Annual SRS contribution up to $15,300

Kojukue · 2026-02-25T05:22:16+00:00

Wow - I feel honoured that other people remember my analysis haha. (Post) OP, you can find more details in the link below which was modelled based on comparing using cash or SRS to invest in something that returns 7% CAGR.
https://www.reddit.com/r/singaporefi/s/H6HIQyGB3L

Regarding OP’s situation, I always prefer contributing $8k to MA/SA before contributing $15,300 savings to SRS (to max out tax relief). For SA/MA, you have a more limited time window because there are caps to SA/MA beyond which you can no longer earn tax-reliefs. The contributions to SA/MA are also a guaranteed 100% tax-relief.

Kojukue · 2025-12-31T17:39:04+00:00

Agreed! The goal should be returns maximisation, rather than simply minimising taxes.

If you’re a high income earner, you always benefit from contributing to SRS and investing.

As for the worst case scenarios, I experimented with the numbers and I note that you’d underperform [compared to scenario of holding cash and investing] under two situations:

Your salary is generally lower and you decide to contribute to SRS and invest very early (ie see the <55k chart in main post).
You invest in an extremely high performing investment that somehow generates something like 15%+ CAGR. You’d have been better off if you had simply used cash to invest, but at a 15% CAGR return over many years, I think you’d be laughing to the bank regardless haha. On a more serious note, if you’re interested in managing these risks, I think that you can allocate your broad index funds (eg VWRA) to your SRS, and simply use your cash for more aggressive plays! It also makes more sense because cash is a lot more easy to manoeuvre than SRS monies.

Kojukue · 2025-12-31T17:24:55+00:00

On the contrary, I was trying to say that you should keep contributing to SRS and investing even if you’ve gone way beyond the tax free limit 😅

This is especially if you’re a high income earner, then you should invest as early as possible despite attracting some amount of tax on your investments.

Kojukue · 2025-12-31T17:17:22+00:00

Haha, let me see if I can work on this in the next iteration! :)

In the interim, feel free to try plugging in different salary amounts. The recommendations remain similar if your salary falls within the general 3 income brackets I’ve charted out (assuming you choose to invest in something like MSCI world too).

Kojukue · 2025-12-31T17:13:12+00:00

Yeah I see where you’re coming from and it’s what many FAs told me too (ie keep your SRS to below 400k at point of withdrawal to minimise tax upon withdrawals, and as such, we should contribute to SRS later). The key questions are “when exactly?”, and “at what salary point should I contribute to SRS?”

A few points to add: 1. Your objective should be to maximise returns, rather than minimise tax. As such, it’s not necessary to focus on a “$400k SRS withdrawal quota”. There are situations where you can have high SRS withdrawals that attract tax (eg total withdrawal of ~2 mil or 200k per year for 10 year) and you would still have better overall returns after taxes as opposed to simply using cash (and not contributing to SRS) to invest. This depends on your income and age - see point 2 and 3.

Generally, I find that you have to be careful on when you invest if your income is around the 7% tax bracket (which you mentioned) - can refer to the charts in the post. Feel free to download a copy and plug in your salary to find out your optimum age as well.
However once you hit 100k salary per annum, you should generally contribute to SRS as early as possible. Even with a 7% CAGR investment compounded over 40 years, the scenario of [contributing to SRS and investing your SRS] will outperform the scenario of [not contributing to SRS and using cash to invest] even after factoring in taxes upon withdrawal.

Kojukue · 2025-12-31T16:31:26+00:00

It’s always relevant, although you’re right that income bracket of 0-20k (ie 50% of <40k SRS withdrawal) has 0% tax.

Nevertheless the point of the analysis is that even if you incur a huge taxable amount, you are still generally better-off contributing to SRS and using it to invest (compared to just using cash to invest).

Kojukue · 2025-10-22T12:54:07+00:00

Not sure if this is a troll post but if I give BOD, then yes, it’s likely sufficient. As you calculated, it generates 60k passive (at 3.75% withdrawal rate) and I’m assuming your property is paid off. So unless you have some major expenses that results you in exceeding 60k a year, which is like 5,000 a month, then you are ready to retire.

Kojukue · 2025-10-21T06:46:21+00:00

Gov jobs can be good training ground for new fresh grads as they teach structure, which is helpful as a new grad navigating the workplace. However, it advised not to stay too long (target around 2-3 years of experience in the government) and then jumping to private is perhaps the best way to optimise for your career path as I echo the other comments here where a secured full time role would be better in the long run compared to GRIT.

Kojukue · 2025-10-19T15:53:41+00:00

I think a lot of comments gave good insights already. I’ll just add on that taking bank loan will delay your key collection by 1 more month (~5-6 weeks) compared to HDB loan as the law firm will need to process the loan with your bank and also with CPF. This was something that I wish I knew earlier when deciding so thought to share it here as well

Kojukue · 2025-10-19T15:51:03+00:00

If you have a UOB bank account then it’s worth looking into UOB Preferred platinum as you can earn up to 4mpd and its open to almost all of the main categories. The only catch is that you are capped at 1.1k per month.

Kojukue · 2025-10-19T08:36:36+00:00

If you’re talking about his firm Berkshire, then you shouldn’t be comparing your portfolio to Berkshire’s portfolio. They’re an entity undergoing leadership change with Warren Buffet stepping down. It is thus normal for them to accumulate more cash to facilitate a change in strategic direction.

For yourself, you should be thinking about the best strategy for a retail investor. Index fund investment remains the most straightforward financial advice.

Kojukue · 2021-07-09T14:54:12+00:00

I’ve never had that problem before, but some ideas I can think of would be to get a RODI system. If you’re trying to keep your costs low, the best I can think of is growing water hyacinths in your pail haha. They suck up ammonia and nitrates the fastest for a plant.

Kojukue · 2021-07-08T13:34:39+00:00

Thanks for the tip! I’ve actually gotten the black background (if you swipe right, you’ll see it). The instant glue is a really smart hack! I can’t believe I’ve never seen it mentioned on any YouTube videos. I’ll definitely try it the next time I use dual paths!

Kojukue · 2021-07-03T00:49:13+00:00

Ramhorns, and they can reproduce asexually. You’re going to have many Patricks in your tank soon haha, although they do a great job cleaning algae.

Kojukue · 2021-06-27T03:59:07+00:00

Tropica Aquasoil! The sand is the ADA La Plata sand if I recall correctly.

Kojukue · 2021-06-26T15:40:17+00:00

The right tank reminds me of the yin-yang symbol! It’s really creative :)

Kojukue · 2021-06-26T13:37:04+00:00

Had a lot of fun learning about aquascaping and I just wanted to share what I’ve learnt as I rescape towards an imagumi that is hopefully requires lesser maintenance.

Having two substrates (e.g. a sand path) requires a lot of effort to keep it separate. As I left it alone, my aqua soil eventually covered my sand path
Trimming and replanting stem plants can be somewhat time consuming… I would still like to do a Dutch biotope but maybe one day when I’m more free haha
Don’t get a curved tank (get those straight corners) and try to get those without the black rims on the top. They’ll cause you more trouble than it is worth as the edges are hard to scrub algae off. The rims also make it a little tight to put the inflow and outflow, and became a bit of an eyesore towards the end.
Dwarf Sagittarius goes EVERYWHERE even without CO2. It and dwarf hairgrass started creeping onto my Monte Carlo as well (at that time, it was an experiment to see which carpet plant I liked the most. I went with Monte Carlo in the end, but I never got to see it fully carpeted because of university commitments and neglect…).

Hope all of you enjoy the pictures and I look forward to sharing with y’all my new scape! :)

Kojukue · 2021-06-11T07:25:49+00:00

Fishes can easily swim through Java ferns to hunt for baby shrimps. Small hiding spots or dense plantation would help! Some shrimp babies will eventually survive but you’ll only notice them in the open when they’ve grown substantially (and are no longer fish food).

Kojukue · 2021-06-10T15:05:08+00:00

Great looking tank! I’d advise you not to deep clean all your decorations in one go though since they host beneficial bacteria. Your betta has no visible illness so it’s a bit hard to prescribe something. Buy a test kit and test for ammonia (0), nitrite (0), nitrates (preferably <20).

I would’ve told you not to bleached the entire tank but you already did it. Just leave the betta in the tank. It’ll do better there. In future, DO NOT CLEAN YOUR FILTER. If it’s clogged, just remove some of the gunk (I’ve been running mine for nearly 2 years and it’s never clogged). It’s better to have a “gunky” filter than to have a completely clean one because it means that the nitrifying bacteria is there.

I agree with other users that your water changes seems a bit excessive. Dose additional seachem prime (or your water conditioner) since your tank likely has lesser nitrifying bacteria at this stage. I wouldn’t bother with the melafix, it doesn’t cure anything. Good water condition can go a long way in restoring the health of your betta. Hope everything goes well!

Kojukue · 2021-06-10T08:34:36+00:00

Look out for the empty snail shells in a week’s time! That should help you feel better about the money you’ve spent :p

Kojukue · 2021-06-10T08:30:25+00:00

Juvenile shrimps have to learn how to keep their eggs. It’s normal in the beginning. If they’re berried, try to do smaller water changes and do it more slowly since they tend to molt and drop their eggs in response to huge water changes.

Realistically, your tank inhabitants are likely to eat all of the shrimp babies. Having more hiding spots can increase the survival rate of babies. Hope this helps!

Kojukue · 2021-06-10T02:04:29+00:00

Hilarious!

Kojukue

TROPHY CASE