If you are self-empoyed you are then eligible for up to RM500 FREE Money Anually! And all you need to do is basically register for i-Saraan with EPF and self-contribute RM3338 (actually RM3333.3333333333 but I prefer the Number No.8 haha as 3334 is damn lousy when spoken in cantonese ).

So from the above, the i-Saraan is suppose to be effective on 1st January 2025. But you can actually register for it now at EPF Website – click here to EPF i-Saraan Webpage and look for the window on the lower left of your screen to register..

Who is Eligible for i-Saraan?

From the above, it is stated those who are Self-Employed who derive income from his own work and not an employee. Basically if you are not subjected to mandatory EPF Contribution where your Employer also contribute to your EPF Account then you are eligible for i-Saraan.

So What Is The Benefit of i-Saraan

Basically you get RM500 FREE Money per year on top of EPF Dividends if you deposit RM3338 per year on condition you qualify for i-Saraan status.

Conclusion

This i-Saraan is not only good for gig economy workers but also hawkers, insurance agents, bloggers, profession eSports gamers, and even bums who are unemployed but play stock market/cryptocurrencies/forex for income.

The maximum FREE Money from i-Saraan is RM5K which is negligible. According to EPF Belanjawanku, a bachelor will need minimum RM1,930 per month to survive in Klang Valley! If you are married with 2 children, you will need RM6890 per month to survive in Klang Valley! And if you arr a retiree with a spouse, you will need estimated RM3,210 per month!

Above figures are current, therefore with inflation, the above amount will double in 20 years time! So if we need RM6K per month to survive in 20 years time, it means we will need RM72K per year or at least RM1.5M where we may earn RM75K annually if EPF still pays 5% dividends.

So one must have the disciple to preform self-contribution to their EPF Account and this is where I don’t know how many gig workers like e-hailing drivers or food delivery people actually self-contribute to EPF as they are paid daily and may use use up the money as soon as they get paid!

But for people with good savings habit, e.g. Insurance Agents, part-time programmers, those working overseas and other self-employed people including bloggers/influences, this EPF i-Saraan is very good – RM500 FREE Money per year!

And for years EPF has been paying higher dividends then Fixed Deposit Promos Interest Rates, so it makes sense to self-contribute to EPF where your money will be compounded too. The i-Saraan FREE Money maximum limit is RM5K only, which is negligible for retirement. The key is regular self-contribution to have adequate savings for retirement.

Another thing, I know many GRAB drivers are part-time to earn extra money to pay for their expenses. So I really don’t know if part time gig economy workers are eligible for i-Saraan.

However if you can self-contribute RM24K up to RM100K per year, regardless if you are employed and having to contribute mandatory to EPF, this self-contribution amount will make lots of difference in 10 or 20 years time.

Recently there was an article about a super smart lady having close to RM2M in her EPF and she is still in her mid 30s. Click here to The Sun Online to read Woman accumulates nearly RM2 million in EPF savings at 35 and you will learn that she has been self-contributing in addition to mandatory EPF contributions.

As of date, anyone can self-contribute up to RM100K per year into their EPF Account and I tell you even if you are 55 years and above, you should consider parking your cash at EPF as you can withdraw your money from EPF anytime.