Most members are aware that you need to be age 65 before you can start to withdraw your retirement savings from the MPF system. However, some companies have a retirement age which is earlier than 65, and other companies may allow employees to retire early. In such cases, can the employee withdraw their MPF benefits before age 65?
The answer is yes, provided the employee meets certain conditions for early payment.
The MPFA's first requirement for "early retirement" is that an employee must have reached age 60. So, if a company requires its employees to retire at age 55, they must wait until they are at least age 60 before applying.
When an employee attains age 60, and assuming they wish to take their MPF benefits before age 65, the employee must make a statutory declaration to confirm they are permanently ceasing all employment and have no intention of being employed or self-employed again.
Employees need to make the required statutory declaration before any of the following - a Commissioner of Oaths of the Home Affairs Department, a Notary Public, or a Justice of the Peace. The statutory declaration can be downloaded from the MPFA website.
It is worth noting that following retirement, some members will sometimes engage in ad hoc consulting or part-time work, either on an employed or self-employed basis. If some form of paid work is anticipated for more than 60 days, the person is not eligible for early payment of their MPF benefits and should not make a statutory declaration.
Therefore, a member should not make a statutory declaration if there is an intention to be employed again or to be self-employed.
This article in English and Chinese is available for download.
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| Can I take my MPF benefits if I retire early? | 1.1 MB |
