THE INTRODUCTION OF EPF MALAYSIA

By: Abang McD

The EPF is a social security institution formed according to the Laws of Malaysia, Employees Provident Fund Act 1991 (Act 452) which provides retirement benefits for members through management of their savings in an efficient and reliable manner. The EPF also provides a convenient framework for employers to meet their statutory and moral obligations to their employees.

Beside that, EPF members are include Private and Non-Pensionable Public Sector employees. The EPF, as at September 2017, has a total of 13.72 million members. The total number of active and contributing members is 7.05 million. The total number of active employers is 493,229.

EPF accounts also have mandatory contributions, a contribution constitutes the amount of money credited to members' individual accounts in the EPF. The amount is calculated based on the monthly wages of an employee. Current contribution rate is in accordance with wage/salary received. For employees who receive wages/salary of RM5,000 and below, the portion of employee's contribution is 11% of their monthly salary while the employer contributes 13%. For employees who receive wages/salary exceeding RM5,000 the employee's contribution of 11% remains, while the employer's contribution is 12%.

Other than that, Investment Allocation of EPF are invested in a number of approved financial instruments to generate income. They include Malaysian Government Securities, Money Market Instruments, Loans & Bonds, Equity and Property.

The dividends of EPF are divided into two types of savings accounts, that are the Dividend for Simpanan Konvensional and the Dividend for Simpanan Shariah.

a. Dividend for Simpanan Konvensional

The EPF ensures that your savings are secure and receive reasonable dividends. Dividend rates announced for Simpanan Konvensional are based on actual performance of conventional investments (non-Shariah compliant and Shariah-compliant investments). In fact, it guarantees a minimum of 2.5 Per Cent Dividend annually. To ensure dividend payments to members, the EPF invests your contribution in approved financial instruments for optimum returns.

b. Dividend for Simpanan Shariah

Simpanan Shariah is an initiative by the EPF that was introduced on 8 August 2016 to provide EPF members with the option to have their account managed and invested according to Shariah principles. Dividend rates for Simpanan Shariah are based on actual performance of Shariah-compliant investments with no guarantee of minimum dividend rate. Simpanan Shariah is managed and invested based on Akad Wakalah, and the EPF board has been appointed and entrusted to act on behalf of members to oversee the management and investment of their EPF savings in accordance with Shariah principles.