3 March 2020
Following are the CPF-related highlights from Minister for Manpower Mrs Josephine Teo’s speech during the FY2020 Committee of Supply Debate in Parliament on 3 March 2020:
View Ministry of Manpower’s Committee of Supply speech 2020
The Contribute-as-you-Earn (CAYE) pilot was launched at the start of 2020 to help self-employed persons (SEPs) better save for their healthcare needs through smaller and more regular MediSave contributions whenever they receive payment from Government agencies.
To help SEPs transit to CAYE, the Government will provide a dollar-for-dollar matching for CAYE contributions made by the SEP in 2020, capped at $600.
The Government will introduce the Matched Retirement Savings Scheme (MRSS) from 2021 to 2025 to boost the CPF savings of lower- to middle-income Singaporeans aged 55 to 70.
The Government will match every dollar of cash top-ups made to the Retirement Account of eligible members, up to $600 annually or $3,000 over five years.
The Silver Support Scheme (SSS) targets seniors who had lower incomes through their lives and have less in their retirement.
From 1 January 2021, the SSS will be enhanced as follows:
- Increase quarterly payouts by 20% for all flat types.
- Expand criteria for lifetime wages (proxied by total CPF contributions by age 55) from $70,000 to $140,000.
- Expand criteria for household monthly income per person from $1,100 to $1,800, with two tiers of payouts.
There is no need to apply for Silver Support. The CPF Board will automatically assess all Singaporeans aged 65 and above in 2021. Eligible seniors will be notified by the Board, and receive their enhanced payouts in December 2020.
SSS factsheet (PDF, 0.3MB)
CPF Board
Call us: 1800-227-1188 (Mondays to Fridays: 8am to 5.30pm)
Write to us: cpf.gov.sg/writetous
The following CPF-related highlight is from Minister for National Development Mr Lawrence Wong’s speech during the FY2020 Committee of Supply Debate in Parliament on 4 March 2020:
The Silver Housing Bonus (SHB) will be simplified and enhanced, while the Lease Buyback Scheme (LBS) will be enhanced to provide better support for seniors who monetise their flat. All these initiatives will help seniors to boost their lifelong retirement income.
The maximum SHB cash bonus will be increased by 50%, from $20,000 to $30,000.
Seniors can apply for the SHB as long as they sell their flat and buy a 3-room or smaller flat, and get some proceeds from the move. To receive the SHB, seniors will only need to top up the first $60,000 of the proceeds from the move into their CPF Retirement Account, which will be used to sign up for CPF LIFE.
The maximum LBS bonus will be increased by 50%.
Owners of 3-room or smaller, 4-room, and 5-room or larger flats can get a maximum cash bonus of $30,000, $15,000, and $7,500 respectively.
Background Information
| Silver Housing Bonus You can sell your flat and buy a 3-room or smaller flat and apply for the SHB scheme. You will need to top up the first $60,000 of the proceeds into your Retirement Account (RA) and your CPF RA savings will be used to sign up for CPF LIFE, which will provide you with a monthly income for life. |
Lease Buyback Scheme You can monetise your flat by selling part of its lease to HDB. The proceeds from selling part of your flat’s lease will be used to top up your Retirement Account (RA) and your CPF RA savings will be used to sign up for CPF LIFE. This will provide you with a monthly income for life while you continue to live in your current flat. |
Information on CPF LIFE.
Information on Silver Housing Bonus.
Information on Lease Buyback Scheme.