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No. S 191

Singapore Armed Forces Act

Chapter 295

Singapore Armed Forces (SAVER Plan) (Amendment) Regulations 2000

In exercise of the powers conferred by section 205A of the Singapore Armed Forces Act, the Armed Forces Council hereby makes the following Regulations:

Citation and commencement

1.—(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Singapore Armed Forces (SAVER Plan) (Amendment) Regulations 2000 and, except for regulations 2(c), (d) and (f), 4, 8, 9(b), 11(a), 12, 14, 23, 25, 26, 27, 29 and 30, come into operation on 31st March 2000.

(2) Regulations 2(c), (d) and (f), 4, 8, 9(b), 11(a), 12, 14, 23, 25, 26, 29 and 30 of these Regulations shall be deemed to have come into operation on 1st April 1998.

(3) Regulation 27 of these Regulations shall be deemed to have come into operation on 1st July 1998.

Amendment of regulation 2

2. Regulation 2 of the Singapore Armed Forces (SAVER Plan) Regulations (Rg 19) (referred to in these Regulations as the principal Regulations) is amended —

(a)

by deleting the words “(SAVER Fund)” in the definition of “Board” and substituting the words “(SAVER-Premium Fund)”;

(b)

by deleting the words “SAVER Fund” and “(SAVER Fund)” in the definition of “CPF Top-Up Account” and substituting the words “SAVER-Premium Fund” and “(SAVER-Premium Fund)”, respectively;

(c)

by deleting the definition of “member” and substituting the following definition:

“	“member”, in relation to the SAVER Plan, means —
(a)	any person who enlists for regular service as an officer or an officer cadet in the Singapore Armed Forces on or after 1st January 1998, other than a non-uniformed serviceman;
(b)	any soldier who is appointed as an officer in the Singapore Armed Forces on or after 1st January 1998; and
(c)	any member of the Singapore Armed Forces who opts to convert to the SAVER Plan pursuant to Part VII;”;

(d)

by inserting, immediately after the definition of “normal retirement age”, the following definition:

“	“officer cadet training” means such training as is required to be completed before appointment as an officer in the Singapore Armed Forces;”;

(e)

by deleting the words “SAVER Fund” and “(SAVER Fund)” in the definition of “Retirement Account” and substituting the words “SAVER-Premium Fund” and “(SAVER-Premium Fund)”, respectively;

(f)

by deleting the definition of “SAVER Fund” and substituting the following definition:

“

“SAVER end date”, in relation to a member of the SAVER Plan, means the date the member attains the following age:

(a)

in the case of a member who enlisted for regular service (whether as a soldier or an officer) in the Singapore Armed Forces before 1st January 1998 — 45 years of age;

(b)

in the case of a member who enlists for regular service as an officer or an officer cadet in the Singapore Armed Forces on or after 1st January 1998 —

(i)	42 years of age if he is of the rank of Lieutenant Colonel or below;
(ii)	44 years of age if he is of the rank of Colonel or above;
(iii)	44 years of age if he is a pilot by vocation, regardless of his rank; or
(iv)	45 years of age if he falls within such class of officers determined by the Armed Forces Council;”;

(g)

by inserting, immediately after the definition of “SAVER Plan”, the following definition:

“	“SAVER-Premium Fund” means the Savings and Employee Retirement and Premium Fund established under section 205B of the Act;”;

(h)

by deleting the words “SAVER FUND” and “(SAVER Fund)” in the definition of “Savings Account” and substituting the words “SAVER-Premium Fund” and “(SAVER-Premium Fund)”, respectively; and

(i)

by inserting, immediately after the definition of “Tribunal”, the following definition:

“	“vested sum”, in relation to a member and his Savings Account or Retirement Account, means the sum in his Savings Account or Retirement Account, as the case may be, that is vested in the member under regulation 17(1);”.

Amendment of regulation 7

3. Regulation 7(1) of the principal Regulations is amended by inserting, immediately after the word “made” in the 2nd line, the words “from his Savings Account or Retirement Account”.

Amendment of regulation 8

4. Regulation 8(1) of the principal Regulations is amended by inserting, immediately after sub-paragraph (a), the following sub-paragraph:

“	(aa) any period (on or after 1st January 1998) of officer cadet training immediately preceding the member’s appointment as an officer on full-pay in the Singapore Armed Forces;”.

Amendment of regulation 10

5. Regulation 10 of the principal Regulations is amended by deleting paragraphs (b) and (c) and substituting the following paragraph:

(b) Major and below 50 years.”.

Amendment of regulation 11

6. Regulation 11 of the principal Regulations is amended by deleting paragraphs (b) and (c) and substituting the following paragraph:

(b) Major and below 55 years.”.

Amendment of regulation 12

7. Regulation 12 of the principal Regulations is amended —

(a)

by inserting, immediately after paragraph (a), the following paragraph:

“	(aa) at any time on or after the member’s SAVER end date;”; and

(b)

by deleting paragraph (g) and substituting the following paragraph:

“	(g) if he requests the permission of the Armed Forces Council to retire on completing 11 years of reckonable service and there is a vested sum in his Retirement Account; or”.

New regulation 14A

8. The principal Regulations are amended by inserting, immediately after regulation 14, the following regulation:

“Advance withdrawals from Savings Accounts

14A.—(1) Notwithstanding regulation 14, the Armed Forces Council may, on the application of any member, authorise the member to withdraw in advance all or any part of the vested sum in his Savings Account while he is still in the regular service of the Singapore Armed Forces.

(2) The Armed Forces Council may, in authorising a member to make such withdrawals in advance under paragraph (1), impose such conditions as it thinks fit, including the interest payable on recovery or refund under paragraph (3) or (4) of the sum accordingly withdrawn.

(3) Without prejudice to paragraph (2), it shall be a condition of every authorisation under paragraph (1) for a member to withdraw in advance all or any part of the vested sum in his Savings Account that the Armed Forces Council can recover all or part of the vested sum so withdrawn (together with interest) if it is shown that the authorisation was obtained by wilful suppression of material facts or in ignorance of facts which, had they been known before the member retired or resigned or was dismissed or before the granting of such authorisation, would have justified —

(a)	his discharge on any of the grounds specified in regulation 17 or 18 of the Enlistment Regulations (Cap.93, Rg 1); or
(b)	his conviction of any offence by a subordinate military court or the Military Court of Appeal on appeal or by any civil court.

(4) Where any member is authorised under paragraph (1) to withdraw in advance all or any part of the vested sum in his Savings Account, and he is subsequently to be —

(a)	discharged on any of the grounds specified in regulation 17 or 18 of the Enlistment Regulations;
(b)	discharged with ignominy; or
(c)	dismissed as a result of the sentence of a subordinate military court or Military Court of Appeal or a sentence substituted by the Armed Forces Council,

the member may be required by the Armed Forces Council to first refund all or part of the vested sum so withdrawn together with interest.

(5) Any sum that is recoverable under paragraph (3) or is to be refunded under paragraph (4), together with such interest thereon, shall be recoverable as a debt due to the Government and may be off-set against any other sum payable by the Government to that member under these Regulations.”.

Amendment of regulation 15

9. Regulation 15 of the principal Regulations is amended —

(a)

by deleting the word “Where” in paragraph (1) and substituting the words “Subject to these Regulations, where”; and

(b)

by deleting paragraph (2) and substituting the following paragraph:

“(2) Where a member’s accounts are closed under paragraph (1) during a financial year before a dividend (if any) for that financial year is declared, the Board may, notwithstanding paragraph (1), cause to continue to be credited to the member’s accounts interest at such rate as it determines until the moneys in those accounts are paid, and that interest shall be in lieu of any dividend that may be declared payable for that financial year under regulation 13(4).”.

New regulation 15A

10. The principal Regulations are amended by inserting, immediately after regulation 15, the following regulation:

“Application to officer cadets who are former soldiers

15A—(1) Where a soldier who is a member of the Premium Plan becomes an officer cadet after 31st March 2000, the moneys in his accounts maintained under regulation 12(1) of the Singapore Armed Forces (Premium Plan) Regulations 2000 (G.N. No. S 188/2000) shall be transferred as follows to his accounts under the SAVER Plan referred to in regulation 13(1):

(a)	all his moneys in the CPF Top-Up Account under the Premium Plan shall be transferred to his CPF Top-Up Account under the SAVER Plan; and
(b)	all his moneys in the CARE Account under the Premium Plan shall be transferred to his Retirement Account under the SAVER Plan.

(2) Where a soldier who is a member of the Premium Plan becomes an officer cadet after 31st March 2000 without completing 10 years of reckonable service as a soldier there shall also be immediately credited to his Savings Account under the SAVER Plan an amount equal to such proportion of his START benefit referred to in regulation 13 of the Singapore Armed Forces (Premium Plan) Regulations 2000 as the proportion of his reckonable service bears to 10 complete such years, less such part of the START benefit that has been advanced to him under regulation 13 of those Regulations.

(3) Where a member, being a former soldier and member of the Premium Plan, fails his officer cadet training and reverts to being a soldier —

(a)	all his accounts under the SAVER Plan referred to in regulation 13(1) shall be closed with effect from the date of such failure;
(b)	all contributions under these Regulations shall also cease to be paid into those accounts with effect from that date;
(c)	all moneys in his Savings Account (including the amount credited under paragraph (2)) shall be forfeited and transferred to the Forfeiture Account to the SAVER-Premium Fund; and
(d)	all moneys in his other accounts under the SAVER Plan shall be transferred to his re-opened accounts under the Premium Plan in accordance with regulation 16(3) of the Singapore Armed Forces (Premium Plan) Regulations 2000 (G.N. No. S188/2000).”.

Amendment of regulation 17

11. Regulation 17 of the principal Regulations is amended —

(a)

by deleting sub-paragraph (b) of paragraph (2) and substituting the following sub-paragraph:

“	(b) on the ground specified in regulation 12(c), (e), (g) or (h), the sum vested in the member under paragraph (1) may be increased to the extent and paid in such manner as determined by the Armed Forces Council.”;

(b)

by deleting the words “may, on the application by the person eligible under regulation 18, authorise the transfer of” in the 2nd and 3rd lines of paragraph (6) and substituting the words “shall transfer”; and

(c)

by deleting the words “Income Account” in paragraph (8) and substituting the words “Forfeiture Account”.

New regulation 17A

12. The principal Regulations are amended by inserting, immediately after regulation 17, the following regulation:

“Special arrangements for dual career officers

17A—(1) Notwithstanding any provision in these Regulations to the contrary, where a member retires from the Singapore Armed Forces in order to be appointed as a public officer in a pensionable office in the Singapore Civil Service (referred to in these Regulations as a former SAVER member), and his period of service in the Singapore Armed Forces is not counted as pensionable service for the purposes of the Pensions Act (Cap.225) —

(a)

all contributions to his CPF Top-Up Account, Savings Account and Retirement Account shall cease with effect from the date of his retirement;

(b)

his Savings Account and Retirement Account shall not close but remain open until the relevant date, and interest on the moneys in those accounts at such rate as the Armed Forces Council may determine shall continue to be credited into his accounts in lieu of any dividend declared under regulation 13(4) until the moneys are paid to him in accordance with these Regulations;

(c)

if he retires from the Singapore Armed Forces before the vested sums in his Savings Account and Retirement Account have fully vested in him, the former SAVER member may, at his option, be awarded —

(i)	on his retirement, such sums in his Savings Account and Retirement Account that have vested under regulation 17, and the balance of moneys in those Accounts (together with interest thereon) subsequently at the relevant date if he is still a public officer in the Singapore Civil Service; or
(ii)	all moneys in his Savings Account and Retirement Account (together with interest thereon) at the relevant date if he is still a public officer in the Singapore Civil Service; and

(d)

if he retires from the Singapore Armed Forces before his SAVER end date but after the vested sums in his Savings Account and Retirement Account have fully vested in him, all the vested sums may be awarded to the former SAVER member.

(2) If the former SAVER member referred to in paragraph (1)(c) resigns or is dismissed from the Singapore Civil Service before the relevant date —

(a)	the sum that may be subsequently awarded to him under paragraph (1)(c)(i) shall be forfeited forthwith and transferred to the Forfeiture Account of the SAVER-Premium Fund; or
(b)	an amount equal to the vested sums in his Savings Account and Retirement Account at the date of his retirement from the Singapore Armed Forces may be awarded to the former SAVER member on his resignation or dismissal, as the case may be, and the balance in his Savings Account and Retirement Account shall be forfeited and transferred to the Forfeiture Account of the SAVER-Premium Fund.

(3) Notwithstanding any provision in these Regulations to the contrary, where a former SAVER member’s period of service in the Singapore Armed Forces is to be counted as pensionable service for the purposes of the Pensions Act (Cap.225), then with effect from the date of his retirement from the Singapore Armed Forces —

(a)

his Savings Account and Retirement Account shall close and all moneys in these accounts shall be forfeited and transferred to the Forfeiture Account of the SAVER-Premium Fund; and

(b)

his CPF Top-Up Account shall close and all moneys in the account shall be forfeited and transferred to the Forfeiture Account of the SAVER-Premium Fund except an amount equal to the difference between —

(i)	the amount of contributions paid by the Government under the Central Provident Fund Act (Cap.36) in respect of the former SAVER member on his gross salary during his period of reckonable service in the Singapore Armed Forces; and
(ii)	the amount of contributions that would have been payable by the Government under the Central Provident Fund Act in respect of the former SAVER member on ordinary wages equal to the gross salary if he was a public officer in a pensionable office in the Singapore Civil Service during that same period,

which shall be transferred to the former SAVER member’s CPF Account with the CPF Board.

(4) The Board may, on the application of a former SAVER member made at anytime on or after his SAVER end date or (as the case may be) on or after his resignation or dismissal from the Singapore Civil Service, authorise the payment to the former SAVER member of the relevant sum awarded under paragraph (1) or (2), as the case may be.

(5) In this regulation, “relevant date”, in relation to a former SAVER member, means —

(a)	his SAVER end date; or
(b)	the date the whole of the vested sum in his Retirement Account vests in him,

whichever is the earlier.”.

Amendment of regulation 18

13. Regulation 18 of the principal Regulations is amended —

(a)	by deleting the words “paragraph (1)” and substituting the words “paragraph (2)”; and
(b)	by inserting, immediately after the word “member” wherever it appears in paragraph (2), the words “or former SAVER member”.

Amendment of regulation 19

14. Regulation 19(1) of the principal Regulations is amended by inserting, immediately after the word “regulation” in the 3rd line, the words “14A, 17A or”.

Amendment of regulation 20

15. Regulation 20 of the principal Regulations is amended —

(a)	by deleting the word “Capital” in the 5th line of paragraph (1) and in the 1st line of paragraph (2);
(b)	by inserting, immediately after the word “member” in the 1st line of paragraph (1), the words “or former SAVER member”;
(c)	by deleting the words “regulation 18” in the 3rd line of paragraph (1) and substituting the words “regulation 17A or 18”; and
(d)	by inserting, immediately after the word “member’s” in the penultimate line of paragraph (2), the words “or former SAVER member’s”.

Amendment of regulation 21

16. Regulation 21 of the principal Regulations is amended by inserting, immediately after the words “minimum period of” in the 2nd line, the words “10 years reckonable”.

New regulation 21A

17. The principal Regulations are amended by inserting, immediately after regulation 21, the following regulation:

“SAVER housing loans

21A.—(1) Subject to this regulation, the Armed Forces Council may, on the application of any member, grant a loan out of moneys in the SAVER-Premium Fund to the member —

(a)	to pay, whether partially or in full, for the purchase of immovable residential property which he occupies or intends to occupy;
(b)	to repay any other loan taken to finance or re-finance the purchase of immovable residential property which he occupies or intends to occupy; or
(c)	to pay any costs, fees or other incidental expenses incurred for the purchase of such immovable residential property or for obtaining any loan to finance or re-finance such purchase.

(2) Any loan granted to a member under paragraph (1) —

(a)	shall not exceed the total vested sums with which the member may be awarded under regulation 17 if he retires at his SAVER end date; and
(b)	shall be granted on such terms and conditions as the Armed Forces Council considers fit.

(3) Notwithstanding anything in these Regulations, if a member fails to pay any sum due under any loan to him under this regulation when due, the Armed Forces Council shall be entitled to recover the moneys lent to the member (together with any interest thereon) from any moneys standing to the member’s credit in his Savings Account or Retirement Account or both on the closure of the Accounts.”.

Amendment of regulation 22

18. Regulation 22 of the principal Regulations is amended —

(a)

by deleting the word “Where” in the 1st line of paragraph (1) and substituting the words “Subject to paragraph (1A), where”;

(b)

by inserting, immediately after paragraph (1), the following paragraph:

“(1A) Where a member dies while he is in the regular service of the Singapore Armed Forces, and he was in the pensionable service immediately before his conversion to the SAVER Plan under Part VII, there shall be paid to such of his dependants as the Armed Forces Council thinks fit or, if there are no dependants, to his personal representatives, the following sums:

(a)

in the case of conversion to the SAVER Plan on 1st April 1998, the greatest of the following:

(i)	all moneys standing to the credit of the member in his Savings Account, Retirement Account and CPF Top-Up Account at the date of his death;
(ii)	an amount equal to the benefits that would have been payable to the member under the Singapore Armed Forces (Pensions) Regulations (Rg 9) if he had remained in the pensionable service at the time of his death; or
(iii)	a sum equal to the member’s annual compensation salary; or

(b)

in the case of conversion to the SAVER Plan at any time after 1st April 1998, the greater of the following:

(i)	all moneys standing to the credit of the member in his Savings Account, Retirement Account and CPF Top-Up Account at the date of his death; or
(ii)	a sum equal to the member’s annual compensation salary.”; and

(c)

by inserting, immediately after the words “paragraph (1)” in the 6th line of paragraph (2), the words “or (1A)”.

Amendment of regulation 23

19. Regulation 23 of the principal Regulations is amended —

(a)	by deleting the words “regulation 22(1)” in paragraph (1)(b)(ii) and substituting the words “regulation 22(1) or (1A)”; and
(b)	by deleting the words “equal to” in the penultimate line of paragraph (2) and substituting the words “of at least”.

Amendment of regulation 25

20. Regulation 25 of the principal Regulations is amended —

(a)

by deleting the words “, where a member” in the 1st line of paragraph (1) and substituting the words “and paragraph (1A), where a member in the regular service of the Singapore Armed Forces”; and

(b)

by inserting, immediately after paragraph (1), the following paragraph:

“(1A) Subject to regulation 40, where a member in the regular service of the Singapore Armed Forces, being a member who was in the pensionable service immediately before his conversion to the SAVER Plan under Part VII, is disabled from an injury received in and which is attributable to service, not being a minor injury specified in the Fourth Schedule, and the member has, as a result of his disablement, retired on any of the grounds referred to in regulation 12, the Armed Forces Council may, notwithstanding regulation 17, pay to the member an award comprising the following sums:

(a)

in the case of conversion to the SAVER Plan on 1st April 1998, the total comprising firstly, an amount equal to the lump sum calculated for permanent total incapacity of a workman under the Third Schedule of the Workmen’s Compensation Act (Cap.354) as if the member was a workman under that Act, and secondly, the greater of the following amounts:

(i)	all moneys standing to the credit of the member in his Savings Account, Retirement Account and CPF Top-Up Account at the date of his retirement; or
(ii)	a sum equal to the benefits that would have been payable to the member in the same circumstances had he remained in the pensionable service; or

(b)

in the case of conversion to the SAVER Plan at any time after 1st April 1998, the total of the following:

(i)	a sum equal to the lump sum calculated for permanent total incapacity of a workman under the Third Schedule of the Workmen’s Compensation Act as if the member was a workman under that Act; and
(ii)	all moneys standing to the credit of the member in his Savings Account, Retirement Account and CPF Top-Up Account at the date of his retirement.”.

Amendment of regulation 28

21. Regulation 28 of the principal Regulations is amended by deleting the words “the maximum compensation payable under regulation 25(1)(a)” in the 5th and 6th lines and substituting the words “the lump sum calculated for permanent total incapacity of a workman under the Third Schedule to the Workmen’s Compensation Act (Cap.354) as if the member was a workman under that Act”.

Amendment of regulation 34

22. Regulation 34 of the principal Regulations is amended by deleting the words “equal to” in the penultimate line and substituting the words “of at least”.

Amendment of regulation 36

23. Regulation 36 of the principal Regulations is amended by renumbering the regulation as paragraph (1) of that regulation and by inserting immediately thereafter the following paragraph:

“(2) Where a member suffers such partial disability as a result of injuries which, in the opinion of the Armed Forces Council, were received by the member under exceptional circumstances or while the member was rendering service beyond the call of duty, the member may be granted an additional award of at least 30% of the award granted to him under paragraph (1).”.

New regulation 36A

24. The principal Regulations are amended by inserting, immediately after regulation 36, the following regulation:

“Partial disability caused by aggravation of existing condition

36A. Notwithstanding regulation 36, where a member suffers such partial disability which is determined by the Armed Forces Council to be partial disability caused by aggravation by service of an adverse medical condition that existed in him before or had arisen during service, and such partial disability occurs within 7 years of the aggravation of such medical condition, the member shall be eligible to an award equal to 50% of the award he would have qualified under regulation 36(1) had his partial disability occurred as a result of an injury received in and which is attributable to service.”.

Amendment of regulation 42

25. Regulation 42(1) of the principal Regulations is amended by deleting the words “or Option B,” and substituting the words “, Option B, Option C or Option D, as the case may be,”.

Amendment of regulation 43

26. Regulation 43 of the principal Regulations is amended by inserting, immediately after paragraph (2), the following paragraphs:

“(3) Where a serviceman exercises an option to convert according to Option C, the Board shall cause to be credited to his Retirement Account an amount determined in accordance with the formula

0.09 (PE x CPF plus service)

Where

PE is the serviceman’s last drawn pensionable emoluments as of 31st March 1998; and

“CPF plus service” is the total length of service rendered by the serviceman immediately before 1st April 1998.

(4) Where a serviceman exercises an option to convert according to Option D, the Board shall cause to be credited to his Retirement Account an amount determined in accordance with the formula

(1/500 x 175.14 x PE x 240) + [1/600 x 175.14 x PE x (PS - 240)]

Where

PE is the serviceman’s last drawn pensionable emoluments as of 31st March 1998; and

PS is the total length of pensionable service rendered by the serviceman immediately before 1st April 1998.”.

New regulation 47

27. The principal Regulations are amended by inserting, immediately after regulation 46, the following regulation:

“Further option to convert

47. Notwithstanding regulation 42(2), the Armed Forces Council may allow a serviceman to which this Part applies who, before 1st July 1998, has opted to remain in the pensionable service a further option to convert to the SAVER Plan on such terms as the Armed Forces Council considers fit.”.

Miscellaneous amendments

28. The principal Regulations are amended by deleting the words “SAVER Fund” wherever they appear in the following provisions and substituting in each case the words “SAVER-Premium Fund”:

Regulations 13(1) (2nd line), (4) (2nd and 3rd lines) and (5) (definition of “net income”), 14(1) (2nd line), 15 (1) (8th line), 17(7) (last line) and (8) (2nd and 3rd lines), 18(1) (5th line) and (2) (3rd line), 19(1) (2nd line) and 20(1) (1st and last lines).

Deletion and substitution of First Schedule

29. The First Schedule to the principal Regulations is deleted and the following Schedule substituted therefor:

“FIRST SCHEDULE

Regulation 13

rates and contributions
for savings account and retirement account

1. The rate of contributions to be credited to a member’s Savings Account and Retirement Account are as follows:

2. Notwithstanding paragraph 1, an additional 2% and 8% contribution shall be credited to the Retirement Accounts of members who are Timescale Combat officers and Superscale Combat officers, respectively.”.

Amendment of Second Schedule

30. The Second Schedule to the principal Regulations is amended by deleting the table in paragraph 1 and substituting the following table:

”

Made this 30th day of March 2000.

[MINDEF 4-4/26-3-5/DLS/HC ; AG/LEG/SL/295/97/2 Vol. 3]

(To be presented to Parliament under section 207 of the Singapore Armed Forces Act).