The Government Employees Pension Fund (GEPF) has confirmed that it will start processing payments for those members who have made applications to withdraw from their savings pot as part of the implementation of the new two-pot retirement system.
The GEPF had communicated to members that payments will be processed within 60 days of receiving complete applications.
As the largest pension fund in South Africa, with over 1.2 million active members, and being a defined benefit scheme, administration will be less flexible than at other smaller private-sector schemes.
The GEPF has confirmed that it has received approximately 205 000 applications for savings pot withdrawals, totalling around R5.7 billion, and that the first batch of payments is scheduled to be made starting next week.
In order to expedite the process, members must make sure that their tax details are up to date and that the GEPF has their latest bank details.
Process to withdraw from savings pot
Here’s a brief overview of the process that members must follow to apply for a withdrawal from their savings pot:
- Log on to the GEPF self-service portal
- Click the “claims” button to submit, review, or track a claim
- By clicking “Submit a claim,” you can view the rules and conditions for withdrawals, ensuring that you meet all the necessary criteria
- You will be able to view the amount available for withdrawal and proceed by accepting the terms and conditions
- A “withdrawal calculator” will show how the withdrawal will impact your years of service, and you can request a withdrawal quote to be sent to your email
- Confirm your banking details
- Confirm your income tax number
- Finalise and submit the claim.
If you need to update your contact number and/or banking details, send your new details in an email to selfservicesupport@gpaa.gov.za along with a copy of your ID.
Useless agency, no payments again this week, I do not believe that GEPF is so quiet, no time lines.
Gepf must give us the dates they will be paying the people, the number of people who is going to paid on each date, and we also need to know, claims submitted on which dates will be paid..
Payments started on 26 September. They are paying in batches as and when they receive tax directives and bank verifications. So it is not by departments or provinces or dates of applications. It depends on how fast your bank verification and tax directive is received from responsible departments
Poor service from GEPF my directive was finalized on 8October and still no payment so I just think the service is poor not because of the delaying of tax directives or bank verification but just because employees are slow and service pathetic no active phone lines and no active email address what organization operates like that
I received tax directive on 11th of October but there is no payment yet and i applied on the 21st of September.How come those applied in October received money so fast
I have had this complaint from quite a few members and have raised it with GEPF.
Gepf must stop processing payments for October and settled first week of September’s payments. People who claimed early are not considered and left frustrated while people claimed later are getting their money. This so incompetent, what kind of a service is that.
Have you received your payment yet?
Good day… I have spoken to GEPF and they said that they have sent the claim to SARS for a tax directive on the 26/09/2024. Upon contacting SARS telephonically and personally, I was informed that they did not receive anything. My withdrawal claim was sent on the 3rd September. Contacting GEPF is a problem since no communication channels are working(emails, call backs and telephones). Could you assist please.
Ms Maya I m civil servant who made second pot withdrawal on 14 September 2024 now GEPF says since I am one of those who are divorced and my ex got her percent on my pension the system says error and they don’t have date for my payment. What’s going on?
I have picked this up as a problem. It is also an issue at other pension funds. The GEPF replied: “We are in the process of reviewing all the divorce cases and making sure that the divorce is finalised, and the due payments were finalised.
It is our highest priority, and we should be able to pay the two-pot claim”
I went to GEPF office in JHB they are not far from my office Marshall str,went there to ask why I haven’t receive money from two pot because i applied 4th September to date i haven’t receive but my colleagues that I helped after 15 September they received theirs 15th October.Heee the lady in cubicle 9 was very rude to me as if I went the to borrow from her.Her answer was what did the said ?I said 60 days then gave me my Id without explaining further i was so angry or she wanted to continue eating her breakfast and tea because everything was in front of her whilst she was working maybe I went there to disturb her.Unprofessional to eat in front of clients.
Till to day I haven’t receive the money.
Regards
Greta
The GEPF website states that it can take up to 60 working days to pay out the savings pot.
That cumulates to 12 weeks or four months.
My wife withdrew from her savings pot at a private pension fund and it was paid out within seven days.
Most GEPF members will be lucky to receive their payouts within that timeframe.
My brother I want to know if GEPF is taking us for a ride or they are busy with our money to pay us bcs first they delayed to implement this two pot as no one gave them the go ahead to implement the process and now why are they not allowing us to track our withdrawals bcs their system only says ur application is received and under review and imagen is three weeks now since I applied to withdraw and no progress or information about my withdrawal then can u find out the real reason why they don’t want to give us our money as this is our pension and savings money not theirs
How accurate is this article? Why wasn’t it published by gepf themselves 4us members, as well as big newspapers companies such as news24, iol news and EWN etc…
When googling for other articles and gepf website itself does not indicate that they will be processing payments this coming week. Can you please provide feedback?
I do a lot of education work for GEPF so I am fortunate to have direct access to them. When I started getting complaints from members I asked them for a response and posted on my website. I have also written an article for City Press which is on News24 quoting the GEPF. https://www.news24.com/citypress/business/gepf-members-frustrated-by-delays-technical-issues-with-two-pot-system-20240929
There’s conflicting information about the banking details. I went to Gepf office in and they told me only the employer HR can update my banking details..On my App there’s no banking details at all. Please assist in clarifying this issue as it’s frustrating and I cannot claim.
I have confirmed with the GEPF and they say you do have to update your banking details with HR because they are paying into the account you receive your salary
Did they start with payments of the two pot this week?
I have tried to get clarity but I am not receiving any response either
So as it’s Wednesday today is there anyone who has received money yet per your promise
That is not my promise 🙂 – it is what the GEPF told me. I can only report what they say
Payments started on 26 September
We just an e-mail saying there was a security breach. Now what?
I have submitted. MY withdrawl clai. O. The 13th of September a d nothing has changed them I check in tracking the claim
Hi… Today it’s Friday and I haven’t even heard from one person claiming that he/her got the money in their bank from GEPF Two pot…. Actually what is going on
I have asked them but also not getting a response now
Update – apparently payments did start on 26 September
Hi 👋 today is the 4th and tried several times calling GEPF as frustrated as I am , their phones are not working
How convient at this particular time phones not in use
Payments have started since the 26 September. They are paying in batches as and when they receive tax directives and bank verifications. So it is not by departments or provinces or dates of applications. It depends on how fast your bank verification and tax directive is received from responsible departments
It is confirmed that this 1st week of October payments will be released
They told me it would be but I do not think it has happened yet
I have had feedback, some payments started on 26 September
I want to know if GEPF is going to make payments only on the last day of every month or what?
They are making payments every day but it is taking time
At least they could have issued media statements weekly. Detailing what they were doing or what are they doing so far. Their silence is killing us. We don’t whether our applications are successfully or not
Please assist me with OTP
The OTP issues have been resolved so retry
That self service portal when doing a withdrawal the is nothing telling a member how will it impact your years, it mostly tell you about SARS implications not calculating anything other than giving you a withdrawal max to decrease or to stay like that. I did apply for withdrawal that is how I know!
Atlist if they show us how far is our withdrawal claim
Am I allowed to resign at the age of 62?so that I can receive all the monies that belong to me. I m too skeptical to go on pension cause according to the calculations I m going to receive R20 000 as an annuity and I find too little because it is going to be taxed.
You will receive a lump sum on resignation but it will be heavily taxed – you will pay around 36% tax on the lump sum. The taxation at retirement is more favourable. Make sure you understand the various options and get good advice
They must update the claim status so that we know what is going on and it’s an emergency why it took long to be processed?
Our reliance on public media makes us less important to the fund itself. Communicating is essential part of service by any means however that to news 24 for heads up.
Poor service no emails correspondence even telephone calls….I am totally disappointed
I am struggling to claim, the app it is not opening for me. I need password temporary password has expired
We claimed but don’t receive massage yer
I have been trying to get OTP and it says it has expired or has been used before every time I get a new OTP it says the same thing
Your article says GEPF has confirmed they will be making payments next week. I researched articles and their (GEPF) website for such confirmation to be given TO members, however, I don’t find anywhere that it states as a fact, payments will be made. Who at GEPF confirmed this with you? And why has it not been published by other large newspaper houses?
Hi. I widthrew 30 000 from my saving pot as of the 4 September. My worry is the app answer on claim status. It reflect being reviewed without any changes. What does it mean
GEPF service is so poor, no communication with members, you call and email but no answers. That’s so frustrating. If they are short staffed, we have a lot of unemployed youth sitting at home without jobs.
But honestly, GEPF could do better than this.
Ive submitted changing of banking details but no reply
banking details can only be updated by the employer
What about the ex spouses divorce settlement payouts i have been waiting 3 months already. I was told on the 04 September that my claim has been endorsed. Which apparently entitles me to claim according to the act. 3 batches of documents were submitted as paper work went missing as well.
Good luck with payment being any time soon….I waited almost a year.
Your service is very poor,you dont answer phones or respond emails
I have been trying to log on the gepf system but I can’t I tried sending emails but can’t go through I even tried to call no answer
I am Jacob Makgase Mashilo trying to claim funds from two pots withdrawal
You need to go to the website and log into the self service app https://gepf.datafree.co/
There is no calculator
If they said they are busy with payment today when can i expect the money
Ever since I submitted my claim….jo communication or update….no ….. this is unfair….why don’t the department employ temporary youth to help them….
The problem with GEPF is that they don’t care about our needs and images they are the government and they knew about this two pot long time ago but at the end comes the 1st of September they are not ready and they don’t have directive to start the process images I did my request on the 14th but still when I check my status it say under review how bcs they have all our updated information including our correct tax numbers and bank accounts and they work hand in hand with persal and national treasury and this government must start to respect us and not take advantage of us and even what they saying about payments it won’t happen just watch the space
I want to know if it is true or is the status core still the same regarding the 40 years service. I was told by my supervisor that if you complete Forty years uninterrupted service before the age of 65 you are going to get 80% of your monthly salary you retired on as a salary every month. So I want to check with you if this information is correct.
Regards
It would be based on the formula which is available on the GEPF website
I want to apply but is no going tbru
Approximately 205 000 applications ,assuming that people claimed maximum R30 000 is nowhere close to 5..7 billion. There starts a problem already
if you multiply R30 000 x 205 000 you get R6.1bn
I applied the 9th of Sep, people who applied after the 25th received payment
I want to register for 2 pot
You can either download the app or go to the web based portal https://gepf.datafree.co/
Was so frustrating,and disappointing after i download the GEPF App,on 1stSeptember to discover,from our HR,apparently you must now wait till23rd September to withdraw,from your savings pot,this was not communicated to us,in the beginning,I agree,GEPF could do better,with communicating with the members,answer our emails,call back
I guess the only thing we could do now is to wait for up to the 60 days indicated by GEPF prior the claiming process even began, before we crucify them, GEPF. To their defence, we knew well ahead that it will take up to 60 for claims to be processed
Hi I just want to know if people who are getting GEPF from their deceased husband/wife do qualify for 2pots
No as that would not be an active member but someone receiving a pension
I’m satisfied with your answers thanks 👍
Your service is very poor (GEPF). When contacted you 😢 listen to voice note for more than one hour without response. Please 🙏 try to improve. You are dealing with clients not animals.
.
Is the age of 55 still regarded as a retirement age? Or is it considered as resignation? And if go out on 55 yes what could be the challenges?
You can take early retirement. This will mean a reduction in years of service. There is a formula they use to calculate it.
Trying to log saying they will send me the otp but that is not sent.It is almost 3 weeks
I am not earning my salary since 2020 as I have a case at the bargaining council now
Do I qualify to withdraw my money in the two pots system
Or that will affect my case when I withdraw my money from the two pots system please assist me with the information
Those people are lucky because we are still waiting
So are they going to start with those who got through first or are the going to pay everyone same time. And is it from the 1 of October.
I have no idea but one would assume they will process in the order that they received the applications
Please can you ask them to release an official statement detailing what, how and when anything is go to happen. Information they gave to you is much appreciated, but I, as a member, strongly feel they should be communicating directly with me and not via a middle person. GEPF do not value us as members.
Hi! Since the first of September I’ve been trying to login into my gepf app but not getting through, what should I do?
I desperately need funds to take me out from my debt. Please assist me.
Try the email address in the article
Delink the app and upload it again ,try doing it very early in the morning when the website is not congested.Reset password and try again.
Reply to M.Mthethwa, go to your nearest office cause they don’t catch the phone. Even my self I’m still their massage for changing my phone no. and email.
Morning member.
I suggest that you delete the app and re-download it, I was also experiencing the same thing, but I finally managed to upload a valid claim.
All the best while trying this option…I’m emotionally touched about the last paragraph of your request for assistance.
Anonymous Maya what’s up with our pots that are still empty not showing any sign of money till now,I tried to call or email but no reply
There have been some members experiencing this issue. This is the response from the GEPF: “The issue you’ve raised is potentially member-specific, and we would need more detailed information about the individual member to investigate and resolve the matter. There are several reasons why a savings component might reflect a balance of zero, including incomplete or unconfirmed member data, service records, or salary information.
We are actively addressing such data issues and have processes in place to correct them as they are identified. I encourage the member to contact us directly so we can assist with resolving this specific case.
Tracking claims on app doesn’t assist
Hi
Uninstall the one you on your phone and download the latest version from your app store. I had the same problem and followed the above steps and I managed to submit my claim.
When is exactly the payout date of this 2pot withdrawal pls. The process is so slow and poor especially with no sertisfying updates
I have sent a message to the gepf self-service email two weeks ago in an effort to update my contact details but did receive any response to date. The email isbthus of no use, from my experience, thank for the information.
If they say they will start with payments, have they received tax directives already? As far as I understand, they need to get tax directives before they make payments so they know how much SARS will deduct. So this could mean they have already done tax directives or what they mean by payments is actually starting the process with SARS then do payments afterwards. This info is not clear. Ai
I know they do have tax directives so I think this means actual payment
The e-mails keep on returned, postmaster could not deliver. Phones are useless. I battled for nearly 2 months to get a letter of proof of income.
My daughter’s father passaway 25 July 2022 till now nomoney has been paid up but the granny of the child has gotten her own share….GEPF is not fair on the children
I’ve just checked on my SARS
e-filing if anyone has requested a tax directive since the beginning of the current tax year, and there is no one, meaning GEPF have not requested SARS for my tax directive yet.
They are sending the tax directives in batches so it is possible it has not happened yet but they are working on speeding up the process
What it means is that GEPF will run the persal month month of September and payments can be out in two weeks after persal run.
Struggling to login
GEPF , their staff, including their systems are so useless and incompetent. They operate just like other govt depts
.I have been in the Public Service for more than 40 years but have had to retire with my information not correctly update d and captured in their so called systems. Unless the still employed colleagues do something, all GEPF members will still struggle as and when they need help from them. You go to their office and que the whole day. When you are about to be called, they tell you they are closing come back the next day. It’s a shame. It’s time members do something
This is such a terrible situation. As a matter of interest what part of government do you work for? I have noticed some government HR departments are worse than others
I have applied for two pot systems how long is waiting period because it’s almost 4 weeks now?
As the article explains, GEPF communicated a 60 day waiting period
Morning everyone, I’ve withdraw 30.000 from my pension fund,my retirement money was R1058.075,my vested component is R1015019.30 so i want to know what happened with my R13.000 because from my R1058.075-R30.000 i was supposed to left with R1028.075
This may be due to some system differences: The key difference arises because the values shown on the app reflect two different time periods. The vested and savings pot balances are updated as of the end of the previous month, whereas the resignation benefit amount reflects values as of the end of the current month. This extra month of accumulated benefits results in the resignation benefit being higher than the combined pot values.
In the coming months, we will be updating the system to ensure that both the component balances and the resignation benefit are calculated using the new formulas and are aligned to the same date. This will make it easier to compare these values accurately.
For the most accurate and up-to-date information on your benefits, please refer to your benefit statement, which shows the benefits due as of a specified date. We are also working on updating the benefit statements to reflect the component balances and the new calculation rules.
Same happened to me there’s money that’s been deducted on my retirement amount. Initially I had R214 045 and couldn’t apply for 2weeks due to system technical problems. When it finally opened for me on my savings pot it gave me R20 938 to withdraw and says im left with R188 000 the question is what happened to the other money cos when i add these 2now they give me R209 000 not the R214 000 are nw dealing with corruption or what at gepf.Disappointed as a member the worst part their phone is always not working and they never answer emails or that callback in their self service portal so Maya its a waste of time to email gepf
I think this is part of the technical issue with the timing of when they update the balances. I have asked them about it
Hi I dryed to claim but my savings pot show me R00. 00 and my retirement saysR00. 00 but my balance is above R100000 what I’m asking why???
This is a comment I received: “There are several reasons why a savings component might reflect a balance of zero, including incomplete or unconfirmed member data, service records, or salary information.
We are actively addressing such data issues and have processes in place to correct them as they are identified. I encourage the member to contact us directly so we can assist with resolving this specific case’.
Thanks for the clarity, i was starting to wonder why the payments were taking so long.
We know GEPF have so many members compared to other private funds, would be better if they are giving us updates rerding the processing of our 2 pot claim.
The lack of communication is very concerning
It’s really delaying to process payments
I tried to log in nothing like that I even visited the branch in Cape town never help me they told me to download the app at the office is a scam I even visited SARS office and my balance at SARS I owe 0.i believe people when they said is a scam for accounting people.only metropolitan help me for retirement fund within 12 days my money was in from SARS .
Mabuda, I have been waiting for my Metropolitan funds, do you perhaps have the relevant contact where I can enquire….I have bee. Waiting for a month
Try calling them on 0860 724 724
There must be a whatsupp number like other companies where you can communicate with GEPF.People need that money to help them.That whatsupp number is the easiest way to apply and people get their money soon and fix their problems.
How do one update their personal details on the app. I’m having a challenge because now I’m using a different number, I can’t receive OTP because I changed my contact number longtime ago and my app is registered by the old number
you have to update your details via the self service email which is in this article
Can i ask when you say they will pay from this week dooes this mean they are done with Sars/Tax because now we sitting with no communication from Gepf i mean saying you have lot of members okay but i thought introducing this system you had time to prepare for this as much as you GEPF showed us our balances on app then why wait this long to send to Sars and pay do you have money or you still need to borrow it somewhere but yet you are able to deduct from our salaries every month i really wish we get respond that can help everyone sitting at the corner with no idea what is going on.