Closure of Special Account for CPF members aged 55 and above
The Special Accounts (SA) of approximately 1.4 million CPF members aged 55 and above have been closed on 19 January 2025. The closure of the SA was announced during Budget 2024.
With the closure of the SA, savings from the SA have been transferred to the Retirement Account (RA), up to members' cohort Full Retirement Sum (FRS), where they will continue to earn the long-term interest rate from January onwards1. Any remaining SA savings have been transferred to their Ordinary Account (OA) where they will earn 2.5% interest per annum, and members have the flexibility to withdraw them when needed. If members would like to continue earning the higher interest rate of 4% per annum and enjoy higher retirement payouts, they can transfer these OA savings to their RA up to the current year’s Enhanced Retirement Sum (ERS). This transfer is irreversible, and can be made anytime, but if members wish to earn the higher interest from January onwards, the transfer must be processed by January 20252.
From 20 January 2025, members will be notified through a hardcopy letter, as well as an email or SMS where applicable, on the closure of their SA. Members can also view the amounts transferred to their RA and/or OA in their online Transaction History by logging in to their CPF account at cpf.gov.sg or using the CPF Mobile application. For more information on SA closure, please refer to Annex for a list of Frequently Asked Questions.
Members are advised to be extra vigilant against scammers who may pose as CPF Board staff, government officials or bank/insurance agents, or claim to be appointed by the CPF Board. Their tactics include asking for personal details, under the guise of advising on CPF or CPF-related insurance schemes or offering ways to earn higher returns through investments. Members should note that calls from CPF Board will be made only from 6227 1188 or 6202 3388, and should immediately end calls from any other number claiming to be from the CPF Board. For missed calls from CPF Board, members will receive a gov.sg SMS, or an email from an address ending with @cpf.gov.sg or @e.cpf.gov.sg with callback details. If unsure, members may call the 24/7 ScamShield anti-scam helpline via 1799, and approach CPF Board at cpf.gov.sg/service/contact-us. For more information, please refer to cpf.gov.sg/antiscamtips.
Raised Enhanced Retirement Sum
The ERS has been raised on 1 January 2025 from three times to four times the Basic Retirement Sum (BRS). This will provide CPF members aged 55 and above the option to voluntarily top up more to their RA to receive even higher monthly payouts in retirement.
The ERS in 2025 is $426,000 for all members aged 55 and above. Members turning 55 years old in 2025 can receive CPF LIFE monthly payouts of up to $3,300 for life from age 65, if they choose to top up to the ERS of $426,000 in 2025. As the ERS increases every January, members can make further top-ups every year to further boost their payouts, if they wish to. Members may refer to cpf.gov.sg/retirementsum for the Retirement Sum amounts from 2025 to 2027.
CPF members aged 55 and above can use the monthly payout estimator at cpf.gov.sg/payoutestimator to estimate the payouts they can receive if they top up their RA, and check the amount they can top up in their Retirement dashboard at cpf.gov.sg/retirement. Members may wish to top up their RA earlier to earn more through the power of compound interest.
Enhanced Matched Retirement Savings Scheme
Launched in 2021, the Matched Retirement Savings Scheme (MRSS) aims to help senior Singapore Citizens with lower retirement savings build up more savings and boost their monthly payouts in retirement. The Government had matched every dollar of cash top-ups made to the RA of eligible members, aged 55 to 70, up to $600 per year for each member. A total of $61 million in matching grants was credited in January 2025 to the RA of more than 103,000 members for cash top-ups received in 2024. Nine in 10 members had received the maximum annual matching grant of $600.
From 1 January 2025, the MRSS age cap of 70 has been removed and the matching grant has been increased to $2,000 per year, with a $20,000 cap over an eligible member’s lifetime. With these enhancements, more than 740,0003 members are eligible for MRSS in 2025, which is almost double from 395,000 in 2024. In addition, tax relief for cash top-ups that attract the MRSS matching grant has been removed as the matching grant is already a significant benefit extended by the Government. Givers can continue to receive up to $16,000 in tax relief on cash top-ups to themselves and their loved ones that do not attract the matching grant.
Members’ eligibility for MRSS is automatically assessed at the beginning of every year. Members can check their eligibility anytime in their Retirement dashboard at cpf.gov.sg/retirement or via the MRSS eligibility checker at cpf.gov.sg/mrsschecker. Members eligible for MRSS in 2025 will receive a notification from February to March via email or hardcopy letter.
1 Savings in the Special, MediSave and Retirement Accounts (SMRA) will earn the floor rate of 4% per annum from 1 January to 31 March 2025. For more info, please refer to cpf.gov.sg/interestrate.
2 The normal processing time for CPF transfers is five working days upon receipt of application, and can take longer if the volume of applications is high.
3 This figure has been updated from the earlier estimated 800,000, based on members’ latest data as at Jan 2025.