Table of Contents
- 3.1 Death benefits
- 3.2 Named beneficiary
- 3.3 Premiums
- 3.4 Life insurance policy dispositions
- 3.5 Exempt or non-exempt life insurance policies
- 3.6 Policy loans
- 3.7 Corporate ownership of life and disability insurance
- 3.8 Policy dividends
- 3.9 Annuities and segregated funds
3.1 Death benefits
When a life insured passes away, the death benefit is paid to the named beneficiary on a tax-free basis. This is one of the most powerful advantages of life insurance planning.
✅ Tax-Free Nature of the Benefit
- The full policy amount is paid regardless of how long premiums were paid
- The beneficiary receives the proceeds free from income tax
- This applies to both:
- individual policies
- group life insurance policies
Example
Richard purchased a $300,000 life insurance policy and named his wife Suzanne as beneficiary.
Even if Richard had paid premiums for only a short period, Suzanne would still receive the full $300,000 tax free upon his death.
⚠ Interest on Delayed Payments Is Taxable
Although the death benefit itself is tax free, any interest that accrues because of a delay in payment is considered taxable income to the beneficiary.
Example
- Richard died overseas and there was a delay in providing required documents.
- The insurer eventually paid:
- $300,000 death benefit (tax free)
- $945 interest due to the delay
➡ Suzanne must report $945 as interest income on her tax return.
🔁 Using Death Benefits to Purchase an Annuity
Beneficiaries do not have to take the proceeds as a lump sum. They may choose to:
- purchase a life annuity
- receive periodic payments instead
📌 Important tax rule:
- The principal portion of the annuity (the original death benefit) remains tax free
- The interest portion of each payment is taxable annually
Example
Martha, as beneficiary of her husband’s policy, chose to receive the proceeds as a life annuity.
She will be required to pay tax only on the interest portion of each annuity payment.
💡 Practical Points for Advisors
- Death benefits provide immediate, tax-efficient liquidity
- Ideal for:
- income replacement
- debt repayment
- estate equalization
- business succession funding
- Always warn beneficiaries that:
- delays can create taxable interest
- settlement options may change tax treatment
🔎 Key Takeaways
- ✔ Life insurance death benefits → not taxable
- ✔ Paid regardless of premiums paid to date
- ✔ Interest on delayed payments → taxable
- ✔ Annuity option → only the interest element is taxed
- ✔ Proper beneficiary designation is essential
3.2 Named beneficiary
When purchasing life insurance, the policyowner has the right to decide who will receive the death benefit. The choice of beneficiary has major legal and tax consequences.
👥 Who Can Be Named?
A policyholder may name:
- a spouse or family member
- any other designated individual
- a charity or organization
- the estate
The selection directly affects whether the proceeds:
- pass outside the estate
- are subject to probate
- are exposed to creditors
🏛 What Happens If the Estate Is Named?
If the estate is listed as beneficiary:
- The insurance proceeds become estate assets
- Funds are subject to probate procedures
- Creditors of the deceased may claim against the money
- Payment can be delayed until the will is validated
📌 Probate is the legal process that confirms a will is valid and gives the executor authority to collect and distribute assets.
Most financial institutions will not release funds without a probated will when the estate is the beneficiary.
💰 Probate fees differ by province and can significantly reduce the amount ultimately received by heirs.
🛡 Benefits of Naming a Personal Beneficiary
When a specific person is named:
- Proceeds generally bypass probate
- Payment is usually faster
- Funds are typically protected from creditors
- The full benefit goes directly to the beneficiary
✏ Example
Michael died with large personal debts and few assets.
His wife Renata was the named beneficiary of his life insurance policy.
- The insurer paid the benefit directly to Renata
- Creditors—including the Canada Revenue Agency—could not access the funds
- The payment was not subject to probate
👉 If Michael had named his estate instead, the insurance money would have been available to creditors and reduced by probate fees.
💼 Practical Guidance for Advisors
- Always discuss beneficiary designations at policy delivery
- Review designations after:
- marriage or separation
- birth of children
- business changes
- Explain the difference between:
- named beneficiary
- estate beneficiary
- Document client intentions clearly
🔑 Key Takeaways
- ✔ Naming a beneficiary allows proceeds to bypass probate
- ✔ Estate designation exposes funds to creditors and delays
- ✔ Proper designation ensures fast, tax-free payment
- ✔ Regular reviews prevent unintended outcomes
3.3 Premiums
The tax treatment of insurance premiums depends on the type of policy and who pays the premium.
Some premiums must be paid from after-tax income, while others may be deductible for tax purposes.
This section reviews the taxation of premiums for:
- Individual life insurance
- Group life insurance
- Group health insurance
- Individual health insurance
- Individual disability insurance
- Group disability insurance
3.3.1 Individual life insurance
🚫 General Rule:
Premiums paid for an individual life insurance policy are not tax-deductible.
This includes both the cost of insurance and any additional deposits to the policy.
✏ Example
Jenn purchases a 10-year term life policy and pays monthly premiums.
👉 She cannot deduct these premiums on her tax return.
📌 Exception – Collateral Life Insurance
Premiums may be deductible when:
- The insurance is required by a financial institution to secure a business loan
- The policy is assigned to the lender as collateral
- The loan is for income-earning business purposes
Only the lesser of:
- the actual premium, or
- the Net Cost of Pure Insurance (NCPI)
can be deducted, and only in proportion to the loan balance.
✏ Example
Saul assigns a $1,000,000 policy to secure a $400,000 business line of credit.
👉 He may deduct 40% of the lesser of the premium or NCPI.
3.3.2 Group life insurance
Tax treatment depends on who pays:
- If the employee pays the premium → death benefit is tax-free
- If the employer pays and reports it as a taxable benefit → death benefit is tax-free
✏ Example
Lana’s employer pays her group life premium and reports it on her T4.
👉 Because it is taxed as a benefit, the eventual death benefit is received tax-free.
3.3.3 Group health insurance
✅ For employers:
- Premiums for group health and dental plans are tax-deductible
- They are not a taxable benefit to employees
⚠ Québec Exception
- Employer-paid premiums are a taxable benefit for Québec provincial tax
- Not taxable for federal purposes
🩺 Unreimbursed eligible medical expenses may be claimed by the employee on their tax return.
3.3.4 Individual health insurance
💡 Premiums paid personally for private health plans are considered eligible medical expenses.
✏ Example
Karen buys her own health coverage because her employer has no plan.
👉 She can claim the premiums as medical expenses.
3.3.5 Individual disability insurance
- Premiums for personally owned disability policies are not deductible
- Benefits received are tax-free
✏ Example
Jonathan is self-employed and buys disability insurance.
👉 Premiums: not deductible
👉 Benefits: received tax-free
3.3.6 Group disability insurance
The taxation of benefits depends on who paid the premiums:
| Who Pays Premiums | Tax on Premium | Tax on Benefits |
|---|---|---|
| Employer pays | Not taxable | Taxable to employee |
| Employee pays (after-tax) | Not deductible | Tax-free benefits |
| Shared payment | Portion paid by employer | Benefits taxable |
🧠 Common Practice
- Long-term disability → usually paid by employees → benefits tax-free
- Short-term disability → often paid by employer → benefits taxable
🔎 Key Takeaways
- ✔ Individual life insurance premiums are not deductible
- ✔ Exception exists for collateral business loans
- ✔ Employer-paid group life → taxable benefit but tax-free death benefit
- ✔ Health premiums often deductible to employer and not taxable to employee
- ✔ Disability taxation depends on who pays the premium
3.4 Life insurance policy dispositions
When a policyholder makes changes that involve taking money or transferring ownership, the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) generally treats this as a disposition of the policy for tax purposes.
A disposition can occur when the policyholder:
- takes a policy loan
- makes a partial withdrawal
- surrenders the policy
- transfers the policy to another person
💡 If a disposition occurs, any policy gain may become taxable income.
📐 Taxable policy gain formula
Taxable policy gain =
Proceeds of disposition (or cash surrender value) – Adjusted cost base (ACB)
✏ Example
Sandra surrenders her policy:
- Cash surrender value = $13,500
- Adjusted cost base = $8,000
👉 Taxable income = $5,500 ($13,500 − $8,000)
⚠ Exception:
Some transfers—such as between spouses—may qualify for special tax treatment and not trigger immediate taxation.
3.4.1 Adjusted cost base (ACB)
The Adjusted Cost Base (ACB) represents the policy’s cost for tax purposes.
It is essential in determining whether a policy disposition creates taxable income.
🔄 The ACB can change from year to year, and insurers usually provide this value when:
- a policy is surrendered
- funds are withdrawn
- the policy is assigned as collateral
How ACB is determined
📅 Policies acquired after December 1, 1982
- Only the investment portion of premiums contributes to ACB
- The cost of insurance protection is removed using the Net Cost of Pure Insurance (NCPI)
📅 Grandfathered policies (before December 2, 1982)
- The entire premium is treated as ACB
Simplified ACB formula (post-1982 policies)
ACB = Premiums paid − Net Cost of Pure Insurance (NCPI)
🧠 Important Note
The NCPI calculation was revised in 2017, generally resulting in lower NCPI amounts, which can affect future ACB and taxable gains.
🔑 Key Points to Remember
- ✔ Policy loans, withdrawals, surrenders, and transfers can trigger a taxable disposition
- ✔ Tax is based on proceeds minus ACB
- ✔ ACB depends on premiums and NCPI
- ✔ Pre-1982 policies receive more favourable ACB treatment
- ✔ Insurers provide ACB figures to assist with reporting
3.5 Exempt or non-exempt life insurance policies
Permanent life insurance policies fall into two tax categories:
- Exempt policies – earnings inside the policy grow without annual taxation
- Non-exempt policies – earnings are taxable each year
Understanding this distinction is essential because it affects how cash values inside a policy are treated by the CRA.
3.5.1 Exempt
✅ An exempt life insurance policy allows the cash value to grow untaxed within the policy.
- Although the policyholder does not pay annual tax, the insurer is subject to an investment income tax.
- The key purpose of an exempt policy must be insurance protection, not investment growth.
Special grandfathering rule
📅 Policies acquired before December 2, 1982
- These are automatically exempt, even if they were designed mainly for investment.
- ⚠ Grandfathered status is lost if the policy is sold or transferred.
Policies after December 1, 1982
- Exempt only if purchased primarily for insurance purposes
- Must pass the CRA exemption test each year
💡 Result:
Investment earnings inside the policy remain tax-sheltered as long as the policy keeps its exempt status.
3.5.2 Non-exempt
❌ A non-exempt policy is one that:
- was last acquired after December 1, 1982, and
- fails to meet the exemption requirements of the Income Tax Act
Tax impact
- Earnings must be reported annually as taxable income by the policyholder
- The policy functions more like an investment vehicle than pure insurance
Annual exemption test
🔍 Each year, on the policy anniversary, the insurance company performs an exemption test to determine:
- whether the death benefit remains the main purpose, or
- whether cash accumulation has become excessive
Agents can obtain confirmation of a policy’s status directly from the insurer.
📝 Note
Tax rules for exempt policies have evolved, particularly after 2015, affecting many modern permanent and universal life contracts.
3.5.3 Universal life insurance policies
Universal life policies combine:
- insurance protection
- investment accounts chosen by the policyholder
📈 When investment growth becomes too high:
- Cash accumulation may exceed CRA limits
- The insurer moves excess funds to a “side account”
- 👉 Income in the side account becomes taxable annually
This mechanism helps the main policy retain its exempt status.
🔑 Key Takeaways
- ✔ Exempt policies → tax-sheltered growth inside the contract
- ✔ Pre-1982 policies → automatically exempt (unless sold)
- ✔ Non-exempt policies → annual taxation of earnings
- ✔ Insurers perform an annual exemption test
- ✔ Universal life may use a side account to preserve exemption
3.6 Policy loans
💡 A policy loan allows the policyholder to borrow directly from the cash value of a permanent life insurance policy.
Key conditions
- The policy must have cash surrender value (CSV)
- The contract must permit policy loans
- Maximum loan = up to the CSV
💰 Tax treatment of policy loans
The taxation depends on the relationship between:
- the loan amount, and
- the policy’s Adjusted Cost Base (ACB)
| Portion of Loan | Tax Result |
|---|---|
| Up to ACB | ✅ Tax-free |
| Above ACB | ❗ Taxable income |
📌 Important effects on ACB:
- Taking a loan reduces the ACB
- Repaying the loan allows a deduction up to the amount previously taxed
- This restores the ACB to prevent double taxation if the policy is later surrendered
🔁 How repayment works
When a taxable portion was reported at the time of borrowing:
- The same amount can be deducted from income when the loan is repaid
- The ACB is increased again by that amount
This ensures fairness if a future policy disposition occurs.
🧠 Example
Mario needs funds for home renovations.
- Cash surrender value: $9,000
- Adjusted cost base: $5,000
- He can borrow $9,000
- Taxable portion = $4,000 ($9,000 − $5,000)
- He must report $4,000 as income
👉 When Mario repays the loan next year, he can deduct $4,000 from his taxable income, and the ACB is increased accordingly.
🔑 Key Takeaways
- ✔ Policy loans are available only on policies with cash values
- ✔ Loans up to ACB are tax-free
- ✔ Amounts over ACB are taxable
- ✔ Repayment allows a tax deduction for the previously taxed portion
- ✔ ACB adjustments prevent double taxation
3.7 Corporate ownership of life and disability insurance
🏢 Corporations often purchase insurance on the lives of key executives or shareholders.
In most cases:
- ❌ Premiums are NOT deductible by the corporation
- ✅ Death benefits received by the corporation are tax-free
Corporate ownership creates unique tax planning opportunities and challenges, including:
- Tax result when a policy is bought back by an individual
- Using the corporate vs. personal tax rate difference
- The role of the Capital Dividend Account (CDA)
- Treatment when the insured is an employee, shareholder, or both
3.7.1 Tax implications of a person buying back a corporate policy
A corporation may own a policy on a key employee who later:
- retires
- leaves the company
- is no longer considered “key”
The corporation can:
- Continue paying premiums, or
- Sell or gift the policy to the employee
📌 Tax impact
- Any policy gain is taxable to the corporation
- If the policy is term insurance with no CSV → no policy gain
⚠ There may still be a taxable benefit to the employee, so professional advice is recommended.
💬 Example
Yvette’s employer bought a 10-year term policy on her life. After a merger, her position was eliminated and the policy was assigned to her as part of severance.
👉 Because it was term insurance with no cash value, there was no policy gain to the company.
3.7.2 Tax strategy based on corporate vs. personal tax rates
💡 A major advantage of corporate ownership is the lower corporate tax rate.
- Shareholder buying personally → premiums paid with high after-tax dollars
- Corporation buying → premiums funded with lower-tax corporate dollars
📌 Result: Same coverage at a lower real cost
💬 Example
Bert’s personal tax rate = 49.5%
Corporate tax rate = 15.5%To pay a $10,000 premium:
- Bert personally needs $19,802 pre-tax
- Corporation needs only $11,834 pre-tax
On death, proceeds flow through the CDA to shareholders tax-free.
3.7.3 Capital Dividend Account (CDA)
📘 The CDA is a notional tax account used by private corporations to track tax-free amounts.
Includes:
- Life insurance death benefits
- Minus the policy’s ACB
✅ Funds in the CDA can be paid to shareholders as tax-free capital dividends
👉 This is one of the most powerful planning features of corporate-owned life insurance.
3.7.4 When the insured is an employee, shareholder, or both
The tax result depends on the role of the insured.
👔 If premiums are paid for an EMPLOYEE
- ✔ Deductible to employer
- ❗ Taxable benefit to employee
🧾 If premiums are paid for a SHAREHOLDER
- ❌ NOT deductible to corporation
- ❗ Taxable shareholder benefit
👥 If the person is BOTH employee & shareholder
Rules for shareholders apply when:
- The person owns 10%+ shares, or
- A family member owns shares
💬 Example
Louise is an employee and owns 5% of the company.
Premiums paid on her policy are treated as a taxable benefit and not deductible to the corporation.
👉 She chooses to pay premiums personally.
✅ Key Takeaways
- Corporate premiums → generally not deductible
- Death benefits to corporation → tax-free
- CDA allows tax-free flow to shareholders
- Buy-back of a policy may trigger corporate policy gain
- Employee vs. shareholder status changes tax treatment
3.8 Policy dividends
Participating life insurance policies may pay policy dividends to the policyholder.
Although they are called “dividends,” they are not the same as corporate dividends and are treated very differently for tax purposes.
Understanding how these dividends are used is essential because the tax result changes depending on what the policyholder does with them.
📌 How policy dividends are treated
Policy dividends can be:
- Paid out at death
- Used to reduce premiums
- Withdrawn during the insured’s lifetime
Each option has a different tax consequence.
✅ When policy dividends are tax-free
Policy dividends are not taxable in the following situations:
- ✔ When they are included in the death benefit paid to the beneficiary
- ✔ When they are used to offset or reduce premiums
In these cases, the dividend is treated as a return of premium rather than investment income.
⚠ When policy dividends can become taxable
If policy dividends are withdrawn before death, they are treated as:
- 👉 Proceeds of disposition of the policy
Tax will apply if there is a positive policy gain, calculated as:
Policy gain = Amount received – Adjusted Cost Base (ACB)
📘 Important rule
- If in any year the dividend payout exceeds the ACB of the policy,
- The excess amount is considered a taxable policy gain in the hands of the policyholder.
💡 Practical insight
- Using dividends to buy paid-up additions or reduce premiums → generally no immediate tax
- Taking dividends in cash during lifetime → may trigger taxable income
- On death → dividends paid with the death benefit remain tax-free
3.9 Annuities and segregated funds
Insurance companies offer several types of annuities and individual variable insurance contracts (IVICs) that hold segregated funds.
Each product is taxed differently depending on whether it is registered or non-registered and on the type of income generated.
Main categories covered:
- Non-registered annuity contracts
- Non-registered IVICs holding segregated funds
- Registered annuity contracts
3.9.1 Non-registered annuities contracts
💡 Key principle:
Income from non-registered annuities is taxable, but only the interest portion is taxed.
- Premiums used to purchase the annuity → not tax-deductible
- Portion of payments considered return of capital → not taxable
- Portion considered interest income → fully taxable
3.9.1.1 Accumulation annuities or guaranteed interest annuities
These products are similar to GICs or term deposits offered by banks.
✅ Advantages
- Offer creditor protection
- With a named beneficiary → bypass probate
🧾 Tax rule
- Interest earned is taxable in the year received or accrued
3.9.1.2 Prescribed annuities
Prescribed annuities provide a major tax-timing advantage.
- Interest and capital are spread evenly over all payments
- Results in lower taxable income in early years
🔁 Comparison
| Type | Early years | Later years |
|---|---|---|
| Prescribed | Lower taxable interest | Level taxation |
| Non-prescribed | Higher interest at start | Declines over time |
👉 Total tax over life is the same, but prescribed annuity defers tax, improving cash flow.
3.9.1.3 Structured settlement annuities
These are usually purchased by a casualty insurer to compensate personal injury victims.
✔ Payments are treated as personal injury damages
✔ Therefore, they are completely tax-free
3.9.2 Non-registered IVICs holding segregated funds
Segregated funds differ from mutual funds in several ways:
- 🔁 Switching from one fund to another is a disposition
- Can trigger capital gains or losses
📌 Income treatment
- Income is reinvested, not paid out
- Yet contract holders must report:
- Interest
- Dividends
- Taxable capital gains
🧾 Reported by insurer on a T3 slip
3.9.2.1 Dividend, interest, and capital gains distributions
Allocations depend on the time units were held during the year.
- Segregated funds → prorate income by months held
- Mutual funds → do not prorate
This can result in smaller taxable allocations for late-year purchasers compared to mutual funds.
3.9.2.2 Treatment of capital losses
Unlike mutual funds:
- Capital losses in segregated funds are passed directly to the investor
- Can be:
- Used against current capital gains
- Carried back 3 years
- Carried forward indefinitely
3.9.2.3 Tax treatment of death benefit or maturity guarantee
Segregated funds usually guarantee:
- 75% or 100% of deposits at maturity or death
⚠ Tax treatment of “top-ups” is uncertain
- Some insurers treat as taxable capital gain
- Often offset by a corresponding capital loss at disposition
➡ Always verify the insurer’s information folder.
3.9.3 Taxation of registered contracts
Inside registered plans (RRSP, RRIF):
- Interest
- Dividends
- Capital gains
➡ All grow tax-deferred
💸 On withdrawal:
- Entire amount taxed as ordinary income
- No preferential treatment for dividends or capital gains
📘 Exception – RESP
- Original contributions → withdrawn tax-free
- Investment earnings → fully taxable to beneficiary
🧠 Practical Takeaways
- Non-registered annuities: only interest portion is taxable
- Prescribed annuities = better tax timing
- Switching segregated funds = taxable disposition
- Registered plans = full taxation on withdrawal
- Structured settlements = tax-free
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