Home Protection Scheme (HPS) Singapore 2026: Complete Guide for HDB Buyers

CPF mandatory life insurance for HDB flat owners — how it works, what it covers, and when you might opt out for a private alternative.

The Home Protection Scheme (HPS) is a compulsory mortgage-reducing life insurance plan administered by CPF Board. If you use your CPF Ordinary Account to pay your HDB loan, you must be insured under HPS — unless you have equivalent private coverage. HPS pays off your outstanding HDB loan if you die, become totally permanently disabled, or are diagnosed with a terminal illness, protecting your family from losing their home. Data verified as at October 2026.

Not financial advice. All figures are for educational reference only. Verify current premiums and eligibility at cpf.gov.sg before making decisions.

Table of Contents

What Is the Home Protection Scheme (HPS)?

The Home Protection Scheme is a government-administered mortgage reducing term assurance (MRTA) managed by CPF Board. Unlike a standard level term policy — where the sum assured stays fixed throughout — HPS is specifically designed to match your decreasing outstanding loan balance.

Here is the core mechanism: when you first take out your HDB loan, your HPS sum assured equals your full outstanding loan amount. As you make monthly repayments over the years, both the loan and the HPS coverage decrease together. By the time you have fully paid off your flat, the policy expires. This structure means premiums are lower than a comparable level term policy, because the insurer’s liability shrinks over time.

The scheme is administered entirely through CPF Board and premiums are deducted automatically from your CPF Ordinary Account savings — no cash outlay needed for most HDB owners.

Who Must Have HPS?

HPS is compulsory for all CPF members who use their CPF Ordinary Account (OA) savings to service an HDB housing loan. Both joint flat owners must each hold their own HPS coverage proportionate to their share of the mortgage obligations.

You are exempt from HPS if you meet one of these conditions:

• You have equivalent private mortgage insurance that covers the same outstanding loan amount (same borrower, same property, same loan tenure) — you can apply to CPF Board to be exempted with proof of private coverage.
• You are paying your HDB loan entirely in cash, with no CPF OA used for mortgage payments.
• You have a pre-existing medical condition that makes you ineligible for HPS, and CPF Board has issued you a formal exemption letter (note: from May 2025, more conditions are now insurable with premium loading — see the 2026 changes section below).

Private property owners (condos, landed) using bank loans instead of HDB loans are not subject to compulsory HPS. However, banks typically require or recommend some form of mortgage insurance at loan origination.

What Does HPS Cover?

HPS pays off the remaining outstanding HDB loan if the insured member experiences any of three triggering events:

Source: CPF Board, Home Protection Scheme eligibility and benefits, October 2026.

Important: HPS pays the outstanding loan directly to HDB — the payout does not go to your family as cash. The practical outcome is that the family keeps the flat, mortgage-free. If your family needs additional cash income replacement (living expenses, children’s education, etc.), a separate term life insurance policy is advisable.

How Much Does HPS Cost?

HPS premiums are calculated based on three variables: your age at the time of application, your gender (female applicants pay slightly lower premiums as women have longer average life expectancy in Singapore), and the outstanding loan amount to be insured. Premiums are paid annually from your CPF OA.

As a practical illustration, CPF Board’s indicative figures suggest a 30-year-old couple taking a S$400,000 HDB loan with a 25-year tenure might pay a combined HPS premium of approximately S$272 per year — split between both policyholders based on their share of the mortgage obligations. Actual figures depend on your specific profile.

Source: CPF Board indicative HPS premium rates, October 2026. Premiums are illustrative and vary by individual profile. Use the CPF HPS calculator for your exact quote.

One practical advantage: because premiums come out of your CPF OA automatically, most HDB buyers never notice the deduction. Compared with private mortgage insurance products sold by banks, HPS tends to be the most cost-efficient option for standard HDB loans — particularly at younger ages.

HPS vs Private Mortgage Insurance

Should you stick with HPS or opt out in favour of a private mortgage insurance policy? The answer depends on your specific situation. Here is a side-by-side comparison that covers the most important differences for Singapore HDB buyers in 2026:

Source: CPF Board, MAS CompareFIRST, Life Insurance Association Singapore (LIA), October 2026. Premiums are indicative.

The key insight: HPS handles the home loan, but it does not replace your income. A 40-year-old HDB owner with two school-going children and a stay-at-home spouse needs more than just a mortgage settled — the surviving family needs years of income replacement. This is why financial planners typically recommend HPS as a foundation layer, supplemented by a separate term life insurance policy for income replacement. Refer to our Singapore retirement calculator to estimate your family’s long-term income needs.

How to Check Your HPS Status

Checking your HPS coverage takes under two minutes via the CPF website:

1. Log in to cpf.gov.sg using Singpass.
2. Navigate to My Dashboards → Home → Home Protection Scheme.
3. Your dashboard shows your current sum assured, annual premium deduction, policy expiry date, and the percentage of the loan covered by each policyholder (for joint purchases).

Alternatively, you can review HPS transactions in your CPF Statement — annual premiums appear as deductions from your OA in the month your HPS policy renews.

When to Consider Opting Out of HPS

Opting out of HPS makes sense in specific situations — but only if you replace it with genuinely equivalent or better coverage.

Consider opting out if:

• You have purchased a level term life insurance policy with a sum assured at least equal to your outstanding HDB loan. This gives your family greater flexibility — the payout is cash, not a direct loan settlement, so they can choose how to use it.
• Your employer provides group term life coverage at a level that adequately covers your mortgage. Note that group policies typically end when you leave the job, so verify portability before relying on them.
• You have been advised by a financial planner that a combined HPS + level term strategy provides redundant coverage at a net higher cost than a single comprehensive level term policy.

Do not opt out if:

• Your only life insurance is critical illness cover (CI insurance does not substitute for mortgage protection).
• Your private policy has an exclusion clause that specifically excludes paying out on events that would have triggered HPS (e.g., certain TPD definitions differ between policies).
• You cannot afford the cash premiums for a private alternative — HPS paid from CPF OA is often the most practical solution for younger buyers.

For most first-time HDB buyers, the practical recommendation is to keep HPS as your mortgage protection layer and build additional coverage (income replacement, critical illness) separately. Understanding your CPF investment strategy is key to getting the most out of your OA savings for both housing and retirement.

Key Changes in 2025–2026

Two significant changes to HPS took effect in 2025 that Singapore flat buyers should know:

1. Expanded coverage for pre-existing conditions (from 26 May 2025): Previously, CPF members with certain medical conditions such as mild strokes or specific heart disorders were automatically excluded from HPS. From 26 May 2025, CPF Board expanded eligibility to include some of these members — assessed on a case-by-case basis — with a premium loading applied (i.e., they pay higher premiums to reflect the additional risk). This is a meaningful improvement for members who previously had to seek private mortgage insurance.

2. Ongoing digital servicing: HPS applications, status checks, and exemption applications are now fully digital via Singpass, removing the need for physical submissions at CPF Service Centres for standard cases.

The Life Insurance Association (LIA) of Singapore reported that in Q1 2026 alone, the industry paid out S$555 million in claims under individual life policies — spanning death, total permanent disability, and critical illness benefits — covering 5,507 policies. This underscores how frequently Singaporeans rely on life insurance structures including HPS-equivalent coverage for their families.

For the broader financial picture — including how to invest any CPF savings above your HPS premium obligations — our guide on building passive income in Singapore covers practical strategies for CPF OA surplus, S-REITs, and ETFs.

Frequently Asked Questions

Protect Your Family and Build Wealth Beyond HPS

HPS protects your home. For income, retirement, and wealth, explore these next steps: