On Thursday, the government announced that the Minimum Sum (MS) which Singaporeans need to set aside in their Central Provident Fund accounts will be raised to S$155,000 from 1 July.
The last increase was in July 2013, when it was raised to S$148,000 from the previous year’s (2012) S$139,000.
The latest increase to S$155,000, which will apply to CPF members who turn 55 between 1 July 2014 and 30 June 2015, is to “better meet Singaporeans’ expectations of basic standard of living in retirement”, the CPF Board and the Ministry of Manpower said in a joint statement on Thursday.
The MS was first instituted in 2003 to “provide members with a monthly income to support a basic standard of living during their retirement”, the MOM website says.
“Upon reaching 55 years old, members are able to withdraw the portion of their CPF savings in excess of the Minimum Sum. This allows members to use their savings to meet their financial needs at 55 years of age, while ensuring they also have some regular income to live on in their retirement.”
Here’s a historical look at the MS over the years, with data culled from the CPF website:
On the platforms of major online news outlets, members of the public slammed the announcement, with many cynical about whether they will really be able to see their monies when they retire.
Here are some of the views posted on the Facebook pages of the various news/online outlets:
TODAY:
The Online Citizen:
The Straits Times:
Yahoo Singapore:
Channel Newsasia:
The Real Singapore:
