Tax Equity And Financial Responsibility Acts Of 1982 And 1983 (TEFRA)
Legislation that redefined life insurance and raised taxes on life insurance companies. Among the provisions were new rules for some life insurance products, including a definition of flexible premium life insurance, and an increase in life insurance company taxes. Congress was concerned that a policyholder could take a substantial amount, say $1 million, and, after putting a few dollars toward a life insurance premium, put the remainder into a tax-free investment vehicle. One of two tests had to be satisfied for a policy to qualify as life insurance: the cash surrender value policy could not exceed a net single premium, and the death benefit had to represent a certain percentage of the cash value, which declined as the policy-holder got older. For example, at age 40, the death benefit must be 140% of cash value. The second rule closed a loophole on tax-free withdrawals from annuities. Prior to 1982 annuity holders could withdraw their initial premium tax free at any time. The 1982 code decreed that any money withdrawn from an annuity would be considered income first and would therefore be taxable. The older 1959 tax code devised a shorthand formula for determining taxes paid by insurers. The formula worked when interest rates were low, but as they soared, insurers found ways to reduce the increased tax bite. The 1982 code introduced a stopgap measure designed to raise taxes on life insurers by $3 billion.
Popular Insurance Terms
Provision by an employer for the economic and social welfare of employees. Generally include: pension plans for retirement; group life insurance for death; group health insurance for ...
Possibility of a reduction in value of an insurance instrument resulting from a decrease in the value of the assets incorporated in the investment portfolio underlying the insurance ...
Inability to divide a cash value life insurance policy into a savings element and a protection element because, in theory, if the policyowner withdraws a portion or ail of the cash value, ...
each individual has an unlimited insurable interest in his or her own life, and therefore can select anyone as a beneficiary. parent and child, husband and wife, brother and sister have an ...
Excess funds above the amount required to establish legal reserves for the policies in force. These excess funds are generated as the result of mortality savings, excess interest earned on ...
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Modified endowment insurance policy under which the insured receives one-half the death benefit as the maturity value of the policy. ...
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