s 15AB Charge or undertaking on immovable property to secure retirement sum
15AB.—(1) Where a member or his or her spouse owns any immovable property of a value equal to or exceeding the member’s retirement sum, the Board may, on an application made before 1 January 2013, permit the member —(a) to withdraw the amount referred to in the former section 15(6C)(b) or part thereof from his or her account with an approved bank or his or her retirement account; or (b) to surrender his or her approved annuity, if the member or his or her spouse (as the case may be) agrees to the creation of a charge on the immovable property owned by the member or his or her spouse, to secure the payment, in the prescribed circumstances, to the Board of the member’s retirement sum. [Act 33 of 2024 wef 01/04/2026] (2) Where a member and one or more related persons jointly own any immovable property of a value equal to or exceeding the member’s retirement sum, the Board may, on an application made before 1 January 2013, permit the member —(a) to withdraw the amount referred to in the former section 15(6C)(b) or part thereof from his or her account with an approved bank or his or her retirement account; or (b) to surrender his or her approved annuity, if the member and the related person or persons (as the case may be) agree to the creation of a charge on the immovable property owned by them to secure the payment, in the prescribed circumstances, to the Board of the member’s retirement sum. [Act 33 of 2024 wef 01/04/2026] (3) Where a member or his or her spouse or both of them jointly own any immovable property sold by an approved developer, by a Housing Authority or by a lessee of a Housing Authority, the Board may, on an application made before 1 January 2013, permit the member —(a) to withdraw the amount referred to in the former section 15(6C)(b) or part thereof from his or her account with an approved bank or his or her retirement account; or (b) to surrender his or her approved annuity, if the member or his or her spouse (or both of them), as the case may be, gives an undertaking to refund to the Board an amount equal to the member’s retirement sum or part thereof which is required to be set aside in the event the property is sold or otherwise disposed of. (4) Where a member and one or more persons (other than the member’s spouse) jointly own any immovable property sold by an approved developer, by a Housing Authority or by a lessee of a Housing Authority, the Board may, on an application made before 1 January 2013, permit the member —(a) to withdraw the amount referred to in the former section 15(6C)(b) or part thereof from his or her account with an approved bank or his or her retirement account; or (b) to surrender his or her approved annuity, if the member and the person or persons (as the case may be) give an undertaking to refund to the Board an amount equal to the member’s retirement sum or part thereof which is required to be set aside in the event the property is sold or otherwise disposed of. (5) The Board must not enforce any undertaking under subsection (3) or (4) if there exist such circumstances as may be prescribed in regulations made under section 77(1) for the purposes of this subsection. (6) Where a member owns any immovable property of a value equal to or exceeding the retirement sum, the Board may, on an application made on or after 1 January 2013, permit the member, in accordance with any regulations made under section 77(1) —(a) to withdraw the amount referred to in section 15(6C)(a) which is deposited with an approved bank or retained in the member’s retirement account or any part of that amount; or (b) to surrender his or her approved annuity. (7) Where a member and one or more persons jointly own any immovable property of a value equal to or exceeding the retirement sum, the Board may, on an application made on or after 1 January 2013, permit the member, in accordance with any regulations made under section 77(1) —(a) to withdraw the amount referred to in section 15(6C)(a) which is deposited with an approved bank or retained in the member’s retirement account or any part of that amount; or (b) to surrender his or her approved annuity. (8) Where a member owns any immovable property sold by an approved developer, by a Housing Authority or by a lessee of a Housing Authority, the Board may, on an application made on or after 1 January 2013, permit the member, in accordance with any regulations made under section 77(1) —(a) to withdraw the amount referred to in section 15(6C)(a) which is deposited with an approved bank or retained in the member’s retirement account or any part of that amount; or (b) to surrender his or her approved annuity. (9) Where a member and one or more persons jointly own any immovable property sold by an approved developer, by a Housing Authority or by a lessee of a Housing Authority, the Board may, on an application made on or after 1 January 2013, permit the member, in accordance with any regulations made under section 77(1) —(a) to withdraw the amount referred to in section 15(6C)(a) which is deposited with an approved bank or retained in the member’s retirement account or any part of that amount; or (b) to surrender his or her approved annuity. (10) Where a member, with the Board’s permission under subsection (6), (7), (8) or (9), has withdrawn the amount referred to in section 15(6C)(a) which is deposited with an approved bank or retained in the member’s retirement account or any part of that amount, a charge is constituted on the immovable property referred to in subsection (6), (7), (8) or (9) (as the case may be) to secure the payment, in the prescribed circumstances, to the Board of the amount withdrawn.[Act 33 of 2024 wef 01/04/2026] (11) Where a member, with the Board’s permission under subsection (6), (7), (8) or (9), has surrendered his or her approved annuity, a charge is constituted on the immovable property referred to in subsection (6), (7), (8) or (9) (as the case may be) to secure the payment, in the prescribed circumstances, to the Board of the entire surrender value of the approved annuity.[Act 33 of 2024 wef 01/04/2026] (12) Subject to regulations made under section 77(1), the Board may, on an application made on or after 1 April 2021, permit the member to use any immovable property (owned by the member, or by the member and one or more persons jointly) to secure the whole or part of the retirement sum applicable to the member. (13) Where the Board approves the member’s application under subsection (12), a charge is constituted on the immovable property mentioned in that subsection to secure the payment, in the prescribed circumstances, to the Board of an amount determined by the Board, not exceeding the amount of the retirement sum applicable to the member.[Act 33 of 2024 wef 01/04/2026] (14) The following provisions apply to a charge constituted on any immovable property under subsection (10), (11) or (13):(a) the charge is subject to all prior statutory rights and charges of any public authority over the immovable property and to all encumbrances registered or notified prior to the date of the constitution of the charge; (b) upon the constitution of the charge, the Board has the power of sale and all other powers relating or incidental thereto to sell and effectually transfer the immovable property to any purchaser as if the Board were a registered mortgagee and, in any case where the immovable property is registered land within the meaning of the Land Titles Act 1993, even though the charge is not registered under that Act; (c) the charge extends to all the rights, benefits and interests of the member, or of the member and the other person or persons who jointly own the immovable property (as the case may be) under his or her or their agreement for sale and purchase of the immovable property; (d) where the Board has lodged with the Registrar an instrument (which must be in such form as the Registrar may require) for the purpose of registering or notifying the charge, the Registrar need not be concerned to enquire into the regularity or validity of the charge and must, on acceptance of the instrument, register or notify the charge in the appropriate register maintained by the Registrar under the Land Titles Act 1993, the Land Titles (Strata) Act 1967 or the Registration of Deeds Act 1988, as the case may be; (e) the charge continues in force until the Board is satisfied of the occurrence of any event prescribed in regulations made under section 77(1) for the purposes of this paragraph. (15) The following provisions apply to a charge created over any immovable property under subsection (1) or (2):(a) the charge is subject to all prior statutory rights and charges of any public authority over the immovable property and to all encumbrances registered or notified prior to the date of the notification of the charge; (b) upon lodgment by the Board with the Registrar of an instrument (which must be in such form as the Registrar may require) for the purpose of registering or notifying the charge and the acceptance of the instrument by the Registrar, the Board has —(i) the power of sale and all other powers relating or incidental thereto as if the Board were a registered mortgagee; and (ii) the power to sell, assign and dispose of all rights, benefits and interests under the agreement for the sale and purchase of the immovable property; (c) the charge extends to all the rights, benefits and interests of the member or his or her spouse, or the member and the related person or persons (as the case may be), under his or her or their agreement for sale and purchase of the immovable property; (d) the Registrar need not be concerned to enquire into the regularity or validity of the charge and must, on acceptance of the instrument to register or notify the charge, register or notify the charge in the appropriate register maintained by the Registrar under the Land Titles Act 1993, the Land Titles (Strata) Act 1967 or the Registration of Deeds Act 1988, as the case may be; (e) the charge must, on the application of the member or any other person having an interest in the property, be cancelled if the Board is satisfied of the occurrence of any event prescribed in regulations made under section 77(1) for the purposes of this paragraph. (16) Section 73 of the Conveyancing and Law of Property Act 1886 and sections 49L and 49M of the Insurance Act 19661 do not apply to any annuity purchased with any amount standing to the credit of a member in his or her retirement account.1 Sections 49L and 49M of the Insurance Act 1966 are to be construed as sections 132 and 133 respectively of the Insurance Act 1966, according to section 20(1) of the Revised Edition of the Laws Act 1983. (17) In this section, “related person”, in relation to a member, means —(a) his or her spouse; (b) a child of the member, including an adopted child and a stepchild; (c) a father or mother of the member; (d) a brother or sister of the member; (e) a grandchild of the member; (f) a grandparent of the member; or (g) any other person who in the opinion of the Board should be regarded as a related person for the purposes of this section.[Act 39 of 2021 wef 01/03/2022]