Life Insurance for Non U.S. Citizens Blog
Foreigners, Visa Holders and Non U.S. Residents

Foreign National Estate Taxes

Foreign National Investment in USA needs protection

By | Foreign Nationals | No Comments

Updated: August 16th, 2016. 

Most foreign nationals (non U.S. resident aliens) are not aware that their investment accounts are subject to estate taxes. Those estate taxes could add up to almost 40% of the accounts, and assets they hold in the US.

What are estate taxes for foreign nationals?

Imagine the estate tax as a Death Tax. Residents and citizens don’t have to pay estate taxes on their first $5.3 million (we are using Florida as an example, your estate taxes may change by state). That’s what we call the estate tax exemption, anything above $5.3 million they will have to pay estate taxes. However, the estate tax exemption for foreign nationals is only $60,000, anything above that will be subject to “death taxes”.

Foreign National Investment in USA:

I see many foreign nationals hold investment accounts in the U.S. for many reasons. People want to invest in a stable country, with a strong currency and a banking and investment system that works. But there are issues with these type of accounts.

For example let’s say you have an account with Morgan Stanley worth $1,000,000. If you were to pass away your family will have to pay almost $400,000 to the government in estate taxes. Please contact your estate planning attorney for a proper analysis of estate taxes and how to reduce your estate taxes.

That makes an Investment Account for foreign nationals very costly at the death of the owner.

Simple solution for Estate Taxes on Investment Accounts that may fit many people is life insurance. Life insurance can be a good way to protect from estate taxes by using the life insurance to pay for the taxes.

Let’s use the same example with the $1,000,000 in Morgan Stanley. For a healthy 50 year old, he could get a 10 year term insurance to pay the estate taxes. The cost would be approximately $40/month!

So you can either pay $400,000 at death, or protect your self for $40/month for 10 years.

An other issue is that as the if your accounts grow, so does the estate tax you will have to pay when you die, so it is imperative you protect your self not only for the taxes you would have to pay today, but also in the future if your assets were to appreciate.

Life Insurance as an Asset

There are also ways to make your life insurance an asset and not an expense. Under certain circumstances this you can benefit from a growing life insurance that will protect your investments from the inevitable estate taxes.

Please make sure you contact your estate planning attorney to find out how much of your assets are exposed to estate taxes.

Contact Us if you would like to find out if you can get life insurance to protect your investment accounts, or leave a comment if you have any questions.

Life Insurance with E1 visa

By | Uncategorized | 2 Comments

Life Insurance with an E1 visa

It is quite simple to get life insurance with an E1 visa, if you reside in the U.S. Also if you have an E-1 visa, and all you want is to get life insurance, leave us a comment or fill our contact form.

First of all there are a few things you should know about applying for life insurance. You have to make sure you are working with an insurance company that will treat you favorably as a non permanent resident. And the good news is there are many high rated companies that can give you the best ratings.

One of the best strategies is to have your agent write a cover letter explaining your situation to the life insurance company. This will make you a real person in their eyes, not another number. There are also key pieces of information that you can provide that the life insurance company would look at your particular case more favorably.

The process for getting life insurance with E1 visa is:

  1. Call an experienced agent that has helped non citizens obtain life insurance.
  2. Look at the best options out there for your situation.
  3. Fill out a form online to apply for life insurance.
  4. Your insurance agent will help you schedule a medical test.
  5. Perform the medical test which consist of a blood sample and urine sample.
  6. Wait for the company to approve you (between 6 to 8 weeks).
  7. Receive your finalized policy.

If you have an E1 visa you will be able to get all types of life insurance: Term Insurance, Whole Life Insurance and Universal Insurance. Not all companies will offer all these type of policies, but we have found many highly rated companies that do.

As you can see the process is quite simple, but working with someone that knows the process for non citizens is the most important.

If you would like our help, contact us: contactus@lifeinsurancenoncitizen.com

Life Insurance for Colombian Citizen in the U.S.

By | Countries | No Comments

Can I get life insurance as a Colombian Citizen living in the U.S.?

YES, you can. Most insurance companies will insure a Colombian citizen that lives in the U.S. without much hassle. You will need to provide proof of your immigration status (green card, visa type, etc.), and go through a normal process of applying for life insurance. The good news is we have listed what companies will give Colombian citizens the best rating possible while buying life insurance.

Life insurance for Colombian Citizen living outside of the U.S.

It is possible to get life insurance for Colombian citizen outside of the United States. First you will need a financial need for the life insurance, for example an investment account or a property could be a reason. It’s important that you protect the investments from Estate Taxes, which could be up to 40% of the value when you pass-away. You will also need to have a bank account, and do all the process in the U.S.

The process requires more steps and paperwork but with a good agent it should be done in 6-8 weeks. To understand all the process for purchasing life insurance, please see our article: Life Insurance as a Non Resident or non Citizen.

Will my death benefit pay even if I leave the country?

Yes, if you pass away, and you are not in the U.S. your beneficiaries will still receive the death benefit. You will have to make sure they are aware of whom to contact in case of your death. The best is that you give them the direct contact to you insurance agent. At the time of death, your family will need to provide the insurance company with a death certificate as proof.

Can I get life insurance on a family member that is from Colombia?

If the person lives in the U.S. and there is a need for the life insurance, it shouldn’t be a problem.

Here are a 3 tips on the things you should know about life insurance:

You will need to provide all documents regarding your immigration status (visa, green card, etc.)
You will need to provide all medical documents if you have had any surgeries or medical problems in the last 10 years (These will need to be translated, although some insurance companies will accept them in Spanish).
Make sure you work with an expert for non-citizens. The rules are different and you could get a bad rating, which would affect the price of the policy.

Contact us if you would like a quote: Contact Us!

Life Insurance For Mexican Citizens

Life Insurance for Mexican Citizens in the U.S.

By | Countries | No Comments

Updated Apr 5th, 2017

Life Insurance for Mexican Citizens

The great news is that getting life insurance for Mexican citizens that live in the U.S. is not as hard as you might think. If all you need is a quote leave a comment or fill out our contact form. Hablamos español.

Here are some rules for Mexican citizens looking for life insurance.

Lived In The U.S. For More Than 2 Years

If you have been in the Unites States longer than 2 years, for life insurance purposes, you will be treated as a resident. This means that you can get all types of life insurance like term, universal or whole life. Also, your ratings will not be affected, and you will pay regular rates. The company you chose will need the following information:

  • Visa copy.
  • Passport copy.
  • You will need to take a medical exam which consists of a blood test and urine test.
  • If you travel to Mexico you will need to disclose how often, and if you have any plans to go there.
  • All of the process will need to be done in the U.S. and it should take between 6-8 weeks.

Companies To Use

The following are 2 great, highly rated companies that will give Mexican citizens great ratings for life insurance.

Principal Life Insurance

Principal Financial Group

Principal Financial Group
A+ (Superior) A.M. Best Company

A member of the FORTUNE 500®, has $517.9 billion in assets under management and serves some 19.4 million customers worldwide from offices in 18 countries throughout Asia, Australia, Europe, Latin America and North America.

John Hancock Life

John Hancock Company

John Hancock Financial
A+ (Superior) A.M. Best Rating

John Hancock Financial is a unit of Manulife Financial Corporation, a leading Canada-based financial services group with principal operations in Asia, Canada and the United States.

You can’t go wrong choosing any of these two companies, and you will get most likely a positive outcome. In addition, if you would like to get a quote to compare each company you can get if here: Set Meeting an Online Meeting

Less Than Two Years In The U.S.

We have been helping Mexican citizens in this particular case for many years. And we have the expertise to know what companies will give you the best rating. As a matter of fact there are still many option for Mexican citizen that just moved to the U.S. but you have to know who will approve you.

Non Medical Option

We were able to secure a non medical option for life insurance. This means you will NOT have to do a blood and urine test. While the rates may be a little bit more expensive, the convenience for many people is worth it. This speeds up the time it takes for you to get approved and have life insurance.

Because of competitive reasons we can reveal who this provider is, but contact us and we can help you get life insurance without a medical exam.

 

Life Insurance for Mexican citizens that live outside of the U.S.

There are a few companies that will give you a good rating as a foreign national. In general you will need the following to apply for life insurance:

  1. You will need to prove why you need the insurance in the U.S.
  2. Copy of your Visa
  3. You will need to have a U.S. bank account
  4. A cover letter from your agent explaining your situation
  5. You have to complete all of the process in the U.S.

Also, please talk to your accountant about the taxation of your assets in the U.S. for your particular situation.

Leave a comment or email us at : contactus@lifeinsurancenoncitizen.com

Get A Free Quote!