Committee of Supply Speeches 2015: CPF Highlights

FY2015 Committee of Supply Debate in Parliament

Read highlights from the Ministry of Manpower.

Read highlights from the Ministry of Health.

Highlights from the Ministry of Manpower

Here are the CPF highlights from Minister for Manpower Mr Tan Chuan-Jin’s speech during the FY2015 Committee of Supply Debate in Parliament on 9 March 2015:

For more details on the Committee of Supply Speeches for Ministry of Manpower, please click here.

For a summary of Committee of Supply Highlights relating to the Ministry of Manpower, please click here.

For CPF enhancements announced in the FY2015 Budget Statement, please click here.

For more details on the Singapore Budget 2015, please click here.

View the press advertisements summarising the Budget and Committee of Supply announcements:

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Clearer choices for desired payouts in retirement

Members turning 55 from 2016 can choose from a range of payout options at 65 to better suit their needs.

	Your monthly payout for life* from 65	Retirement Account Savings required at age 55
If you own a property and have sufficient charge/pledge on the property.	$660 – $720	Basic Retirement Sum (BRS) ($80,500 in 2016)
If you do not own a property or choose not to pledge your property.	$1,220 – $1,320	Full Retirement Sum (FRS) ($161,000 in 2016)The FRS is 2 × BRS
If you wish to put more savings in CPF LIFE.	$1,770 – $1,920	Enhanced Retirement Sum (ERS) ($241,500 in 2016)The ERS is 3 × BRS.

*Payouts are estimates based on CPF LIFE Standard Plan parameters in 2016.

Know your options ahead of time

For each new cohort, payouts need to be higher to account for long term inflation and rising standards of living. Correspondingly, the Basic Retirement Sum to be set aside has to increase. For members turning 55 from 2017 to 2020, the Basic Retirement Sum will increase by 3% for each successive cohort.

	Basic Retirement Sum
Age 55 in 2016	$80,500
Age 55 in 2017	$83,000
Age 55 in 2018	$85,500
Age 55 in 2019	$88,000
Age 55 in 2020	$90,500

This was part of the CPF Advisory Panel’s recommendations.

Greater flexibility for spousal transfers

There will be more flexibility for members to transfer their CPF balances above the Basic Retirement Sum to their spouse. Currently, the giver has to meet the Full Retirement Sum before any transfer can be done.

Both members and their spouses would benefit from the extra interest that will be paid on the balances in their respective CPF accounts.

Every CPF member would also have an assured source of retirement payouts for life by having their own CPF LIFE plan.

This was part of the CPF Advisory Panel’s recommendations.

Flexibility to withdraw up to 20% of Retirement Account balances from Payout Eligibility Age

Members who turned 55 from 2013 onwards will have the option of withdrawing up to 20% of their Retirement Account savings from their Payout Eligibility Age (includes the first $5,000 withdrawn at 55).

This was part of the CPF Advisory Panel’s recommendations.

The Payout Eligibility Age (previously known as Draw Down Age) is the age where members are eligible to start receiving their monthly payouts for retirement. It will remain the same as the current Draw Down Age.

Year of Birth	Payout Eligibility Age
1943 and before	60
1944 to 1949	62
1950 and 1951	63
1952 and 1953	64
1954 and after	65

Flexibility to defer payout start age for higher payouts

Members will have the option of deferring their payout start age up to 70 to enjoy higher payouts. For every year deferred, they can receive a permanently higher monthly CPF LIFE payout of about 6-7%.

Choosing of CPF LIFE plan at the payout start age^New!

From January 2016, members will only need to choose their CPF LIFE plans at the point when they wish to start payouts from CPF LIFE, instead of making the choice at 55.

Guided one-to-one retirement planning service for CPF members approaching 55 ^New!

A pilot retirement planning service will commence in the second half of 2015 to help members approaching 55 make informed decisions about their CPF savings. This service will be aimed at members approaching 55 and who may need the guidance most, such as those with outstanding housing loans payable by CPF.

Personalised information will be used to guide members on the creation of a Retirement Account at 55, the implications on their existing CPF obligations such as housing loans, and the options they can consider to enhance their retirement savings and payouts.

Through the pilot phase, CPF Board will fine-tune the initiative to better serve members. More details on the service will be available after the completion of the pilot in December 2015.

Highlights from the Ministry of Health

Here are the CPF highlights from Minister for Health Mr Gan Kim Yong’s speech during the FY2015 Committee of Supply Debate in Parliament on 12 March 2015:

Using Medisave for more chronic conditions

Removing requirement to top up Medisave Account for CPF withdrawal from 55 ^New!

Introducing Basic Healthcare Sum to replace Medisave Contribution Ceiling ^New!

No further increase in the Basic Healthcare Sum from 65 ^New!

Additional Medisave Withdrawal Limit for Integrated Shield Plans ^New!

For more details on the Committee of Supply Speeches for Ministry of Health, please click here.

For a summary of Committee of Supply Highlights relating to the Ministry of Health, please click here.

Read the factsheet on the changes to the Medisave Scheme.

Using Medisave for more chronic conditions

From 1 June 2015, you can use Medisave for outpatient treatment of four more chronic conditions. They are: epilepsy, osteoporosis, psoriasis and rheumatoid arthritis.

This brings the total number of conditions covered by the use of Medisave under the Chronic Disease Management Programme (CDMP) to 19.

You can use your own Medisave or your immediate family member’s Medisave to pay for such treatment, up to $400 per year per account.

Read more details from the FAQs on this initiative.

Removing requirement to top up Medisave Account for CPF withdrawal from 55 ^New!

From 1 January 2016, the Medisave Minimum Sum will be removed. A CPF member withdrawing CPF monies from the Ordinary and/or Special Accounts upon reaching age 55 will no longer be required to top up his/her Medisave Account.

Read more details from the FAQs on this initiative.

Introducing Basic Healthcare Sum to replace Medisave Contribution Ceiling ^New!

From 1 January 2016, the Medisave Contribution Ceiling (MCC) will be renamed as the Basic Healthcare Sum (BHS).

The BHS is designed to be enough for a member’s basic, subsidised healthcare needs in old age. Amounts above the BHS will flow to the member’s Special Account (if member is below 55) or Retirement Account (if member is 55 and above) to boost his/her monthly payouts.

As a start, the BHS will be set at $49,800 on 1 January 2016 for all CPF members. Between now and January 2016, there will be no increase to the current MCC, which is $48,500 since July 2014.

Read more details from the FAQs on this initiative.

No further increase in the Basic Healthcare Sum from 65 ^New!

Currently, the annual Medisave Minimum Sum adjustments apply to all members regardless of their age.

The new BHS will continue to be adjusted yearly for members below 65 to keep pace with the growth in Medisave use by the elderly. The BHS will be fixed when the member turns 65.

Those aged 65 and above in 2016 will have the same fixed BHS of $49,800.

Read more details from the FAQs on this initiative.

Additional Medisave Withdrawal Limit for Integrated Shield Plans ^New!

There will be changes to how much you can use your Medisave to pay for Integrated Shield Plans (IP) premiums, when MediShield Life component replaces MediShield component in the IPs end of this year.

IPs are made up of two parts.

A basic MediShield portion run by the CPF Board.

An additional private insurance coverage portion run by private insurers, typically to cover Class A/B1 wards in public hospitals or private hospitals.

Today, MediShield premiums are included as part of IP premiums.

Currently, everyone in the same age cohort has the same Medisave Withdrawal Limit (MWL), which is applied to the total IP premium (i.e. MediShield premium and additional private insurance coverage portion).

To provide more certainty over what Medisave savings can be used for, the current MWLs will be restructured into two components, effective when MediShield Life is introduced:

The net MediShield Life premium payable after taking into account any Additional Premiums and subsidies, can be fully covered by Medisave.

The additional private insurance coverage portion will be subject to new withdrawal limits, called Additional Withdrawal Limits (AWLs).

The Ministry of Health will share more details about the new AWLs later this year.