PETALING JAYA: The Employees Provident Fund (EPF) has launched Account 3 with members given a one-time opt-in option to transfer funds from their Account 2 to the newly launched "Akaun Fleksibel".
EPF members would have between May 11 and Aug 31 to decide.
All EPF members under 55 would now have three accounts from that date: the Akaun Persaraan (Retirement Account), Akaun Sejahtera and Akaun Fleksibel.
Following the restructuring of the accounts, contributions would be split three ways with 75% going into Account 1, 15% into Account 2 and 10% into Account 3.
While the savings in Account 1 and Account 2 would remain, Account 3 would start with a zero balance if a member chooses not to opt in for an initial amount.
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"Between May 11 and Aug 31, members will have a one-time option to transfer part of the savings balance in their Akaun Sejahtera (previously Account 2) as an initial amount to Akaun Fleksibel," the retirement fund said on Thursday (April 25).
Members could only choose to opt for the transfer of the initial amount to Akaun Fleksibel one time starting from the effective date until Aug 31, after which the opt-in cannot be cancelled.
If a member chooses to opt in, the funds will be transferred into their Account 3 within 24 hours. They would then have to key in their bank details and phone number in order to cash out.
"If the member does not choose to opt in for an initial amount, no transfer will be made and the existing balance will remain in Akaun Sejahtera.
"Akaun Fleksibel would start with new contributions that would be credited into the member’s account after the implementation date," it added.
However, if a member chooses not to opt in for an initial amount, no funds would be transferred from their existing balance in their Akaun Sejahtera.
In this case, the Akaun Flexible would start with the new contributions that would be credited into the member’s account after the implementation date.
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"If the member chooses to opt-in for an initial amount,the transfer of the initial amount to Akaun Fleksibel and other accounts (if applicable) is based on the balance in the member’s Akaun Sejahtera on the date the opt-in application is made," it said.
"Application for withdrawal from Akaun Fleksibel can be made through KWSP i-Akaun or at any EPF branches nationwide," it said.
"Members could fully access the system on May 12," it added.
Members who wished to take advantage of this opt-in could submit their application through the KWSP i-Akaun application or the Self-Service Terminals at any EPF branches nationwide.
For those with more than RM3,000 in their Akaun Sejahtera (Account 2), a third of their balance savings would be transferred to the Akaun Fleksibel while one-sixth would be transferred to Akaun Persaraan (Account 1).
The remaining balance would be retained in the Akaun Sejahtera.
For those with a balance of RM1,000 and below, the full amount would be transferred to Akaun Fleksibel. For those with a balance of more than RM1,000 and less than RM3,000, the amount transferred to Akaun Fleksibel would be RM1,000, with the remainder retained in Akaun Sejahtera.
"No distribution will be made to Akaun Persaraan for a savings balance below RM3,000," it said.
