TRW & Co · Private client and succession
CPF Nominations and Insurance Nominations: Assets Outside Your Will
A CPF nomination in Singapore is the only way to choose who receives your CPF savings, because a will cannot cover them. Insurance nominations and jointly held property also pass outside the will. This guide explains what each arrangement controls, what happens without a nomination, and how families can align nominations, joint tenancy, trusts and the will.
Key pointMarriage revokes a CPF nomination, and a later will revokes a revocable insurance nomination only if it identifies the policy and beneficiaries in detail, so many families' plans quietly stop working after life changes.
At a glance
CPF sits outside wills
CPF savings do not form part of the estate and cannot be distributed by a will; a CPF nomination decides who receives them.
No nomination, slower payout
Without a nomination, CPF savings go to the Public Trustee for distribution under intestacy laws, which takes time and attracts a fee.
Marriage revokes nominations
Getting married revokes an existing CPF nomination, so members should make a fresh nomination after marriage even if they want the same nominees.
Two insurance nomination types
Trust nominations benefit only a spouse and children and are irrevocable without consent; revocable nominations can name anyone and be changed freely.
Joint tenancy passes automatically
A share in property held as joint tenants passes to the surviving owner by survivorship, regardless of what the deceased owner's will says.
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The short answer: some of your wealth never passes through your will
A CPF nomination in Singapore is the only way to decide who receives your CPF savings when you die. Your will cannot do it. As MoneySense explains, CPF savings in your Ordinary, Special, MediSave and Retirement Accounts do not form part of your estate and are not covered by a will.
CPF is not the only asset that sits outside the will. Life insurance policies with a statutory nomination, property held as joint tenants, and certain jointly held accounts can also pass directly to someone else, without going through your executor. For many families these assets are worth more than everything the will actually controls.
The result is that a carefully drafted will can still produce an outcome nobody intended if the nominations and ownership arrangements around it point somewhere else. This guide explains which assets pass outside the will and how to align them, calmly and step by step.
Which assets pass outside the will
| Asset | Passes under the will? | What decides who receives it |
|---|---|---|
| CPF savings (OA, SA, MA, RA) | No | CPF nomination; without one, the Public Trustee distributes under intestacy laws |
| CPF LIFE premium balance and discounted Singtel shares | No | Distributed by CPF Board, in line with the CPF nomination where one exists |
| Life policy with a trust nomination | No | The nominated spouse or children, through the trustee |
| Life policy with a revocable nomination | No, unless a later will validly revokes it | The revocable nominees named with the insurer |
| Life policy with no nomination | Yes | The will or, if none, the intestacy rules |
| Property held as joint tenants | No | Survivorship: the surviving joint owner(s) |
| Property held as tenants in common or solely | Yes | The will or, if none, the intestacy rules |
| Investments bought with CPF under CPFIS | Handled through the estate | Executors or administrators claim from the product provider or agent bank |
The CPF Board's guidance on what happens on a member's passing confirms several of these points, including that property bought with CPF savings is not covered by a CPF nomination and instead forms part of the estate, unless it passes to a surviving joint tenant.
How a CPF nomination in Singapore works
According to MoneySense, you can make a nomination if you are 16 or older and of sound mind, and you can do so online. You can nominate any person or organisation, choose how much each receives, and there is no limit on the number of nominees.
When a member dies, the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority informs CPF Board, so families do not need to report the death separately for a Singapore Citizen or PR. Where there is a valid nomination, CPF Board says it will contact the nominees within ten working days of being informed and explain how to withdraw the savings. Nominees who are Singapore Citizens or PRs aged 18 or above, with a local residential address and a bank account registered with CPF Board, can receive the money automatically, subject to further eligibility requirements.
What gets distributed includes savings in all CPF accounts, any CPF LIFE premium balance and discounted Singtel shares, which go to nominees in the proportions set out in the nomination.
If there is no nomination
Without a nomination, CPF savings are transferred to the Public Trustee's Office for distribution under the Intestate Succession Act for non-Muslims, or the Administration of Muslim Law Act for Muslims. MoneySense notes that it takes time to locate the legally entitled beneficiaries and that a fee is payable to the Public Trustee. Our guide to who inherits under the Intestate Succession Act explains the shares.
Marriage revokes a CPF nomination. Many people make a nomination when they start work, marry years later, and assume the old nomination still stands. It does not. Review your CPF nomination in Singapore after every major life event: marriage, divorce, the birth of a child, or the death of a nominee.
Other CPF-linked schemes that work differently
A CPF nomination in Singapore does not answer every CPF-related question on death. CPF Board's guidance explains several schemes that follow their own rules, and families are often surprised by them.
Under the Home Protection Scheme, if an outstanding housing loan was insured under the scheme, CPF Board assesses the claim once it is notified of the death and, if approved, pays the insured sum directly to the lender to settle the loan.
Under the Dependants' Protection Scheme, CPF Board informs the insurer, which then contacts the scheme's own nominees with claim details. For the final hospital bill, MediSave and MediShield Life or an Integrated Shield Plan can be used, but if the deceased had not signed a Medical Claims Authorisation Form, a close family member, donee or deputy needs to sign it at the hospital within a short period after death.
None of these is controlled by the will, and only some follow the CPF nomination. Knowing which is which helps executors and families avoid delays at a difficult time.
Insurance nominations: trust or revocable
For life policies and accident and health policies that pay death benefits on your own life, the Insurance Act lets policyholders aged 18 or above choose between two kinds of statutory nomination. Insurers commonly refer to them by their historical section numbers: a trust nomination under section 49L and a revocable nomination under section 49M.
Not every policy qualifies. Insurer guidance explains that, for example, policies insuring someone else's life, policies already placed on trust in another way and certain CPF-linked annuities are excluded, and that trust nominations are not available for some CPF-funded or SRS-funded policies.
| Feature | Trust nomination | Revocable nomination |
|---|---|---|
| Who can benefit | Only the policyholder's spouse and/or children | Any person or organisation |
| What the beneficiaries get | All policy benefits, living and death | Death benefits only; living benefits stay with the policyholder |
| Policyholder's control | Changes, loans, withdrawals or surrender need consent of the trustee or beneficiaries | Full control; can change or revoke at any time |
| Effect of a later will | Not superseded; the trust nomination must first be revoked with consent | Can be revoked by a later valid will that identifies the policy and beneficiaries, with notice to the insurer |
| Creditor protection | Proceeds are generally protected if the policyholder becomes bankrupt | No equivalent protection; proceeds follow the policyholder's position |
| Best suited to | Locking in protection for a spouse and children | Flexibility where circumstances may change |
As insurer guidance on nominations stresses, a trust nomination is inflexible: once made, you cannot change it unilaterally even if your family circumstances change. It suits people who are prepared to give the policy benefits away permanently, often for asset-protection reasons. A revocable nomination keeps flexibility but offers no special protection.
The interaction with a will is easy to get wrong. Insurer FAQs explain that a later will can revoke a revocable nomination only if it deals with all the death benefits under that policy and sets out specific particulars, such as the insurer, policy number and identifying details of each beneficiary, and the insurer must be notified. A generic gift of "all my insurance" in a will is unlikely to be enough.
Joint property and joint accounts
Property held as joint tenants passes automatically to the surviving owner on death, whatever the will says. Property held as tenants in common passes under the will, or under the intestacy rules if there is no will. The way a home is held is therefore as important as any clause in the will.
Joint bank accounts are similar in principle, but they are a common source of family disputes. Where one person funded the account and added a relative's name only for convenience, the other family members may argue that the survivor holds the money on trust for the estate. Our article on resulting and constructive trusts over family property explains how courts approach those questions.
Aligning nominations, joint tenancy, trusts and your will
Think of your estate plan as several channels running in parallel. The steps below help make sure they all point the same way, starting with your CPF nomination in Singapore.
- List every asset and how it is held. Include CPF, each insurance policy and its nomination status, property and its form of co-ownership, bank and investment accounts, and any business interests.
- Decide the overall outcome first. Agree what you want each person to receive in total, before deciding which channel delivers each share.
- Make or update your CPF nomination. Ensure the proportions fit the overall plan, and remake it after marriage, which revokes earlier nominations.
- Review each insurance nomination. Choose trust or revocable nominations deliberately, and check each policy separately: one form typically covers one policy.
- Check how property is held. Consider whether joint tenancy or tenancy in common reflects your wishes, and take advice before severing or changing ownership.
- Use a trust for minors or vulnerable beneficiaries. CPF and insurance money paid directly to a young or vulnerable person may not be managed well. A testamentary or standby trust can receive the funds instead. See our trusts and succession planning practice.
- Write or update the will to match. The will should deal with everything that is not covered elsewhere and should not contradict the nominations. Our wills and estate planning team drafts wills with this alignment in mind.
- Record where everything is. Leave a clear list for your executor of policies, nominations and accounts, so nothing is missed.
An illustrative scenario: a second marriage
This scenario is illustrative and does not describe any real client or case.
A 50-year-old engineer has two teenage children from his first marriage. He made a CPF nomination in favour of his children years ago, holds a life policy with a revocable nomination in favour of his first wife, and owns a flat as joint tenants with his new spouse. His new will leaves everything equally between his spouse and children.
On review, several problems appear. His remarriage revoked the CPF nomination, so without a new one his CPF savings would go through the Public Trustee under the intestacy rules. The insurance proceeds would still go to his former wife under the revocable nomination, because his will did not identify the policy in the way required. And the flat would pass entirely to his new spouse by survivorship, leaving the will to divide a much smaller estate than he imagined.
With advice, he makes a new CPF nomination in Singapore, replaces the insurance nomination with one in favour of a trust for the children, considers severing the joint tenancy, and updates his will so that the overall result matches his wishes.
Risks and common mistakes with a CPF nomination in Singapore
Assuming the will covers everything
The will controls only the assets in your estate. CPF savings, nominated insurance and jointly held property can bypass it entirely. Executors often discover, too late, that the estate they are administering is a fraction of the deceased's wealth. Review your assets as a whole whenever you make or update a will.
Forgetting that marriage revokes a CPF nomination
Because marriage revokes a CPF nomination in Singapore, a person who marries without making a new one may leave their CPF savings to be distributed under the intestacy rules, with the delay and Public Trustee fee that involves. Make a new nomination after marrying, even if you intend the same people to benefit.
Making a trust nomination without understanding it
A trust nomination gives the policy's benefits to your spouse and children irrevocably. You will still pay premiums but will need consent for changes, loans, withdrawals or surrender. That can be valuable protection, but it can also cause difficulty after a divorce or if your finances change. Take advice before signing.
Naming minors or vulnerable people directly
Paying a large sum directly to a teenager, or to an adult who lacks capacity, can create practical and legal problems. If a nominee lacks capacity, a donee or deputy may be needed to receive the money; our guide to the deputyship application process explains how that works. A trust is often a better recipient.
Leaving nominations unrecorded
Families sometimes do not know which insurers hold policies or whether nominations were made. Keep an up-to-date list with your will, tell your executor where it is, and review it every few years or after major life events.
Cross-border families
Families with members abroad face extra steps when a CPF nomination in Singapore is paid out. CPF Board's automatic disbursement applies to nominees who meet criteria including Singapore citizenship or permanent residence, a local address and a registered bank account; other nominees must apply to withdraw. Overseas nominees should expect additional documents and time.
Insurance policies issued outside Singapore follow their own law, and foreign property may be subject to forced-heirship or other succession rules. Muslim families should also consider religious guidance; insurer materials note that Muslim policyholders may make either type of nomination and refer to the relevant MUIS advisory.
Where an estate includes assets in Singapore and abroad, our probate and estate administration team coordinates the Singapore steps with advisers elsewhere.
What to do next
- Log in and check your CPF nomination in Singapore, especially if you have married since you last made it.
- Ask each insurer for confirmation of the nomination on every policy.
- Check how each property is held: joint tenancy or tenancy in common.
- Decide whether any beneficiary needs a trust rather than a direct payment.
- Update your will so it works with, not against, your nominations.
- Consider an LPA as well; see our guide to making a Lasting Power of Attorney.
To review your nominations and will together, contact TRW & Co.
Frequently asked questions
01Can I leave my CPF savings to someone in my will?
No. CPF savings in your Ordinary, Special, MediSave and Retirement Accounts do not form part of your estate and are not covered by a will. The only way to decide who receives them is a CPF nomination. Without one, the savings are transferred to the Public Trustee and distributed under the intestacy laws, which may not match your wishes and involves delay and a fee.
02Who can I nominate for my CPF savings?
You can nominate any person or organisation, and there is no limit on the number of nominees. You decide how much each nominee receives. You must be at least 16 and of sound mind to make a nomination, and you can make or change it online. Review it after major life events, because marriage revokes an existing CPF nomination and a nominee may have died or your circumstances may have changed.
03Does my CPF nomination cover my HDB flat or condominium?
No. Property bought with CPF savings is not covered by a CPF nomination. CPF Board waives the refund of CPF used for the property, and the property is then dealt with under ordinary rules. A share held as joint tenants passes to the surviving owner by survivorship. A share held as tenants in common, or a solely owned property, passes under your will or, if there is no will, under the intestacy rules.
04What is the difference between a trust nomination and a revocable nomination?
A trust nomination creates a statutory trust of the policy benefits for your spouse and/or children. It is effectively irrevocable without consent, the beneficiaries own both living and death benefits, and the proceeds are generally protected from creditors. A revocable nomination can name anyone, covers death benefits only, and can be changed by you at any time. The right choice depends on whether you value protection or flexibility.
05Will my new will cancel my old insurance nomination?
A will does not override a trust nomination; that must be revoked with the required consents. A later will can revoke a revocable nomination, but only if it deals with all the death benefits under the policy and sets out specific particulars such as the insurer, policy number and identifying details of each beneficiary, and the insurer must be notified. A general gift of insurance in a will is unlikely to be enough.
06How quickly do CPF nominees receive the money?
CPF Board says it will contact nominees within ten working days after it is informed of the member's death. Nominees who are Singapore Citizens or PRs aged 18 or above, with a local residential address and a bank account registered with CPF Board, may receive the savings automatically without applying, subject to other eligibility requirements. Other nominees receive instructions on how to apply for withdrawal.
Sources and official materials
- Distribution of CPF savings upon one's passing (CPF Board) — Nominations, Public Trustee, what is distributed, property and CPFIS
- CPF nominations: what happens to your CPF when you pass away (MoneySense) — CPF outside the will, eligibility, nominees and revocation on marriage
- Insurance Act 1966 — Statutory framework for trust and revocable insurance nominations
- Intestate Succession Act 1967 — Distribution rules where there is no will or nomination
- Making a nomination (Prudential Singapore) — Insurer explanation of trust and revocable nominations
- Nomination of beneficiary FAQs (AIG Singapore) — Eligible policies, effect of a will and revocation
General information only, current as at 20 October 2026. It is not legal advice and does not create a lawyer–client relationship. Singapore law and regulatory practice change; check current official sources and take advice on the facts of your matter.
