Topping Up $7,000 into my CPF Special Account (SA) for tax deductions Skip to main content

Topping Up $7,000 into my CPF Special Account (SA) for tax deductions

Last month, I decided to top up my CPF Special Account since that account gives me 4% yield risk free. My calculations show that I can reduce my tax bill by $7k x 15% = $1050, without even taking into account future 4% yield benefits i'm to receive.

It's definitely worth the top up from an ROI point of view, since it's tough to guarantee this kind of return in today's market.

There is a maximum cap for cash top-up relief per Year of Assessment (YA) which is $14,000 (Self $7,000 and family members $7,000), but at least max it out for yourself if you have the spare cash. This way you can quickly hit the CPF SA ceiling sooner, maximizing the 4% risk free yield early on.

Will do it again for FY2019.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Trade wars, Hong Kong riots

Be greedy in times of fear. That's the investment mantra I live by. Recently there's been a huge spat on trade wars and the Hong Kong riots, which took a toll on the stock markets.  This was a great opportunity to load up on my existing positions as their prices have come down to more favorable levels. There no reason to explore other stocks unless a super attractive opportunity arises, like hongkongland. That counter was hit extremely hard by the riots, since they derive 50% of their revenues from HK.  Other than such events where opportunities present itself, I prefer to average up or down into my existing positions... No need to perform the due diligence again, unless fundamentals have changed. I'm enjoying the opportunities that the markets are presenting in the past few months.  Simply keep calm and aim to collect more dividends by increasing your stake when frivolous sentiment changes. Market entry is a psychological battle against yourself. Another post on this ...

I increased term + critical illness coverage further with Manulife

I recently increased my term and critical illness coverage by another $1M and $300k respectively. I checked around with many providers and ended up with Manulife as it's what I need, without all the bells and whistles. AIA offered total coverage for recurrent illnesses, but I figure if I get the same cancer twice, I'd probably be dead by then. So there's no need to pay a premium for that type of policy. Sometimes plain vanilla is the best. I also considered disability insurance where they pay you an amount on a monthly basis. While this sounds like a great idea, the insurers will make it difficult for you to claim this, with strange delay clauses and exclusions. It's much cleaner to receive a large lump sum payment and manage it from there. Why these figures for critical illness? I based it on annual family expenses. Most insurance agents will tell you like 5-10x of your salary, just to get you to buy a bigger policy. An agent that looks out for you will tel...

Purchasing life insurance

I recently re-balanced the family's insurance schemes. I remember just when i was just starting out, my cousin once told me to buy only Term + Critical illness insurance. I didn't listen and bought an investment linked plan from one of my friends (he played the friend card, which is annoying). They guarantee you 3% returns or something similar, along with coverage. I bought the Manulink Flexi plan on Nov 1 2008, and had it for 89 months (7years, 5months). Monthly premium was $206.59. Total Premium paid was $18386.51. I remember getting back only around 11k when i surrendered this policy. Basically I paid $7386.51 in total for term + critical insurance coverage for the 7+ years, about 1k per year. Looking back, i did not require such coverage as i didn't have any dependents. Lets see the figures comparing what i would've otherwise gotten, had i invested in a stable dividend stock/reit, since the premise is that this policy is not necessary. I'm looking at a t...