The tax notices are flowing in.

Seniors, life insurance coverage brokers, monetary advisors and accounting professionals are eager about tax preparation. Questions usually come up in regards to the taxation of life insurance coverage settlements.

It’s important to hunt steering from a tax skilled, however understanding the fundamentals can present a strong basis for serving to purchasers make knowledgeable choices.

Viatical and Life Settlements Fundamentals

There are two foremost classes of life insurance coverage coverage gross sales: viatical settlements and life settlements.

Viatical settlements: This time period applies to transactions involving seniors or others with a terminal sickness that’s anticipated to lead to dying inside 24 months.

For purchasers who make viatical settlement offers, the proceeds are sometimes tax-free.

As well as, if the insured is chronically unwell, the settlement proceeds will not be taxed.

The IRS defines a chronically unwell particular person as “somebody who has been licensed (a minimum of yearly) by a licensed well being care practitioner as being unable to carry out, with out substantial help from one other particular person, a minimum of two each day dwelling actions (consuming, toileting, transferring, bathing, dressing, and continence) for a minimum of 90 days on account of a lack of practical capability.”

Or an individual “requiring substantial supervision to guard the person from threats to well being and security on account of extreme cognitive impairment.”

Conventional life settlements which can be taxed in tiers:

First tier (tax-free): Proceeds from the settlement that equal your consumer’s tax foundation usually are not topic to tax.

The tax foundation sometimes consists of the entire premiums paid on the coverage.

For example, if the settlement quantity is $100,000 and your consumer’s tax foundation (the entire premiums paid) is $50,000, there isn’t a tax on this preliminary $50,000.

Second tier (odd earnings tax): Proceeds that exceed your consumer’s tax foundation however are lower than or equal to the coverage’s money give up worth are taxed as odd earnings.

Persevering with the instance, if the coverage’s money give up worth is $80,000, and your consumer’s foundation is $50,000, the subsequent $30,000 of the settlement proceeds will probably be taxed as odd earnings.

Third tier (capital good points tax): Any proceeds that surpass the money give up worth of the coverage are topic to capital good points tax.