By The Ledger desk · Last verified 4 October 2026
Under the CPF Act, your CPF savings are not part of your estate and are not covered by your will. A CPF nomination decides who gets them. With one, the CPF Board pays your nominees in cash, via PayNow or GIRO, and contacts them within 10 working days of being notified of your death. Without one, your savings go to the Public Trustee’s Office, which shares them out under intestacy law (or the inheritance certificate, for Muslims), deducts a fee, and can take up to six months. Anyone aged 16 or above with CPF savings can nominate, and it is free. Marriage cancels an existing nomination.
For many families, CPF is the largest pot of cash someone leaves behind. Ten minutes online settles where it goes.
Quick facts
- Who can nominate: CPF members aged 16 and above.
- Cost: free, online with Singpass or in person at a CPF Service Centre.
- Nominees can be anyone, including people without a CPF account, but not organisations.
- Online nominations need two witnesses; a nominee cannot be a witness.
- Marriage revokes your nomination. Divorce does not.
- Without a nomination, the Public Trustee charges a fee taken from the CPF money.
What a CPF nomination covers, and what it doesn’t
| Covered by your nomination | Not covered |
|---|---|
| Ordinary Account savings | An HDB flat or other property bought with CPF |
| Special Account savings (if you still have one) | Dependants’ Protection Scheme payouts |
| MediSave Account savings | Investments under the CPF Investment Scheme |
| Retirement Account savings | Anything else in your estate (handled by your will) |
| CPF LIFE premium balance: premiums paid minus payouts received | |
| Discounted Singtel shares |
Everything is paid out as cash; nothing is moved into your loved ones’ own CPF accounts. Property bought with CPF is dealt with through its ownership (for example, joint tenancy) and your will. For a refresher on the four accounts, see CPF Accounts Explained.
How to make a CPF nomination
- Log in to the CPF website with Singpass and open the nomination service.
- Enter each nominee’s NRIC or FIN, address and email, and the share (or amount) each should receive.
- Add two witnesses. They need identification and a Singapore mobile number, and must not be your nominees.
- Follow the on-screen steps for your witnesses to complete their part, and keep the confirmation.
- Prefer paper? Book an appointment at a CPF Service Centre at least one working day ahead; CPF staff can act as witnesses.
Review it at every life change: a marriage (which revokes it), a new child, a divorce, or the death of a nominee.
What happens if you don’t nominate?
The CPF Board pays the money to the Public Trustee’s Office, usually within 4 to 6 weeks. The Public Trustee then checks who the lawful beneficiaries are, which can mean birth and marriage certificates and statutory declarations, and pays out within 4 weeks of receiving the full documents. Non-Muslims’ savings are shared under the Intestate Succession Act; Muslims’ under the Syariah Court’s inheritance certificate. The fee, which includes GST and cannot be waived, comes off the top.
| Un-nominated CPF money | Public Trustee fee rate |
|---|---|
| First $1,000 | 2.40% |
| Next $9,000 | 1.50% |
| Next $240,000 | 0.75% |
| Next $250,000 | 0.45% |
| Above $500,000 | 0.30% |
Worked example: $100,000 of un-nominated CPF savings costs $24 (2.4% of $1,000) + $135 (1.5% of $9,000) + $675 (0.75% of $90,000) = $834 in fees. A nomination would have cost nothing, and your family would have heard from the CPF Board within 10 working days. The money would also go where you chose, not where the intestacy table sends it: without a nomination, a spouse with children receives half, not all.
The WahLiao Verdict
Make a CPF nomination today if you have none, and redo it the week you marry, because marriage wipes it. It is free, it takes minutes with Singpass, and it is the only way to decide who gets your CPF money. If a nominee dies before you, update the nomination promptly rather than leaving a gap. Then write a will for everything else.
Questions people ask
Can my will override my CPF nomination?
No. CPF money is not covered by a will at all. Only a CPF nomination directs it.
Can I nominate someone who isn’t family?
Yes. You can name anyone, including people without a CPF account. You cannot nominate an organisation such as a charity.
I just got married. Is my nomination still valid?
No. Marriage revokes any existing CPF nomination, so make a new one.
Does the nomination cover my HDB flat?
No. Property bought with CPF passes by how it is owned and through your will, not through the nomination.
Sources: CPF Board, making a CPF nomination; CPF Board, what happens to CPF savings after death; CPF Board, CPF monies not covered by a will; Public Trustee’s Office, un-nominated CPF money: fees and timelines. The Ledger explains; it does not advise.
Read next: Making a Will in Singapore · CPF Contribution Rates in 2026 · Back to The Ledger
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