Will SRS Withdrawal Age be raised?

In my previous article on Supplementary Retirement Scheme (SRS): A Money Crunching Guide Part II,

Jeff asks: Hi Sarah, in view of the recent PM’s national day rally speech, any idea if the SRS withdrawal age (i.e. 62yo) will be similarly postponed like the CPF withdrawal ?

Let’s take a look at what PM Lee said first. From CNA,
Legislation
a.             Clear signal to employers and the public that we are serious
b.             Some ask – why not just pass a law to raise the retirement age?
i.               Experience shows this will not solve the problem
ii.             Legal retirement age now 62
(1)          But only 2/3 of men are still working up to 62
(2)          1/3 have stopped earlier, despite legal retirement age
(3)          Many women stop working even earlier
iii.           Simply raising retirement age beyond 62 may discourage employers from hiring older workers
c.             Better approach – legislate for re-employment to continue working beyond 62

Based on information given by MOF regarding SRS, http://www.mof.gov.sg/taxation/withdrawalsrs.html

When can I make a withdrawal from my SRS account?
Anytime. However if you make a withdrawal before the statutory retirement age prevailing at the time of your first contribution, 100% of the sum withdrawn will be subject to tax. A 5% penalty for premature withdrawal will also be imposed.

This means to say that currently, there is no change in the SRS withdrawal age, as the current legal retirement age is 62. Hence, we can withdraw our money at the age of 62 without paying a penalty. To avoid any further changes to the retirement age in the future, we should make our first contribution soon, just in case the government decides to make changes.

Sarah Tan - SingaporeProfit.com