Employees Provident Fund (EPF) implemented a new account structure earlier this month that includes the introduction of Account 3 (Akaun Fleksibel) which members can withdraw at any time. However, not everyone likes having their retirement funds to be so accessible and this is something that EPF is going to address very soon.
EPF Account 3 recurring transfer option coming soon
EPF has made it clear that the new 3-account structure applies to all of its members under the age of 55 years old. Hence, you can’t opt out of Account 3 and remain with the previous 2-account structure.
However, members can soon make a recurring request to transfer the funds from Account 3 to the two other accounts. This was revealed by EPF’s Head of Policy and Strategy Department, Balqais Yusoff during a recent interview with BFM.
You can specifically choose whether you want the contributions that are meant for Account 3 to be moved to Account 1 (Akaun Persaraan) or Account 2 (Akaun Sejahtera). Not only that, you will also have the choice to split and transfer the money to both accounts.
Furthermore, the option will not be a one-off thing as members can also deactivate it if they need the Account 3 funds for that particular time.
The new option will be available as early as next month
In terms of availability, Balqis said that the recurring transfer option will be made available to members in June or July. While she didn’t explain it in detail, this option will be accessible online which we assume includes the KWSP i-Akaun mobile apps as well.
EPF previously stated in its FAQ members can indeed transfer their Account 3 savings to Account 1 and Account 2. The transfer only takes place in one direction though as members can’t transfer those funds back to Account 3 once the transaction has been completed.
That being said, the transfer applications can only be done at physical EPF offices. The new option that will be introduced within the next two months should make inter-account transfer more convenient.
