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MPFA's response to Reuter's article feature in The Strait Times titled "Departing Hong Kong residents took $378 million from pensions in Q3"
In the report contributed to The Strait Times, Business Times (Singapore), Pension Policy International and Head Topics by Reuters, titled “Departing Hong Kong residents took $378 million from pensions in Q3”, dated 15 December, it has come to our attention that the article mentioned early withdrawal of MPF on the grounds of permanent departure (PD) from Hong Kong. In this connection, we are writing to provide supplementary information.
Regarding the quote “Residents leaving Hong Kong for good withdrew a total of HK$2.177 billion (S$378 million) from their pension accounts in the third quarter of 2022, down 16.4 per cent from a year earlier, government data showed on Thursday”, the MPFA would like to reiterate that PD claimants may not be emigrants and also include people who are returning to their places of origin (e.g. non-local employees who have completed their employment contracts in Hong Kong) or moving to reside in the Mainland.
As an international business hub and financial centre, Hong Kong has a high population mobility all along. The design of the MPF System has taken this into account. We would also like to stress that as a defined contribution retirement savings system, MPF schemes are fully funded. Mandatory contributions for a scheme member are fully and immediately vested once they are paid, and MPF benefits are kept within the individual account of the scheme member. Withdrawal of MPF benefits by an individual scheme member on statutorily permissible grounds would not have any effect on the operation or sustainability of the MPF System.
