CPF Members with and without Basic Retirement Sum in their Retirement Accounts on Reaching 55 in Last Three Years
Ministry of ManpowerSpeakers
Summary
This question, raised by Assoc Prof Walter Theseira and Ms Anthea Ong, concerns the proportion of CPF members reaching age 55 attaining the Basic Retirement Sum (BRS). Minister Josephine Teo stated that BRS attainment for active members has risen steadily as gender savings gaps narrow, with levels often mirroring property wealth. She noted that attainment is highest among private property owners and lowest for those in smaller HDB flats. For inactive members, she explained that CPF balances may not reflect total resources as they often possess alternative financial provisions. Recent policy enhancements now facilitate voluntary cash top-ups and easier CPF transfers from family members to help these individuals build retirement adequacy.
Transcript
28 Assoc Prof Walter Theseira asked the Minister for Manpower what is the number and proportion of CPF members turning 55 years of age in 2016, 2017 and 2018 respectively who have set aside the Basic Retirement Sum, disaggregated by gender and household income or by housing type as a proxy for household income.
32 Ms Anthea Ong asked the Minister for Manpower (a) what is the number and percentage of current CPF members who are inactive, broken down by gender; (b) of the inactive members, in the last three years, what percentage does not have at least the CPF Basic Retirement Sum in their Retirement Accounts when they turned 55 years old, broken down by gender; and (c) what is the difference in CPF balances of inactive male and female members.
Mrs Josephine Teo: The cohort Basic Retirement Sum (BRS) is adjusted every year to take into consideration inflation and rising standards of living for successive cohorts of seniors in retirement. Even so, the proportion of active CPF members turning age 55 who had set aside their cohort BRS has increased steadily as shown in Table 1. This reflects higher labour force participation rates and rising incomes of successive cohorts of members.
The BRS attainment for both male and female CPF members have improved over the years and the difference in their savings have also narrowed. A study published by the CPF Board1 showed that the male-to-female average CPF balance ratio has reduced from 1.20 in 2006 to 1.13 in 2016. We expect this trend to continue.
BRS attainment tends to mirror property wealth. It is highest among active CPF members who own a private property, and lowest for active CPF members who own 3-room or smaller HDB flats.
It is difficult to draw meaningful conclusions by looking at CPF balances of members who are economically inactive and thus not required to make CPF contributions. They are likely to have other means of provision which CPF Board has no sight of. Nevertheless, inactive CPF members who wish to save through the CPF system can do so through voluntary top-ups to their CPF accounts either through cash or CPF transfers from other members. These members can also benefit from several recent enhancements that make it easier for members to receive CPF transfers from their spouse, children and grandchildren.