What is the Medisave top-up limit — does it stop at the Basic Healthcare Sum?

Medisave Top-Up Limit and the Basic Healthcare Sum (BHS)

The Medisave account operates with a ceiling known as the Basic Healthcare Sum (BHS), which dictates the estimated savings needed for basic healthcare expenses in old age. Contributions are directed to Medisave up to this limit.

Contribution Flow and BHS Limit:

• Contribution Allocation: For an employee aged 35 and below earning a S$5,000 salary, 8% of gross salary goes to Medisave. For those aged 35-45, 9% goes to Medisave.
• BHS Ceiling: Contributions flow into Medisave until the BHS is reached. The BHS for 2025 is S$75,500 (up from S$71,500 in 2024). For 2026, the BHS is projected to be S$79,000.
• Overflow Mechanism: Once the BHS is hit, any subsequent Medisave contributions (and interest earned on the Medisave account) will overflow first to the Special Account (SA) until the Full Retirement Sum (FRS) is met, and then to the Ordinary Account (OA).

Voluntary Top-Ups and Limits:

While contributions stop flowing into Medisave once the BHS is reached, there is no explicit limit on voluntary cash top-ups you can make to your Medisave account, provided you are below the overall CPF annual contribution ceiling (which is salary-based, not a fixed Medisave amount). However, any voluntary cash top-up made to Medisave (up to the prevailing BHS) qualifies for a tax deduction under the Retirement Sum Topping-Up Scheme (RSTU), subject to the overall total tax relief cap of S$80,000 (IRAS). The key function of the BHS is to govern the automatic flow of contributions, not to strictly cap the balance you can hold through voluntary means or interest accrual.

Usage Post-BHS:

Even if your Medisave balance exceeds the BHS, the funds remain usable for approved healthcare expenses, such as MediShield Life premiums (estimated at S$28.9k between ages 65-85), Integrated Shield Plan premiums, approved treatments, and CareShield Life premiums (CPF Board).