Everything about CPF nomination for retirement planning singapore
What is next after retirement planning Singapore?
It is a big misconception that only the rich need to make plans for leaving wealth behind. In fact, everyone needs to plan to preserve and distributing our assets earned through our years of hard work. In fact of my clients often neglect the part on legacy planning after they have settled their retirement planning Singapore and how much do they need to retire in Singapore. In fact based on financial journey mentioned in the previous article, wealth preservation and wealth distribution should be next stages after retirement planning.
It is equally important to be aware of the importance of legacy planning as the downside of not planning will be the potential administrative costs incurred. Apart from that, legacy planning will also ensure that our estate will be able to pass on to our loved one according to your wishes.
Central Provident Fund (CPF) is not able to be distributed via a will and it will be charged for the public trustee to administering on CPF savings which are not nominated. Given that CPF savings have a major role to play in most of our retirement planning, it is important to fully understand about CPF nomination and have it properly distributed.
Fees for administration of un-nominated CPF savings.
| Amount of CPF savings | Charge (%) |
| For the first $1,000 | 2.4 |
| For the next $9,000 | 1.5 |
| For the next $240,000 | 0.75 |
| For the next $250,000 | 0.45 |
| For amounts in excess of $500,000 | 0.3 |
The fees are charged by the Public Trustee’s Office and will be taken from the CPF savings, include GST. The amount cannot be waived and there is a minimum fee of $15.
Here are 3 questions about CPF Nomination that you will ask.
Q1: What will CPF nomination covered?
- Savings in Ordinary, Speical, Medisave and retirement account
- Unused CPF life premiums
Do take note that funds under the CPF investment scheme (CPFIS) are not covered, the claim proceeds from the Dependants’ Protection Scheme (DPS) and properties bought using CPF funds.
Funds under the CPFIS can be distributed through a will, if not they would be distributed based on intestacy laws. The Claim proceeds from DPS can also be distributed through the will, alternatively, you can nominate your beneficiaries through your DPS insurer. Lastly, in the case of properties, it will have to depend on the holding status.
Q2: Will nominees receive the CPF savings in cash or back in their CPF Saving.
You are allowed to choose for the nominees to receive either a lump sum of cash or the nominee’s CPF accounts. The option of transferring to the nominee’s CPF accounts was not available before 2011 when the Enhanced Nomination Scheme (ENS) was introduced.
Now with ENS, you are allowed to transfer to the nominee’s CPF accounts after you passed on. This way, it can help your nominees to have more funds for retirement, especially the nominees are housewife/ homemaker where they have low CPF balance.
Q3: Why make a CPF nomination if you already have made a will?
As mentioned above, your CPF savings are not covered under the will. They also do not form your estate and the most important difference is that they are protected from your creditor claims on any of your outstanding debts. Any funds used for investment will not be protected from your creditors upon your death. In any event, if you have creditors, you may want to liquidate funds under CPFIS before death so they can be protected once they are transferred back to CPF accounts.
Highly encouraged to make a nomination if you want to have your CPF savings to distribute your CPF savings according to your wishes.
Other things to take note for nominees.
- If a nominee is under 18 and is not the deceased’s widow, the Public Trustee will hold the money until the person turns 18. If the nominee is the deceased’s widow and is under 18, the CPF will pay out immediately.
- If there is no CPF nomination, the Public Trustee will hold the money until the beneficiaries turn 21.
- You may claim a reimbursement of funeral expenses out of the deceased CPF money, up to $5,000. Only a beneficiary is eligible to claim.
CPF nomination will form part of your legacy planning. If you are interested in know more about CPF savings and how to fully make use of it for your retirement planning, please check out Retirement planning Singapore: CPF LIFE (3 things to know) and Tips on making full use of your CPF.
You can find out more over about retirement planning here:
- How to plan for retirement in Singapore ( 3 things you can’t do without)
- Smart Retirement Planning Tips
