Corporate Alternative Minimum Tax: Implications For Corporate-owned Life Insurance

Definition of "Corporate alternative minimum tax: implications for corporate-owned life insurance"

INSURANCE tax that exhibits direct impact on the book income preference. Beginning with the year 1990, the book income preference became equal to 75% of the excess of current adjusted earnings of the alternative minimum taxable income (AMTI). Book income preferences are affected by corporate-owned life insurance in the following situations:

  1. If the insured dies, the excess of the life insurance policy's DEATH BENEFIT over the CASH SURRENDER VALUE becomes book income to the corporation.
  2. If the insurance policy's annual premium exceeds the increase in the cash surrender value for a particular year, the result is a decline in the book income and thus a decline in the corporation's exposure to the alternative minimum tax (AMT).
  3. Conversely, if the insurance policy's cash surrender value exceeds the increase in the annual premium for a particular year, the result is an increase in the book income and thus an increase in the corporation's exposure to the alternative minimum tax.

Generally, if the corporation in any given year has taxable income, corporate-owned life insurance results in an alternative minimum tax liability if a significant death benefit is paid to the corporation upon the death of the insured. The result is that the alternative minimum tax will cause a reduction in the net death benefit from the life insurance policy paid to the corporation.

image of a real estate dictionary page

Have a question or comment?

We're here to help.

*** Your email address will remain confidential.
 

 

Popular Insurance Terms

Annual meetings of insurance practitioners and academicians from throughout the world interested in exchanging ideas concerning the theory and applications of insurance. The meeting is held ...

Sum the insurance company is legally obligated to pay an insured for losses incurred. ...

Coverage that protects a business, up to the policy limits, if actions or non-actions of the insured result in a legally enforceable claim for bodily injury, property damage, or personal ...

Present value of a series of payments such that the first payment is due one period hence, the second payment two periods hence, and so forth. The continued payment is contingent upon the ...

Account in which a predetermined interest rate is paid for a predetermined period of time. For each contribution that is paid into the fixed account, a new guarantee period begins for that ...

Utilization of life insurance to make annual gifts into a trust in order to produce the largest tax-free death benefit possible to the trust beneficiaries. ...

The open perils policy is the counterpart to the named perils policy. In it, any peril NOT mentioned is covered by the policy. Here's an example: let's say you got an open perils policy ...

Physical, moral, or financial circumstance of a life insurance applicant that sets him or her apart from a physically, morally, and financially sound standard applicant. The underwriting ...

Coverage that exceeds the normal insurance capacity of an insurer or reinsurer. ...

Popular Insurance Questions