EPF Account 2 Withdrawal to Build a House
Your EPF savings can help make your dream home real — if used wisely. They work best to cover the gap between the loan and the build cost, and do the most damage when used to fund the whole house. Here is why.
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- A housing withdrawal comes from Akaun Sejahtera (formerly Account 2) only; Akaun Persaraan is untouched.
- It works best to cover the gap between the loan and the build cost, and does the most damage when used to fund the whole house.
- With a loan, you can withdraw the construction cost minus the approved loan, plus 10% of the cost, or your whole Akaun Sejahtera balance, whichever is lower.
- You must be below 55, have at least RM500 in Akaun Sejahtera, and hold a Construction Agreement under three years old.
- EPF pays into your own bank account, not to the contractor; you then pay the progress claims yourself.
How to think about it
Home financing — whether LPPSA or a bank — is the cheapest debt you will ever have access to, secured on an asset that usually rises in value. Your EPF savings, on the other hand, are an asset that grows with compounding dividends over decades.
So the right question is not “how much can I withdraw”, but “how little do I need to withdraw to make this project work”. Every ringgit that stays in your account keeps growing; every ringgit withdrawn at 35 loses three decades of growth.
The EPF rules and figures on this page are EPF's own, taken from kwsp.gov.my and checked on 23 September 2026. EPF revises them from time to time, so confirm the current version in i-Akaun or at an EPF office before you plan around them.
Which account: Account 2 is now called Akaun Sejahtera
On 11 May 2024 EPF split every member under 55 into three accounts. What people still call “Account 2” is now Akaun Sejahtera, and it is the only account a housing withdrawal comes from.
Akaun Persaraan
75% of new contributions
Formerly Account 1. It cannot be withdrawn before age 55, and a housing withdrawal never touches it.
Akaun Sejahtera
15% of new contributions
Formerly Account 2. Its balance stayed where it was. It pays for pre-retirement needs: housing, education, health, insurance/takaful, Hajj and the age-50 withdrawal.
Akaun Fleksibel
10% of new contributions
New, and started at RM0. It can be withdrawn at any time from RM50, with no documents, and EPF asks members to keep it for emergencies.
- Only 15% of each new contribution now goes into Akaun Sejahtera. Anyone who joined the workforce recently will find the balance available for housing smaller than the old two-account rules would have given.
- Money can be moved from Akaun Fleksibel into Akaun Sejahtera (or into Akaun Persaraan), but only in that direction; it can never be moved back.
- All three accounts earn the same dividend rate.
When it is worth it, and when it is not
Worth it
Covering a financing shortfall
Your eligibility is RM380,000; the build costs RM420,000. A withdrawal covers the RM40,000 gap and the project goes ahead. This is the best use — a small amount with a big effect.
Worth it
Items outside the financing scope
Fencing, gates, landscaping, air-conditioning and furniture are not covered by construction financing. EPF's formula adds 10% of the construction cost on top of the loan gap, and that margin is what usually covers them. The formula is based on the house construction cost, not on the price of these items.
Worth it
Reducing the loan amount
Using part of your savings to borrow less means lower monthly instalments and far less interest over the tenure. Worth it if you still leave enough retirement savings behind.
Avoid
Funding the whole build
This is what we advise against. Retirement savings withdrawn lose decades of compounding dividends, while home financing is the cheapest debt you will ever access. Swapping one for the other almost always loses money.
Avoid
Covering the monthly instalments
If you need a withdrawal to pay the instalments, that is a sign the build was planned too big. Better to reduce the scope now than to drain your savings to keep it going.
Build House Withdrawal: EPF's conditions
EPF's name for it is the Build House Withdrawal (Pengeluaran Bina Rumah). These are the conditions EPF lists for building on land you already own.
- You are below 55 years old. Non-Malaysian members may apply too.
- You have at least RM500 in Akaun Sejahtera.
- The build is paid for by an approved loan from a lender EPF recognises (a licensed bank or Islamic bank, the Federal or a State Government or a government financing body such as LPPSA, your employer, a licensed cooperative, or a licensed insurer), or you are paying for it yourself.
- You have never made a housing withdrawal, or the house you made one for has since been sold or disposed of.
- The Construction Agreement is less than three years old on the day EPF receives your application.
Whose land counts
- Land owned by you or by your spouse, shown on the title or an official land search (Catatan Carian Rasmi).
- Land owned by you, with your spouse as the one building.
- FELDA land, or land of another recognised government agency, with that agency's approval.
- A longhouse or a house on customary land (Sabah and Sarawak), with written consent from the head of the village or community, endorsed by the Land Survey Department.
If you bought the land within two years before the Construction Agreement, EPF counts the land cost as well. If you are buying land and building as one package, the land sale agreement has to be dated within six months of the Construction Agreement.
How much you can withdraw
| How the build is paid for | EPF's formula (whichever is lower) |
|---|---|
| With a housing loan (LPPSA or bank) | Construction cost minus the approved loan, plus 10% of the construction cost; or everything in your Akaun Sejahtera |
| Self-financed (cash) | Construction cost plus 10%; or everything in your Akaun Sejahtera |
| Joint withdrawal with your spouse or a family member | The same formula; each applicant can withdraw only up to their own Akaun Sejahtera balance |
Worked example
- Build cost RM420,000, approved financing RM380,000. The formula gives RM40,000 (the gap) + RM42,000 (10% of the cost) = RM82,000.
- With RM55,000 in your Akaun Sejahtera, the lower figure applies: you can withdraw up to RM55,000.
- Applying jointly with a spouse who has RM30,000 brings your combined savings to RM85,000, above the formula, so the formula limit of RM82,000 is what applies.
- Paid for in cash, the same build would have a formula limit of RM462,000. Your Akaun Sejahtera balance is almost always the lower figure, and that is the point of the first section: the maximum is rarely the right amount.
This is our reading of the formula EPF publishes. EPF does the final calculation on your application.
The documents EPF asks for
EPF lists them by what each one proves. Copies must be certified by an authorised person (name, designation and official stamp).
Proof of ownership
The land title, or an official land search, in your or your spouse's name. If it is in your spouse's name, add your marriage certificate.
Proof of construction
The Construction Agreement in your name, your spouse's, or both (for a joint build), dated no more than three years before the application. Or a statutory declaration (Surat Akuan Sumpah) giving the property details, house type, start date and construction cost, with an RM10 revenue stamp.
Proof of approval
Inside a local council's (PBT) area: the council's approval letter to build, or the complete building plan with its approval. Outside a PBT area: a confirmation letter from the local authority, head of village or village committee, plus the site plan.
Proof of payment (self-financed only)
Receipts for at least 20% of the construction cost (building materials, labour, or the contractor's confirmation of payment), plus an architect's certificate or payment request showing at least 20% construction progress. All dated within three years of the application.
Forms and identity
Form KWSP 9C (AHL) with its checklist, your bank passbook or statement, and Form KWSP 3 (Pindaan) if you apply by post or your thumbprint check fails. Non-MyKad holders also bring identity documents with the originals.
If you have withdrawn before
Proof that the earlier house was sold or disposed of: for example a transfer form (Form 14A) endorsed by the Land Office, or a land search showing the new owner.
The Construction Agreement and the council approval are the two that come from the build itself. See council approval for how the approval is obtained.
How to apply, and where the money goes
- Apply through the i-Akaun (Member) web portal, under Withdrawal. You can also apply manually at any EPF office, or by post to EPF's Transaction Management Department in Shah Alam.
- If you applied online, go to an EPF office for thumbprint verification with your original MyKad. EPF gives you 14 working days; after that the application is cancelled.
- EPF tells you through the i-Akaun inbox if it needs more documents. Track the status in i-Akaun or at an EPF office.
- The payment goes to your own bank account (a panel bank account in your name), not to the contractor. If that transfer fails, EPF issues a bankers cheque.
Because the money lands in your account, it is your job to pay the progress claims with it. Keep it apart from day-to-day money, and match it to the claims your contract sets out.
The right order
- Check your financing eligibility first, so you know how much can be financed.
- Estimate the build cost for the design you want.
- Work out the difference. If there is none, you do not need to withdraw from EPF at all — and that is the best outcome.
- If there is a difference, apply to withdraw that amount only, plus a small buffer for items outside the scope.
- Apply early. Withdrawals take weeks, not days.
We prepare the quotation, contract and copy of our CIDB registration your application needs — free, like every other document.
For the detail-minded
Further reference
The rules and details behind the guide above. Open only what applies to you.
Other EPF withdrawals once the house is built
Three Akaun Sejahtera withdrawals that can still help after the Build House Withdrawal is used: Reduce or Redeem, Monthly Instalment and Flexible Housing.
The Build House Withdrawal is used once per house. After that, three other withdrawals from Akaun Sejahtera can still help. All three are EPF's rules, checked on the date above.
Reduce or Redeem Housing Loan
Pays down your outstanding LPPSA or bank loan, up to the loan balance or your Akaun Sejahtera (whichever is lower, minimum RM500). Once a year, below 55, and the house must be charged to the lender. You can also use it to reduce your spouse's loan. EPF accepts LPPSA's own balance statement, no more than three months old. It cannot be used for a renovation loan, an overdraft or a loan from an individual.
Housing Loan Monthly Instalment
EPF pays part of your instalment every month out of a Special Account, from at least RM100 a month for at least six months. You need RM600 in Akaun Sejahtera, instalments must already have started, and it is allowed for one house per member. The last application has to be made by age 54 and six months, because payments must end before 55.
Flexible Housing
Ring-fences part of Akaun Sejahtera so the lender can count your monthly EPF contribution as income, which raises your loan eligibility. At least one year, below 54, and applied through the financial institution together with a Build or Reduce withdrawal. The ring-fenced money stays yours and still earns dividend, but cannot be used for other withdrawals. Ask your bank whether it offers this for a build on your own land.
Mistakes that hold an application up
Six things that slow an application: land ownership, timing, a stale agreement, the thumbprint window, renovation and age 55.
The land is not in your or your spouse's name
EPF's condition is ownership by the member or spouse. Land still in a parent's or a late relative's name has to be transferred first; bring the title or a fresh official search showing your name.
Applying for a cash build too early
A self-financed withdrawal needs proof that at least 20% of the cost has been paid and 20% of the work done. The first fifth of the build has to be paid from other money.
A Construction Agreement that has gone stale
The agreement has to be under three years old when EPF receives the application. A contract signed long before the approvals came through can run out of time.
Missing the thumbprint window
An online application needs a thumbprint check at an EPF office within 14 working days.
Expecting it to pay for renovation
EPF states that its savings cannot be withdrawn for renovation. Extending or renovating an existing house is not a Build House Withdrawal.
Leaving it too close to 55
The Build House, Reduce and Monthly Instalment withdrawals all require you to be below 55. At 55 the balances move into Akaun 55 under different rules.
The retirement side, in EPF's own numbers
What a withdrawal leaves for retirement: EPF's savings benchmarks, the Belanjawanku figure and last year's dividend.
A housing withdrawal comes out of Akaun Sejahtera only; Akaun Persaraan is untouched. But Akaun Sejahtera is still retirement money: whatever is left in it at 55 is part of what you retire on.
EPF's Basic Savings benchmark for age 60 is RM270,000 from 1 January 2026, rising by RM30,000 a year to RM390,000 on 1 January 2030. Its Adequate Savings level is RM650,000.
Those levels are anchored on the Belanjawanku 2024/2025 guide, which puts a reasonable standard of living for a single elderly person in the Klang Valley at about RM2,690 a month.
The dividend for 2025 was 6.15%. At that rate, RM55,000 left in the account would have earned about RM3,383 in one year. That is a past rate, not a forecast; dividends change every year.
EPF publishes its basic savings level for every age, not only for 60. Compare it with your own balance in i-Akaun before you decide how much to take.
Frequently asked
How much can I withdraw?
What documents does EPF ask for from the contractor?
Can I use EPF together with LPPSA or a bank loan?
Does the withdrawal take long?
The land is in my parent's name. Can I still withdraw?
Can my spouse and I both withdraw for the same house?
Is the money paid to the contractor?
Can I use Akaun Fleksibel instead?
Can I build a village house outside a council area?
What is the real effect on my retirement?
Work out your real gap
Use both our tools: financing eligibility and build cost. The difference is the amount you really need to withdraw — usually far smaller than people think.