Whole life insurance
- Lifelong coverage
- Tax-free death benefit
- Chance to grow cash value
Last updated : July 31, 2023
Permanent life insurance is a type of life insurance policy that provides you with lifelong coverage to protect your loved ones. This coverage never expires, no matter your age or if your health changes. Permanent life insurance provides a death benefit, which is a tax-free payment your beneficiaries will get after you die.
There are 3 types of permanent life insurance plans: whole life insurance, universal life insurance and participating life insurance.
Each plan comes with unique features to meet your specific needs. Here they are at a glance:
There are several advantages to having a permanent life insurance plan, such as:
Some permanent life insurance plans also come with a savings portion called cash value, which can grow tax-preferred "Tax-preferred” means you won’t have to pay tax on any interest earned unless you withdraw funds or take certain types of policy loans. over time. You can borrow or withdraw funds from your cash value. Please note this will reduce your policy’s death benefit.
You’ll get insurance that never expires. Some insurance plans, like term life insurance, offer coverage for a select number of years. But permanent life insurance plans have you covered all throughout your life.
Your beneficiaries get the money from the death benefit to use in any way they want.
Typically, permanent insurance premiums Premiums are your monthly or annual payments. don’t increase from the time you first buy the policy. And some permanent insurance plans guarantee that you’ll pay premiums for a limited time, then never again.
Not sure what type of insurance you need?
A Sun Life advisor can help you figure it out and can provide you with a customized quote.
Enter your postal code below to connect with an advisor near you.
Looking for coverage up to $25,000? Then check out Sun Life Go Guaranteed Life Insurance.
It’s a permanent life insurance plan you can get without having to provide any medical details. You won’t need to answer any health questions or take any medical exams and are guaranteed to qualify regardless of your current health condition.
In Canada, permanent life insurance gives you coverage all throughout your life. Your beneficiaries will get a tax-free payment after you die. Some of our permanent life insurance policies can also help you build up a cash value.
You can get a quote online for up to $25,000 for one of our permanent life insurance products: Sun Life Go Guaranteed Life Insurance.
Get a permanent life insurance quote
If you’re interested in a life insurance policy that provides more than $25,000 in coverage, you can connect with an advisor to get a quote and apply.
Canadian residents can apply for permanent life insurance starting at age 16 (unless you live in Quebec). Anyone under age 18 can still be named as an “insured person” under a policy. But the policy owner must be a legal adult. For example, a parent can buy a policy for their children. For more detailed information, connect with an advisor.
The main difference is that permanent life insurance offers lifelong insurance coverage whereas term insurance covers you for a specific number of years (e.g., 10, 15, 20, or 30 years).
Both term and permanent life insurance will give your beneficiaries a payment after you die. But with a term policy, your beneficiaries won’t receive any money if you die after your term expires.
Learn more about the differences between term and permanent life insurance
Cash value is a savings portion within your policy that earns interest. You can borrow or withdraw from it. But there may be tax implications if you withdraw or borrow from your cash value.
You have two options to take cash out of your permanent life insurance policy:
No, a permanent life insurance policy doesn’t expire and will last your entire life.
It depends on the type of permanent life insurance policy you get. Some permanent policies give you the option to pay for life (age 100). And other permanent insurance policies require you to pay premiums only for a specific amount of time.
With most types of permanent life insurance, your premiums are guaranteed to remain the same throughout your life.
Most of our permanent life insurance plans require you to answer health questions and provide medical information.
The only exception is if you’re applying online for Sun Life Go Guaranteed Life Insurance, which is a no medical life insurance – this means you won’t have to answer any health questions. Please note that this product only offers coverage up to $25,000.
Most of our permanent life insurance plans require you to go through insurance underwriting. The only exception is if you’re applying online for Sun Life Go Guaranteed Life Insurance. There’s no underwriting or medical questions asked when applying for this product.
Not sure what type of insurance you need?
A Sun Life advisor can help you figure it out and get you a customized quote.