving the assistance. Please make sure to go to the post office once you receive the SMS. Also, please make sure to always keep your phone number updated at UNHCR, and to always renew your UNHCR card as expired UNHCR cards are not accepted at Egypt Post Offices
In case you were notified of an IRIS enabled cash collection; you will be required to approach any IRIS enabled post office from the list below. If no iris-enabled collection is mentioned in your SMS, then you can receive your assistance from any post office branch using your valid UNHCR card.
| PO Branches | Address | |
| North October City | ||
| 1 | El Hossary | El Hossary Square behind the Mosque |
| 2 | Service Complex | Sixth District behind October Traffic Unit |
| 3 | Seventh District | The Seventh District, next to the Palace of Culture |
| 4 | Sixth District | 6th District, 6th neighborhood, Al-Ahram Center |
| 5 | Third District | Third District, Al-Ghaz Center |
| 6 | First District – Zayed | First District, Sheikh Zayed, next to the General Hospital |
| 7 | October Main | 6th District, next to Central October 2 |
| Giza | ||
| 8 | Ard El Lewa | Taraet Al-Zumar Street, Ard El Lewa |
| 9 | Haram Central | Haram Street, in front of Cairo Mall, next to Haram Central |
| 10 | Kafr Tohormos | Beside Kafr Tohormos Pipe Store |
| 11 | El Maleka | Amr Bin Al-Aas subdivision off El Maleka Street, Faisal |
| 12 | El Mohandessin | 1 Musa Galal Square, Mohandessin, behind Saudi Market |
| 13 | Rabie El Gizy | Al-Rabi’ Al-Jizzi Complex of Authorities |
| Central and North Cairo | ||
| 14 | Cairo Main | 1 Abdel Khaleq Tharwat Street |
| 15 | Ramsis | 57 Ramsis Street |
| South Cairo | ||
| 16 | El Maadi | 9th Street, Maadi |
| 17 | Hadayek El Maadi | Street 105, Hadayek El Maadi |
| East Cairo | ||
| 18 | Zahraa Ain Shams | 121 Zahraa St., Ain Shams |
| 19 | Ain Shams | 5 Kamel Mahdi Street – from Qamar Street – Ahmed Essmat |
| 20 | Martyr Abdel Moneim Riad | 23 July Villas – Aziz Al Masry – Gesr El Suez |
| 21 | Qubaa East | 59 Quba Mosque Street – Quba City |
| 22 | Abbasiya First | 5 Salim Abdo St. – Abdo Pasha Square – Abbasiya |
| 23 | Eigth District | After Al-Manhal School – 14 Ahmed Hassan Street – Eighth District |
| 24 | Tenth District | Tenth District – Mahdi Arafa Street – Building No. 14 – Rawda Tower |
| 25 | Hadayek El Qobba | 133 Misr Sudan Street – Hadayek El Qobba |
| 26 | Swiss Project | Building 94 – Swiss project |
| Kattameya | ||
| 27 | Youth Housing Obour | Youth Obour City |
| 28 | Obour City | Obour City |
| 29 | First Neighborhood | 10th of Ramadan |
| 30 | Madinty | Madinty |
| 31 | 10th of Ramadan | 10th of Ramadan |
| 32 | Ninth Neighborhood | 10th of Ramadan |
| Damietta | ||
| 33 | New Damietta | Construction Authority Building |
| 34 | Faculty of Commerce | New Damietta, next to the Faculty of Commerce |
| 35 | New Damietta Second | Sixth Neighborhood, First District – Market Building in New Damietta |
| 36 | Mubarak Housing | Next to the traffic unit in New Damietta |
| Dakahlya | ||
| 37 | El Bahr El Sagheer | Mansoura, Gohar Al-Saqali Street, off Al-Geish Street, next to the international bus station |
| Alexandria | ||
| 38 | El Mandara | El Mandara in front of the train station |
| 39 | Sidi Beshr | Abu Qir Street in front of Sidi Gaber Station |
| 40 | Madinet Faisal | Faisal City, Sidi Bishr |
| 41 | Alexandria Main | Chamber of Commerce Street, next to Abu Ghareeb |
| 42 | El Saray | Sidi Bishr Tram Station |
| Borg El Arab | ||
| 43 | El Agamy Bitash | Al-Ajami, below the Families Tower |
| 44 | El Amiriya | El A’ameria housing |
| 45 | Old Borg El Arab | The old city of Borj Al Arab, next to the city council |
| Aswan | ||
| 46 | Aswan | Aswan, New Street, behind B.Tech |
You will know this information through the notification SMS you will receive from UNHCR. If you are to receive the cash assistance through Iris scan, this will be clarified in the SMS. Also, a hyperlink to the list of iris-enabled post offices will be provided in the SMS.
Otherwise, and if the SMS does not mention that you are iris-enabled, then you can receive your cash assistance from any post office branch all over Egypt using your valid UNHCR card.
A sample of the SMS you will receive is demonstrated below:
Iris-Enabled Cash Collection:
“Your case [INSERT CASE NUMBER] is eligible for regular cash assistance. You will receive cash amount of [INSERT VALUE] EGP through IRIS scan from Post Office until [INSERT END DATE]. To find the nearest Iris-Enabled Post Office please check [INSERT URL]. Duration of assistance depends on funding availability and fulfilling eligibility criteria.”
Non-Iris Cash Collection:
“Your case [INSERT CASE NUMBER] is eligible for regular cash assistance. You will receive cash amount of [INSERT VALUE] EGP through Post Office until [INSERT END DATE]. Follow this link to find the nearest Post Office [INSERT URL]. Duration of assistance depends on funding availability and fulfilling eligibility criteria.”
If you are still unsure whether you should receive your assistance through iris-scan, please contact Caritas helpline at 15946 and they will provide you with the necessary information.
You may be asked to either:
OR
In either cases you will need to present your valid UNHCR card, and the teller will need to keep a photocopy of the card. It is important that you timely renew your UNHCR card as expired UNHCR cards are not accepted by Egypt Post.
Please ensure you are following SMS instructions and remember:
If the problem is not solved after following all of the above, please contact Caritas Basic Needs at 15946 as soon as possible to record your complaint in the system. This is a very important step. Without a formal complaint at Caritas Basic Needs, UNHCR will not be able to address the issue effectively. A counselor from Caritas will discuss and help you solve the problem and will also record your complaint on the system.
UNHCR will investigate the causes of your issue and if it is found that you followed the above steps, UNHCR will re-imburse the due cash assistance within 60 days from the cash-out deadline. You will be notified via SMS when, where, and how you can collect your assistance. Please regularly check your registered phone for SMSs from UNHCR.
Please note that all complaints related to UNHCR cash assistance must be recorded via Caritas Basic Needs. They are not recorded at UNHCR Offices.
If your card is expired, we strongly advise you to request a renewal appointment as soon as possible through contacting UNHCR Infoline Please inform UNHCR that you are on cash assistance at the time of requesting the renewal appointment. Please note that Egypt Post does not accept expired UNHCR card, and you will not be able to receive your cash assistance if your card is expired.
UNHCR gives refugees and asylum-seekers enough time to collect the cash assistance. Therefore, UNHCR usually extends the collection period over five working days . The exact time period is included in the text message sent by UNHCR, so please approach the nearest post office before the end of the collection period, otherwise you will not be able to collect the cash assistance.
If you suffer from visual impairment or major eye problems such as cataracts or have undergone a surgical operation in the eye conditions that lead to iris recognition failure, please make sure to report this to Caritas at least three days before the collection deadline and your collection method will be amended. Caritas will ask you to provide valid medical reports that contains your diagnosis as evidence for your eye conditions, so please be ready to share these documents with Caritas.(N.B: Without a medical report we will not be able to amend your collection method.) You will receive another SMS notifying you of the new time period for cash assistance with your UNHCR card. Please always check your registered phone for an SMS from UNHCR after you file a complaint.
The principal applicant as registered with UNHCR receives the cash assistance on behalf of the family. Unless the head of family decides to delegate another individual within the case to receive funds on his/her behalf due to strong, justifiable reasons that make the principal applicant unable to go to the post office. In order to delegate someone within your case to collect cash assistance on your behalf, please contact Caritas 15946 to fill and sign a delegation request.
You can delegate an alternate collector on exceptional cases and only if you have very strong reasons that prevent you from going to the post office to receive your cash assistance, for example medical conditions affecting mobility. To nominate an alternate collector, please contact Caritas Basic Needs 15946 the issue and they will take you through the process. You will be expected to nominate an alternate collector who has the same UNHCR case number to receive your cash assistance. You will also be expected to go to Caritas Basic Needs in person along with your nominated alternate collector and you both will fill in and sign a delegation form. The procedures are set out to safeguard your entitlements. Your cooperation is needed. Please note that your delegation is valid for a maximum of 12 months, after which it will automatically be expired. If you want to renew the delegation, you will need to contact Caritas and sign a new delegation form at least one month before the next cash collection cycle.
You can submit a request to cancel/revoke your nomination of an alternative collector to Caritas. Your application will be reviewed, and your request to cancel your nomination of an alternative collector will be effective starting from the next cash cycle after your request.
Although cash assistance is disbursed to the principal applicant as registered with UNHCR, it is meant to benefit the whole family. UNHCR does not interfere in family conflicts/disagreements to determine who the head of the family is and who collects the cash assistance on their behalf. We encourage you to engage together as a family and try to seek a solution to this disagreement.
Please book a registration appointment as soon as possible to make sure the right composition of your family is rightly reflected on the UNHCR database. If the principal applicant who collects the cash assistance passed away, we strongly encourage you to go in-person as soon as possible to book an appointment through UNHCR Office. You will not be able to receive the cash assistance without changing the principal applicant.
Text messages are the main method of communication by UNHCR, through the phone number you provided to UNHCR. If you did not receive the notification SMS, please make sure that all your contact information is updated with UNHCR. Contact UNHCR Infoline in case you have changed your telephone number. Also, please make sure that your phone connectivity is working. Poor connectivity may affect the delivery of SMSs. If you did not receive an SMS at the usual time of cash disbursement you may also contact Caritas to inquire about the timing and duration of cash collection.
Receiving your cash assistance from the Post Office branches during the normal operating days and hours ( From Sunday to Thursday, from 8:00 am to 3:00 am) is free of charge, and you should not pay any additional fees to receive your cash assistance. If you are asked to pay any additional fees during these standard operating days and hours, please refuse and report this incident to Caritas/ UNHCR.
However, according to Egypt Post regulations, if you receive your assistance from Post Office branches outside the above standard working days or hours, i.e. after 3:00 PM or on Saturdays, you will be asked by the teller to pay an additional fee of 10 EGP. Also, if you receive your assistance from any Post Office Kiosk/ mobile branch at any time, you will have to pay an additional fee of 5 EGP.
If you are receiving your cash assistance using only UNHCR card, then you may go to any of the 4,000 Egypt Post branches distributed across Egypt. If you are receiving your assistance using iris-scanning, then you may to any of the 46 branches enlisted below to receive your assistance. If you find one of those branches crowded, please go to the nearest iris-enabled post office according to the list below, or ask the post office staff on alternate post offices, and they will instruct you accordingly.
No. Cash assistance is available at the post office until the deadline indicated in SMS.
Please make sure you collect the cash assistance on time, preferably once you receive the SMS on your phone . At the end of the collection period UNHCR reclaims the cash assistance, and there will be no possibility of sending you the missed cash assistance.
Please call Caritas Basic Needs Helpline 15946 in case you face any problem. Caritas counselors will provide you with the suitable advice and will take any required actions. (Please do so as early as possible before the cash collection deadline to be able to troubleshoot/ solve your problem in a timely manner).
Please note that ALL inquiries and complaints related to UNHCR cash assistance must be recorded via Caritas Basic Needs. They are not recorded at UNHCR Offices. Without the formal complaint at Caritas Basic needs UNHCR will not be able to address your issue effectively.
Eligibility and reimbursement decisions taken by UNHCR will be directly communicated to you through SMS (you may also receive a follow up call from Caritas). Therefore, it is important to keep your telephone number up to date. Through contacting UNHCR Registration or Infoline to update your phone number.
If you fail to collect the cash assistance, you may be contacted via phone by UNHCR or a partner and asked to indicate if you are facing any problems receiving the assistance. If you do not collect the cash assistance for two consecutive distribution cycles, your case will be removed from the cash list and another vulnerable family will be added in your place. Please make sure to contact Caritas Helpline 15946 whenever you face any situation that prevents you from collecting your cash assistance.
Periodically UNHCR randomly selects groups of refugees on cash assistance to collect views about the cash assistance program using authorized third-party monitoring company called “SAGACI”. Also, other surveys may be conducted by UNHCR through other entities (for example, CAPMAS) If you are selected to be interviewed for this survey, you will receive an SMS from UNHCR before the survey to notify you of your selection and of the name of the entity conducting the survey on behalf of UNHCR
Please be open and accurate in your responses as they help UNHCR and Partners improve services offered to refugees. The survey does not affect your eligibility to receive cash assistance. All monitoring surveys are optional and will NOT affect your assistance, the responses you provide will be treated with strict confidentiality.
UNHCR continuously reviews the data of the registered families in Egypt. Before each cash distribution cycle a number of families who no longer meet UNHCR eligibility criteria are removed from cash assistance based on the analysis of the collected data. Also, cases who did not collect their cash assistance for two consecutive distribution cycles, and cases with closed and inactive files are removed from the cash list. Cases who are no longer eligible for cash assistance will receive a notification SMS from UNHCR on their registered phones informing them on the decision and on the start date of the removal.
If your situation has changed significantly since the last assessment/interview (such as loss of main source of income/employment) please contact Caritas within a maximum of two weeks from receiving the SMS indicating the changes in your circumstance. Your request will be reviewed, and you may be contacted by Caritas to undergo another interview to determine if you still meet UNHCR eligibility criteria.
UNHCR continuously reviews the data of the registered families in Egypt. Every three months, a number of families are included/excluded from cash assistance based on the analysis of the collected data. If you believe you should still qualify for cash assistance you can contact Caritas within two weeks from receiving the decision of removal from cash assistance to submit an appeal. Your request will be reviewed by UNHCR, and you may be contacted by UNHCR/Caritas to collect additional information. You will receive an SMS from UNHCR in case you are re-included to the cash assistance. Please always make sure to update your registration data at UNHCR.
UNHCR continuously reviews the data of the families receiving cash assistance to ensure that they still meet UNHCR eligibility criteria for cash assistance . Accordingly, if you may be contacted by Caritas to schedule a new assessment interview in order to update your data at UNHCR. Please cooperate with Caritas in conducting the assessment interview. Also, please note that failure to show up at the time of scheduled appointment without prior notice may subject you to automatic removal from the cash assistance.
If you believe that any humanitarian staff did not behave in a professional manner during your interactions, you can pursue any of the following actions:
Anonymous complaints will not be processed. You must indicate your name, case number and contact information. Please be assured that your identity will not be shared further without your consent. Please be assured that your complaint will not affect your assistance in any way. Please note above channels are only used if you have a complaint about UNHCR/Caritas staff and not about inquiries about inclusion to cash assistance or general information.
For any inquiries, feedback, or complaints concerning cash assistance, please contact our partner Caritas- Basic Needs project on any of the phone numbers listed below. Caritas will respond to all your inquiries, provide you with the required information, and take any necessary actions, if required.
Caritas Greater Cairo:
Caritas Alexandria:
Caritas Damietta:
Caritas Aswan:
