The short version

  • CPF is not part of your estate — your will cannot decide where it goes.
  • CPF passes by nomination. No nomination → it goes to the Public Trustee for distribution (with a fee).
  • Only about 36% of living CPF members aged 16–64 have made a nomination.

Here's the single most common estate-planning mistake in Singapore: assuming your will covers your CPF. It doesn't.

Why your will can't touch your CPF

CPF savings do not form part of your personal estate. Even if your will names exactly who should receive your CPF, the CPF Board is not bound by it. CPF is distributed only according to your CPF nomination — a separate document entirely.

Think of it as two pipes. Your will governs your estate (property, bank accounts, investments). Your CPF nomination governs your CPF. One can't redirect the other.

What happens with no nomination

If you haven't nominated, your CPF goes to the Public Trustee, who distributes it under the intestacy laws — and charges a fee scaled to the amount. It's slower, and a slice is lost to administration. Around S$184 million of un-nominated CPF currently sits unclaimed.

Encouragingly, about 8 in 10 CPF members who died in 2024 had nominated — but among living members aged 16–64, only around 36% have. If you're in the majority who haven't, it's a 10-minute fix.

How to make a CPF nomination

  • Do it online via the CPF website with Singpass, or in person.
  • Review it after major life events — marriage, divorce, a new child.
  • Make sure it agrees with your will and LPA so the three don't contradict each other.

Make your will and CPF line up

We'll prepare your will and walk you through your CPF nomination and LPA so everything points the same way. Fee-only, from S$250.

Book a free consult

Sources: CPF Board (nomination guidance & statistics); SmartWealth estate-planning statistics Singapore 2026.

General information, not legal advice. Rules and figures change — confirm current details before acting.