Why and How to Make a CPF Nomination
For employees, a significant amount of our incomes go towards mandatory CPF contributions. Some may even voluntarily contribute more to take advantage of the interest rate and tax relief. As a sizeable store of our money, it is also important to make a CPF nomination for a few reasons.
CPF money cannot be distributed via a will
Your CPF savings are excluded from your estate and are not covered under a will. As such, you would need to make a CPF nomination in order to distribute your CPF money as you deem fit.
In the absence of a will, your CPF savings will be distributed by the Public Trustee’s Office (PTO) according to existing intestacy or Muslim inheritance laws.
Cost is incurred if death occurs without a CPF nomination
When your money is distributed by the PTO, they charge a fee deducted from the CPF money.
| Amount of CPF Money | Charge |
|---|---|
| For the first $1,000 | 2.400% |
| For the next $9,000 | 1.500% |
| For the next $240,000 | 0.750% |
| For the next $250,000 | 0.450% |
| For amounts in excess of $500,000 | 0.300% |
Even a modest $50,000 sum would incur a fee of $459. This is money that could be better used by your dependents for final matters, and can be entirely avoided if you took less than 10 minutes to nominate your CPF beneficiaries.
Payout to your nominees is likely to be faster
CPF states that nominees can expect to receive the payout between 3 to 6 weeks after submitting the application form to withdraw the deceased’s CPF savings.
PTO’s website states that the CPF Board typically takes 4 to 6 weeks to remit un-nominated CPF money to PTO after receiving notification of the death of the CPF member. Thereafter, PTO will distribute the money within 4 weeks after receiving the application from the beneficiaries.
Once again, you might wish to spare your financial dependents the anxiety or a prolonged wait time.
How to make a CPF nomination?
You may click here and log in via SingPass to make a CPF nomination. You would require two witnesses who are not your nominees to log in to their CPF account via SingPass to witness the nomination. They will not be able to see the nomination details.
If you do it at a physical CPF branch, the customer service executives there can act as your witnesses.
Seth Wee was a licensed financial adviser representative from 2009 to 2025, with over 16 years of experience in Singapore’s financial advisory industry.
He started Sethisfy.com in 2019 to share practical insights on credit cards, banking products, and miles strategies, helping readers identify financial products that deliver the best value. Seth has been featured in CNA, Channel 8, Today, and a host of other publications. In 2025, he was also part of a panel at CPF’s Ready For Life festival.
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