Jesslyn Phoon Editor’s note: This post has been updated and republished. The ECF/SINDA/CDAC/MBMF donation fund contributions and CPF rates have been updated as of June 2022. These rates are applicable and accurate for the current year until there is further revision.
What are Donation Funds?
All employees working in Singapore and/or for Singapore companies have to contribute a monthly CPF amount to their CPF (Central Provident Fund). This amount is taken out of one’s pay (or salary). What most people may not be aware of is that a certain portion of this contribution also goes into Self-Help Group (SHG) funds, i.e. Donation Funds.
These come in the form of small donations, which go into the ECF, SINDA, CDAC, or MBMF funds, depending on which community you belong to. The funds were originally set up to provide financial assistance to the low-income households in the Eurasian, Indian, Chinese, and Muslim communities respectively.
If you have your payslip with you, take a quick glance at it. You’ll notice that you probably have been making these contributions; they are deducted from your wages together with your share of CPF contribution.
The rates are usually fixed and stay the same for years. However, note that there were updates in 2015, 2016 and most recently 2021. See the tables below for the respective ECF/SINDA/CDAC/MBMF contribution rates applicable for the years thereafter.
Note that since June 2022, the contribution rates for donation funds have remain unchanged.
Donation Fund Contribution Rates
CDAC Contribution Rates (effective since 1 Jan 2015)
| Total amount of an employee’s wages for the calendar month | Contributions payable |
| ≤ $2,000 | $0.50 |
| > $2,000 to $3,500 | $1.00 |
| > $3,500 to $5,000 | $1.50 |
| > $5,000 to $7,500 | $2.00 |
| > $7,500 | $3.00 |
ECF Contribution Rates (effective since 1 Jan 2015)
| Total amount of an employee’s wages for the calendar month | Contributions payable |
| ≤ $1,000 | $2.00 |
| >$1,000 to $1,500 | $4.00 |
| >$1,500 to $2,500 | $6.00 |
| > $2,500 to $4,000 | $9.00 |
| > $4,000 to $7,000 | $12.00 |
| > $7,000 to $10,000 | $16.00 |
| > $10,000 | $20.00 |
SINDA Contribution Rates (effective since 1 Jan 2015)
| Total amount of an employee’s wages for the calendar month | Contributions payable |
| ≤ $1,000 | $1.00 |
| >$1,000 to $1,500 | $3.00 |
| >$1,500 to $2,500 | $5.00 |
| > $2,500 to $4,500 | $7.00 |
| > $4,500 to $7,500 | $9.00 |
| > $7,500 to $10,000 | $12.00 |
| > $10,000 to $15,000 | $18.00 |
| > $15,000 | $30.00 |
MBMF Contribution Rates (effective since 1 June 2016)
| Total amount of an employee’s wages for the calendar month | Contributions payable |
| ≤ $1,000 | $3.00 |
| >$1,000 to $2,000 | $4.50 |
| >$2,000 to $3,000 | $6.50 |
| > $3,000 to $4,000 | $15.00 |
| > $4,000 to $6,000 | $19.50 |
| > $6,000 to $8,000 | $22.00 |
| > $8,000 to $10,000 | $24.00 |
| > $10,000 | $26.00 |
A faster way to calculate your Donation Fund contributions
Instead of manually calculating your CPF contributions every month, why not use Talenox’s Free Talenox’s FREE CPF Calculator to calculate both your CPF contribution & statutory donations?
For more information on self-help groups and donation funds in Singapore, feel free to check out the official document from the CPF website: Self-Help Groups and Donation Funds
Found this article useful? You may also be interested in:
- Employer’s Guide to CPF Contribution and Submission in Singapore
- IR8A Simplified for Employers
- Slideshare How-To: Guide to CPF File Upload for Singapore Payroll
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Nice article.
Good article, thanks for sharing.