CPF Life gives monthly payout, much like rental income from property: Koh Poh Koon

SINGAPORE – Topping up one’s savings in the Central Provident Fund (CPF) account is akin to investing in a property for a regular source of income in one’s old age.

Senior Minister of State for Manpower Koh Poh Koon said this during a panel discussion with the CPF Board’s deputy chief executive for policy and corporate development, Mr Tang Lee Huat, and a CPF volunteer, Madam Ong Sin Hong.

The Mandarin dialogue on retirement adequacy was organised by Chinese language daily Shin Min Daily News in partnership with Reach (Reaching Everyone for Active Citizenry @ Home).

Speaking to about 100 people at the Suntec convention centre on the evening of Nov 11, Dr Koh said CPF Life gives a regular monthly payout for life, much like receiving rental income from a property. He noted that while rental income is taxable, CPF Life payouts are not. 

One does not need to worry about tax, that no one wants to rent the property or spend money to maintain it, he said.

CPF Life is the national longevity insurance annuity scheme that provides monthly payouts for as long as one lives.

Singapore residents – citizens and permanent residents – are automatically included under the scheme if they are born in 1958 or after, and if they have at least $60,000 in retirement savings when they start their monthly payouts.

They can join CPF Life any time between the ages of 65 and 70. The funds in their Retirement Account (RA) will be used to pay for their premiums to join the scheme.

CPF members can make cash top-ups or CPF transfers to their own or their loved ones’ Special Account (SA) or Retirement Account (RA) to boost their CPF Life payouts. The top-ups will be made to the members’ SA for those below the age of 55, or RA for those aged 55 and above.

According to the CPF Board website, a CPF member with a Full Retirement Sum (FRS) of $213,000 in 2025 can expect a monthly payout of $1,730 from age 65 for the rest of his life.

Those who are 55 and above have the option to top up to the current year’s Enhanced Retirement Sum (ERS), which is $426,000. This will give them a lifelong monthly payout of $3,330 from age 65, $1,600 more than if they had topped up their retirement savings to the FRS.

CPF Board’s Mr Tang noted that CPF members who continue to work can choose to defer their CPF Life payouts from age 65 to age 70.

For every year that they defer, their monthly payouts will increase by up to 7 per cent, he added. This means that if they defer for five years until age 70, their payouts will increase by as much as 35 per cent.

Using the example of a CPF member who tops up to the ERS, Dr Koh said this member can expect to receive an additional $1,000 every month if he defers his CPF Life payouts to 70 years old.

He added that this additional payout may be more than the salary increment if one continues working until 70 years old.

As at December 2023, over half of the CPF members who are eligible to start their payouts

chose to defer to age 70

.

Some CPF members have failed to meet the Basic Retirement Sum, which is $106,500 in 2025. For them, there is the Matched Retirement Savings Scheme.

The scheme was enhanced from Jan 1, 2025, to enable Singapore citizens aged 55 and above with lower retirement savings to save more and get higher monthly payouts.

Under the scheme, the Government matches cash top-ups made to their RA, up to a cap of $2,000 per year. This is up from the previous cap of $600 per year.

Mr Tang noted that if a CPF member puts in $2,000 a year from age 55 for 10 years and gets the matching government grant of $2,000 a year, he can expect to receive $48,000 in additional savings, including CPF interest, when he is 65 years old. That translates to an additional lifelong monthly income of $260, he added.

The cash top-ups have to be made before the end of the calendar year. The Government will pay the matching grants in 2026.