EPF’s 2026 Retirement Savings Tiers: How to Use the Goal Calculator

What the three RIA tiers are for

EPF introduced the RIA framework from 1 January 2026 to give members clearer retirement-savings reference points. The tiers are intended to help you discuss adequacy at age 60 with more than a vague feeling that you should save “more”.

These amounts are not three investment products. They do not mean that everyone must contribute the same amount, and they do not capture every household's housing, medical, family or location needs. A retiree with a paid-off home and a retiree paying rent can face very different monthly budgets.

Start the calculator with a spending picture

Before opening the calculator, write down a realistic retirement budget. Separate current expenses into those that may end, those that may shrink and those that may continue.

Include:

• food, utilities and transport;
• housing costs, quit rent, assessment and maintenance if relevant;
• medical insurance, treatment and medication;
• support for parents, children or other family members;
• travel, hobbies and irregular annual expenses;
• debt payments that may still exist after your planned retirement age.

Then ask whether the budget is for one person or the whole household. A target based on a single person's spending can be too low when family support is part of your life.

Enter the numbers you can explain

Use your current EPF balance, regular employee and employer contributions, voluntary contributions if any, planned retirement age and the monthly income or savings target you want to test. If your pay varies, use a cautious average rather than the best month.

Keep a note of the assumptions. A result that says you are on track is meaningful only if the contribution and spending assumptions are realistic. If the result shows a gap, it is information for a decision, not a reason to panic.

Turn a gap into a smaller decision

Suppose the calculator shows that your projected savings may not support the spending level you entered. Break the gap into choices:

1. increase a regular contribution by an amount you can repeat;
2. make a voluntary contribution when income allows;
3. delay retirement by a period you are comfortable with;
4. reduce the retirement spending target after checking what it removes;
5. build other suitable assets or income sources with a clear risk plan.

Do not choose a target contribution by sacrificing emergency cash or taking expensive short-term debt. A retirement plan that causes a current cash-flow crisis is not stable.

Review the plan when your life changes

Run the numbers again after a job change, marriage, home purchase, major medical event, new child, debt settlement or change in retirement age. You do not need to wait for an annual announcement. A short review can show whether the gap came from lower contributions, a higher spending assumption or a changed timeline.

The calculator also gives you a way to discuss retirement with a spouse or family member. Talk about where you expect to live, who will pay medical costs and whether family support is part of the plan. These details often matter more than a single savings number.

Treat the output as a planning conversation

EPF's guideposts can make retirement adequacy easier to see, but no calculator can know your future perfectly. Investment returns are not fixed, expenses can rise, and a long retirement may include care needs that are hard to forecast.

Use the three tiers as signposts, the calculator as a scenario tool and your cash flow as the reality check. The goal is a plan you can review and keep following, not a number that makes you feel finished.