EPF account 3: An account that may allow members to withdraw their monthly contribution

16 Apr 2024 • 2:58 PM MYT
WauPost
WauPost

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The EPF also known as the Employees Provident Fund is a compulsory retirement savings scheme for private sector employees in Malaysia. Both employees and employers contribute a percentage of the employee’s salary to the fund every month.

EPF members to be allowed to withdraw their monthly contribution?

According to local newspaper New Straits Time, the highly anticipated account 3 is expected to store 10% of members’ future monthly contribution that account holders can withdraw at any given moment. Looking at the breakdown, the EPF account will now be split into 3 accounts which are:

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EPF account to be divided into 3 accounts, with the 3rd account dubbed as the flexible account.
Source: FMT

  • Account 1 – Users are not allowed to withdraw from this account and 75% of the monthly contribution to EPF will be stored here.
  • Account 2 – Users are allowed to make partial withdrawals for reasons such as purchasing a house, financing education, medical expenses, or as investment for unit trusts or other approved schemes. 15% of the monthly contirbutions will be stored here.
  • Account 3 – Also known as the flexible account, 10% of the monthly contributions by the employee will be stored here and is a new account made for withdrawals at any given moment.

The local mail also shared that the newly introduced account is created to help contributors sustain their livelihoods before they hit the retirement age. However, it is worth noting that contributors may choose to maximize capital gains and transfer the 10% in account 3 into accounts 1 and 2.

Prior to this, the account 3 initiative was introduced back in 2023 after EPF allowed members to withdraw cash from their accounts due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Details for account 3 will be revealed soon and it is expected to begin this coming May.

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