As of July 31, 2.85 million EPF active members — 38.3% of all 7.44 million active members — have managed to hit the basic savings level set by the Employees Provident Fund (EPF).
This is an increase from 30.4% in December 2022, according to Finance Minister II Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah Azizan during a parliamentary session this morning.
Breakdown
The minister provided a breakdown of contributors, by ethnic group, aged between 18 and 55 who have met the Basic Savings threshold as of 31 July 2025:
- Bumiputera: 1.38 million
- Chinese: 1.22 million
- Indian: 214,000
- Other ethnicities: 38,000
He shared that the disparity underscores how certain groups, particularly Bumiputera contributors, were disproportionately affected by pandemic-related withdrawals.
Impact of COVID-19 withdrawals
The minister attributed the lower savings levels to the large-scale withdrawals made under the i-Lestari, i-Sinar, i-Citra, and other special withdrawal schemes during the COVID-19 crisis.
These facilities, which affected 8.2 million contributors and amounted to around RM145 billion, provided critical relief during the pandemic but significantly eroded members’ retirement capital.
In response, EPF has revamped its account structure by introducing Account 1, Account 2, and Account 3, with the latter designed for emergency withdrawals, and has no plans for introducing further withdrawal facilities.
Basic, adequate and enhanced savings standard
To put the current data in wider context, EPF’s Retirement Income Adequacy (RIA) Framework, launched in late 2024 by KWSP, proposes a more comprehensive savings structure:
- Basic Savings: RM390,000 (up from RM240,000)
- Adequate Savings: RM650,000 — enabling a modest monthly post-retirement income
- Enhanced Savings: RM1.3 million — for a more comfortable retirement
This tiered framework is being phased in, with the basic threshold rising gradually: RM290,000 by 2026, RM340,000 by 2027, and RM390,000 by 2028.
