Usage of CPF Savings to Fund Children's Overseas Tertiary Education

Mr Lee Hong Chuang asked the Minister for Manpower whether the Ministry will consider allowing the use of parents' CPF savings for their children to pursue recognised overseas degrees in a way similar to how CPF can be used for local tertiary education under the CPF Education Loan Scheme.

The primary objective of the Central Provident Fund (CPF) is to support members' retirement, healthcare, and housing needs. When the CPF was expanded to support education needs, it was designed as a loan scheme and confined to basic full-time tertiary education at local approved educational institutions. With increasing life expectancy and higher costs of living, we need to ensure that CPF members have sufficient savings for retirement, healthcare and housing.

Tuition fees charged by local educational institutions are heavily subsidised by the Ministry of Education. Students who use their parents' CPF savings under the CPF Education Loan Scheme for such local studies would generally be able to repay the loan comfortably through their working income after graduation. On the other hand, overseas education is relatively more costly. If students are unable to repay the loan, it would have serious impact on their parents' retirement savings. Therefore, we have no plans to open up the CPF Education Loan Scheme for other courses beyond basic tertiary education at local approved educational institutions.

Singaporeans could consider other available financing options, such as study or education loans offered by financial institutions for overseas education.