Can you change your life insurance beneficiary?

The short answer to the question, “Can you change my life insurance beneficiary?” is yes, with several parameters. However, it’s important to also know how to choose a life insurance beneficiary to ensure the policy functions as intended and offers financial protection to your loved ones.

Many life events can warrant a beneficiary change, including marriage and divorce, the birth or adoption of a child, purchasing a home, setting up a new trust for an estate plan, or the death of an existing beneficiary.

Understanding what a life insurance beneficiary is and how to change a life insurance beneficiary helps simplify this process and empower you to make these major decisions.

Understanding Life Insurance Beneficiaries

A life insurance beneficiary is a person who receives the death benefit when you pass away, often a spouse, significant other, or dependents. A life insurance beneficiary can also be an organization, trust, or other non-individual.

Some examples of non-individual beneficiary options include:

• Your estate
• A charitable organization that is meaningful to you
• A legal entity, like your business or company
• A life insurance trust

Many people assume that life insurance isn’t for them because they don’t have a spouse or children. However, if you’re recently divorced or your spouse recently passed away, consider these alternative options for making a lasting difference in a meaningful way to you. Learn more about how to handle a life insurance policy after a divorce.

It’s also worth noting that it often makes sense to designate multiple people or entities as beneficiaries and divide the death benefit based on the corresponding financial needs.

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How to Change a Life Insurance Beneficiary

As the policyholder, only you can change the beneficiary on your life insurance policy, with a few exceptions.

For example, suppose there is an irrevocable beneficiary listed on the policy, or you live in a community property state. In that case, you may need another person’s permission before making this change. An individual you have given power of attorney may also change the beneficiary on your policy.

These circumstances are discussed in more detail below.

Irrevocable Life Insurance Beneficiaries

Changing the beneficiary is a little more complex if a life insurance policy has an irrevocable beneficiary designation. An irrevocable beneficiary can’t be removed or have their portion of the death benefit changed without their consent. Additionally, an irrevocable beneficiary must be notified if the policy gets canceled. Read more about how to cancel your life insurance policy.

So, why choose an irrevocable beneficiary? Sometimes, you might use one to guarantee that a particular person or organization will receive the death benefit. However, remember the difficulty of changing the beneficiary when you choose this for your life insurance policy.

Changing Beneficiaries in a Community Property State

Like an irrevocable beneficiary, spouses also have this type of decision-making authority in many states. A handful of community property states require the spouse’s permission to make a beneficiary change, including:

• Arizona
• California
• Idaho
• Louisiana
• Nevada
• New Mexico
• Texas
• Washington
• Wisconsin

In a community property state, assets acquired during the marriage are considered equally owned by each spouse, and life insurance policies fall within the category of community property.

In this case, if the life insurance policy took effect after you got married, you’ll need your spouse’s permission to name someone other than them as the beneficiary on your policy. Read more about life insurance for families.

Revocable Life Insurance Beneficiaries

Suppose you don’t have an irrevocable beneficiary on your policy and are investigating options for changing the current beneficiary. In that case, you’re likely wondering who has the right to change a revocable beneficiary.

The good news is that “revocable” means you can change your beneficiary.

When can a policyholder change a revocable beneficiary? A beneficiary change can occur any time after the policy is in force. If the policy is still active and hasn’t been paid out, you can request a change of beneficiary.

How to Choose a Life Insurance Beneficiary

Your beneficiary should be someone you trust to use the funds to take care of final expenses, debts, and ongoing bills like the rent or mortgage, child care and higher education costs, and other important financial necessities once you die.

In most cases, you can select multiple beneficiaries, known as primary, secondary, and successor beneficiaries. The primary beneficiary is the person designated to receive the death benefit when you pass. A secondary beneficiary, often called a contingent beneficiary, will receive the death benefit if the primary beneficiary is deceased at the time of the payout. 

Additionally, you can’t name your pet as your insurance beneficiary because pets lack the legal capacity to own property or handle financial matters. Insurance beneficiaries must be human beings or legally recognized entities capable of accepting and managing the proceeds.

Read More: Why You Can’t Name Your Pet as Your Life Insurance Beneficiary

Naming Your Children as Beneficiaries

Dependents cannot access life insurance benefits unless they are 18 or older. Therefore, minors will need to wait until they become a legal adult unless a guardian gets appointed to access the funds on their behalf.

Electing a guardian or setting up a trust are two ways to be sure the funds get used for your minor children’s needs. Learn more about how to name a minor child as a life insurance beneficiary below.

Appointing a Guardian

Appointing a legal guardian to manage a life insurance payout is a common way of designating minor children as beneficiaries. By selecting a guardian as the beneficiary on behalf of your dependents, the money must be used in their interest, and they can access the funds sooner than they otherwise would without a guardian.

The person who would take custody of your kids if you died is often the best person to designate as a guardian on your life insurance.

Establishing a Trust

Setting up a trust is another way to make sure the life insurance benefit goes to your children through the trust. While appointing a guardian only requires the potential guardian’s willingness, a trust generally has a cost associated with setup. Typically, fees are required upfront, and a trustee must be named to facilitate the payout. Read more about life insurance for children.

Rather than receiving a single payout like most life insurance policies, a trust can disperse the death benefit at set times and in certain amounts you predetermine as the policy owner. However, just as a life insurance policy needs to be active at the time of death, a trust must also be in good standing for it to function as intended when you pass.

Helpful Tips for Heirs and Beneficiaries

You don’t need to stay with the deceased’s firm as an heir or beneficiary once the life insurance policy gets paid out. However, if assets or investments are involved, do your due diligence before adding new ones or making any transfers.

Potential Tax Consequences for Changing Beneficiaries

If you’re wondering whether life insurance is taxable, the answer is no. Life insurance polices don’t get taxed when paid to a beneficiary or if the beneficiary gets modified. However, in some cases, the life insurance benefit can be considered part of the policyholder’s estate and may be calculated as part of the taxable estate value.

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Case Studies: Changing Life Insurance Beneficiaries

Case Study 1: Newly Married Couple

John and Sarah recently got married and want to update their life insurance policies to include each other as beneficiaries. They both have separate policies from before they got married and need to make the necessary changes.

They contact their respective insurance companies and submit the required documentation, such as marriage certificates, to update their beneficiaries. After the changes are processed, John and Sarah have peace of mind knowing that they have provided financial protection for each other in case of any unfortunate event.

Case Study 2: Divorced Policyholder

Emily recently finalized her divorce and wants to remove her ex-spouse as the beneficiary of her life insurance policy. She contacts her insurance company and submits a written request along with the divorce decree as documentation.

The insurance company reviews the request and updates Emily’s beneficiary information, removing her ex-spouse from the policy. Emily feels relieved knowing that her life insurance policy now reflects her current situation and ensures that the death benefit will go to the intended beneficiary.

Case Study 3: Birth of a Child

David and Lisa recently welcomed their first child into their family. They realize the importance of updating their life insurance policies to include their child as a beneficiary. They contact their respective insurance companies and provide the necessary documentation, such as the child’s birth certificate.

The insurance companies process the changes, and David and Lisa have peace of mind knowing that their child will be financially protected in the event of their untimely passing.

More About How to Change a Life Insurance Beneficiary

Can you change your life insurance beneficiary? Life insurance is meant to protect those you care about most, so changing a life insurance beneficiary may be necessary after a divorce, when loved ones pass away, and any other significant life changes.

Reviewing your policy periodically is a proactive way to ensure that the designated beneficiary still makes sense for your current life circumstances. With only minimal limitations in most cases, the power to change your beneficiary at any time lies with you.

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