Term insurance

The opportunity

SunTerm is a customizable life insurance solution for clients. SunTerm can be tailored to meet clients' unique needs and maximize protection for their family or business.

Target client profiles

SunTerm life insurance can address a broad range of client needs. With our different term lengths - T10, T15,T20 and T30, combined with face amounts ranging from $250,000 - $15,000,000, you have the ability to satisfy the unique protection needs of many Canadians.

SunTerm allows clients to purchase the coverage they need while meeting their budget concerns. Providing Canadians with lifetime financial security is at the heart of everything you do; for many clients, SunTerm can be the first step toward reaching that goal.

SunTerm is ideal for:

Business owners who are concerned with the succession of their company or are looking to protect the value of a key employee.
Individuals who are looking to provide future financial security for their family or beneficiaries.
Income replacement or mortgage and debt protection needs.
Clients who want to take care of non-permanent insurance needs while staying within a comfortable budget.
Those who want the comfort of knowing their insurance policy gives them the option to provide lifetime protection if their needs change.

Product details

Administrative information

Policy rescission

Your client may send us a written request to cancel the policy within:

10 days of receiving it from us, or
60 days after the policy is issued, whichever date is earlier.

When we receive the written request we'll refund any amount paid.

See the “Your right to cancel this policy” and the “If you change your mind within 10 days” sections of the policy for details.

Transaction fees

There are no surrender fees associated with this plan.

Conversion options

Coverage can be converted to a permanent life insurance policy for the insured person, for a death benefit not greater than that being converted, without giving us new evidence of insurability. The last date to convert coverage is the policy anniversary nearest the 75th birthday of the insured person.

If the coverage being converted has a Total disability waiver benefit, the permanent life insurance policy may also have a Total disability waiver benefit or equivalent benefit. If the policy contains a Total disability waiver benefit, it cannot be converted while the insured is disabled. However, if we are waiving premiums and the insured person remains disabled at the final conversion date, the policy may be converted to a permanent policy. The premiums on the new policy will continue to be paid while the insured person is disabled.

Any optional benefits included on the insured in the policy being converted may be included in the new policy without evidence if they are available and if they meet all minimums and the age requirements. The amount of each benefit cannot be greater than the amount of that same benefit in the original policy.

Further details can be found in the policy under "Policy summary".

Group plans cannot be converted to a SunTerm policy.

Partial term conversions

Clients who convert their term policy to a new permanent product can convert some of the remaining term coverage to a term insurance benefit (TIB) without underwriting.

This is available on all standalone convertible term products and is not available on TIBs. The term policy does not have to be fully converted to qualify.
The maximum amount of the TIB without underwriting is three times the face amount of the new base permanent plan.
The new TIB must be to the same term length or longer.
Attained age and rates will apply to the new policy and any optional benefits at the time of conversion.
The total amount of insurance, including the new permanent plan, the TIB, and whatever remains on original term plan cannot exceed the original term policy’s face amount. Otherwise underwriting will be required.

If the policy is a stand-alone SunTerm policy (not a TIB) within the term-to-term conversion window, Clients can keep their full term coverage amount (less what they convert to permanent insurance) as a TIB. We will only require underwriting if the Client decides to increase their total amount of life insurance.

This means the converting term policy must also be:

For Term 20: before the policy anniversary nearest the insured person's 65th birthday.
For Term 30: before the policy anniversary nearest the insured person's 55th birthday.

The TIB on the new permanent plan must be for a longer term duration than the original term plan.For example, a T10 or T15 converted to permanent life must have a T20 or T30 optional benefit.

For policies outside of the term-to-term conversion window, or keeping the same term length, the 3x base rule will apply.

Examples:

Original term plan	New permanent plan	New TIB	TIB amount requiring underwriting
$1,000,000 T10	$100,000	$900,000 T20	$0
$1,000,000 T15	$75,000	$925,000 T30	$0
$1,000,000 T10	$100,000	$1,000,000 T20	$100,000

Instructions: The information under the bullet point “this option is not available when” to follow this example chart.

The option is not available when:
- converting joint term policies,
- premiums are being waived up to and including the final conversion date on the original term,
- converting from a group term policy, or
- adding to an existing permanent plan.
For multi-life term policies, each person can add a TIB to their own permanent policy.
All product minimum rules apply

Converting a SunTerm coverage to a longer term length

Clients may convert a SunTerm 10 or SunTerm 15 coverage to an eligible 20 or 30 year renewable and convertible term life insurance policy, without evidence of insurability before the earlier of the seventh policy anniversary or the policy anniversary nearest the insured person's 65th birthday for term 20 or the policy anniversary nearest the insured person's 55th birthday for term 30. Premiums for the new policy will have age nearest rates.

Clients with preferred term life insurance rates will receive preferred rates when converting to a longer term length if they’re:

Age 41+ at the time of conversion for face amounts of $250,001 and up, or
Age 18-40 at the time of conversion for face amounts of $1,000,001 and up.

If the policy doesn’t meet the preferred rate criteria listed above, we’ll issue the new policy with standard rates.
Here are some examples:

Original term plan	Client age at conversion	New term plan	Preferred rate available on new policy?
$1,000,000 T10	40	$1,000,000 T20	No
$250,000 T15	30	$250,000 T30	No
$500,000 T10	45	$500,000 T20	Yes
$2,000,000 T15	37	$2,000,000 T30	Yes

Original age conversions to participating life insurance

Original age conversion overview: Within the first 6 policy years, we’ll allow Clients with the original age conversion wording in their contracts to convert their Term policy to a participating life insurance policy with the same original issue date as the Term policy without having to provide new evidence of insurability. When they convert, the Client must pay the greater of:

The difference between the Term insurance premiums from the date of issue and the premiums for the new participating life insurance policy, plus interest* compounded annually.
102% of the cash value of the converted policy, including the cash value of any dividends credited to the policy.

*The interest rate charged on the total participating life insurance premiums from the original policy date to the date the new policy is applied for will be equal to the dividend scale interest rate applicable to the converted policy in each applicable policy year.

Adding the Plus premium benefit: We’ll allow Clients to add the Plus premium benefit to the new participating life insurance policy at time of conversion without having to provide new evidence of insurability if the Term policy being converted is less than 5 years old, otherwise limited underwriting is required (same rules as regular conversions). We do not allow backdating of the Plus premium benefit; however, we may allow a lump sum payment of Plus premium at the time of conversion provided there is enough tax-exempt room. Adding the Plus premium benefit is subject to our capacity and retention rules.

Commissions: Commissions paid on the new participating life insurance policy would be the difference between the commissions already paid for the Term policy and those that are to be paid for the new participating life insurance policy.

Adding the original age conversion contract wording: The original age conversion contract wording is automatically included on Term policies issued from 2019 onwards with face amounts of $20 million or more, and on Term 10 policies with the renewal protection benefit with face amounts of $5 million or more.

The original age conversion contract wording can be manually added to Term policies with face amounts of $5 million or more on request before the policy is issued.

Splitting Joint policies

We will now allow Clients to split their Joint life policies into new single life policies at attained age and current rates without providing new evidence of insurability. The following criteria must be met:

The request to split a Joint life plan must be received within 90 days of obtaining a signed legal separation, divorce or dissolution of business partnership.
Splitting of Joint plans will be available for currently sold Joint First-to-Die or Joint Last-to-Die permanent life insurance products, and for currently sold Joint First-to-Die Term life insurance products. Splitting of Joint plans will not be allowed on plans sold prior to January 1, 2017.
The new single life plans will be the same type of policy as the original Joint plan. If the same type of policy is not available, Sun Life will determine what type of plans can be issued.
The face amount of the new single life plans can be no greater than 50% of the original Joint life base plan or a proportional split if more than 2 lives were insured on the Joint plan.
Premiums for the new plan(s) must be received at the time of application.
Upon splitting of the Joint plan, a full taxable disposition will occur. Any cash surrender value or fund value, less any outstanding loans or premiums, will be paid to the policy owner(s). This may result in tax implications, including increasing taxable income.

Canadian Life and Health Insurance Association (CLHIA) product disclosure requirements

You are responsible for providing clients with a copy of the SunTerm client guide

and a product illustration. This requirement complies with CLHIA product disclosure guidelines effective January 1, 2006 for new products, and January 1, 2007 for existing products.

Making a claim

You may assist clients in making a claim by calling 1 877 272 2020 to request claims forms.
Completed forms, including proof of the insured person’s death are mailed to:

Life Claims Services
Sun Life Assurance Company of Canada
227 King St. S.
PO Box 1601, Station Waterloo
Waterloo ON N2J 4C5
Canada

Payments to the plan

Clients can pay monthly using the Pre-Authorized Cheque plan (PAC) option or pay annually

Benefits

Renewal Protection Benefit (RPB)

Available with SunTerm 10 only
Issue ages: 18 - 65
Allows the client to pay an additional premium today in exchange for lower renewal premiums compared to SunTerm 10 without the benefit
Cannot be cancelled or added after issue

Accidental Death Benefit (ADB)

Issue ages: 18 - 65
Minimum benefit amount is $10,000
Maximum benefit amount is the lesser of two times policy face amount and $1,000,000
Expires at the policy anniversary nearest the insured person's 70th birthday
Premiums are level and are payable until expiry of the benefit.
Can be added after issue at policy anniversary only

Child Term Benefit (CTB)

Issue ages: 18 - 55
Child eligibility: 0-18 based on age nearest birthday
Covers any child named on the application (born, adopted and stepchildren) and automatically covers children born or legally adopted after the date of application. Stepchildren may be added after issue through an application
Minimum benefit amount: $10,000
Maximum benefit amount: $30,000
If the child is insured under CTB on another Sun Life Financial policy, the overall maximum is limited to $30,000
Costs are payable to the earlier of 20 years and the policy anniversary nearest the insured person's 70th birthday
Benefit expires at the policy anniversary nearest the base insured person's 70th birthday
Between the child's 18th and 25th birthdays, the owner will have the right to buy additional life insurance on the life of the child for up to 10 times the amount of the benefit
Can be added after issue at policy anniversary only

Total Disability Waiver Benefit (TDB)

Issue ages: 18 - 55
Expires at the policy anniversary nearest the insured person's 60th birthday
Benefit will waive up to $50,000 of annual premium across all Sun Life policies
Premiums will be waived as long as the insured is disabled
Cannot be added after issue

Owner Waiver Disability Benefit

Issue ages: 18 - 55
The owner must be different than the insured.
Expires at the policy anniversary nearest the owner's 60th birthday
Benefit will waive up to $50,000 of annual premium across all Sun Life policies
Premiums will be waived as long as the owner is disabled
Not available when the Business value protection benefit or Partner protection benefits have been selected
Cannot be added after issue

Guaranteed Insurability Benefit (GIB)

GIB allows policy owners to purchase additional life insurance for insured persons at their attained age without providing evidence of insurability.
Issue ages: 18-45
Minimum option amount: $20,000
Maximum option amount: Lesser of SunTerm face amount and $300,000
Elections are available every 3 years and within 31 days of a special event (marriage, birth/legal adoption of a child)
A maximum of 8 elections up to a maximum face amount of $2,400,000 are available
Expires at the earlier of the policy anniversary nearest the insured person's 55 birthday or once the maximum amount of elections have been made
Not available on joint plans
Not available if the Business value protection or Partner protection benefits have been selected
Not available after issue or for substandard risks

Business Value Protection Benefit (BVPB)

Allows business owners to purchase additional insurance as their business grows without providing medical evidence
Issue ages: 18 - 65
Minimum option amount: $250,000
Maximum option amount: $2,500,000 across all Sun Life Financial policies
Cumulative maximum equal to the lesser of $10,000,000 or 4 times the option amount
Options can be exercised annually within 31 days of the policy anniversary for the first 10 years
Expires at the earlier of the 10th policy anniversary or once the maximum amount of elections have been made
Not available on joint plans
Not available if the Owner waiver, Guaranteed insurability or Partner protection benefits have been selected
Not available after issue or for substandard risks

Partner Protection Benefit(PPB)

Benefit allows business partners to purchase additional insurance without providing medical evidence upon the death of one of the insured business partners
Issue ages: 18 - 65
Available on multiple life SunTerm policies only where there are a minimum of three single life coverages
Minimum option amount: $250,000
Maximum option amount: $10,000,000
The maximum amount of new insurance is equal to the deceased partner's insurance amount and will be split proportionately among the surviving partners
Expires at the earlier of the policy anniversary nearest the oldest insured person's 70th birthday or after the first death of an insured business partner
Not available if Owner waiver benefit, Business value protection benefit or Guaranteed insurability benefits have been selected
Not available after issue or for substandard risks

Living benefit

If the insured person is diagnosed with a terminal illness, they may be eligible for a lump sum advance of 50% of the death benefit, to a maximum of $250,000.

A living benefit advance is a non-contractual arrangement that may be approved by Sun Life Assurance Company of Canada, at its sole discretion.

Product overview

As an affordable, simple step in a clients financial strategy, SunTerm provides temporary life insurance protection for their short-term and long-term needs, with the flexibility to convert the insurance to meet their needs in the future.

Guarantees

The premiums and the death benefit for SunTerm are guaranteed for the life of the policy as long as the policy owner continues to make their premium payment.

Flexibility and choice

SunTerm gives clients more choice than ever with face amounts ranging from $250,000 to $25,000,000*. The following term lengths and issue ages are available:

Term 10: 18 - 75
Term 10 with Renewal protection: 18 - 65
Term 15: 18 - 70
Term 20: 18 - 65
Term 30: 18 - 55

* Special quotes available for cases over $ 25,000,000.

Premium rates for amounts above $10,000,000 are subject to reinsurance and underwriting reviews

Coverage options

Single Life: Covers one life
Joint first-to-die: Covers two lives. The included Survivor benefit and Automatic survivor benefit allow the surviving insured to purchase additional life insurance within 90 days of the first death. Splitting joint coverage into two single policies isn't permitted.
Multiple Lives: Covers up to 5 single lives or 4 single lives and 1 joint life per policy. Up to 3 additional coverages can be added at policy anniversary subject to underwriting. Each policy can have up to 9 coverages per life and a total of 15 coverages. Splitting coverages after issue isn't permitted

Convertibility to permanent insurance

SunTerm plans are convertible to permanent life insurance without evidence until the policy anniversary nearest the insured person's 75th birthday (oldest insured's 75th birthday for joint plans). Clients who convert part of their term coverage to permanent insurance can convert any remaining term coverage to an optional term benefit on their permanent policy, often without evidence.

Convertibility to a longer term length

SunTerm 10 and SunTerm 15 plans issued January 12th, 2015 and later can be converted to Term 20 and Term 30 plans. Conversion must be done before the earlier of the fifth policy anniversary and:

the policy anniversary nearest the insured person's 65th birthday for Term 20 (oldest insured's 65th birthday for joint plans)
the policy anniversary nearest the insured person's 55th birthday for Term 30 (oldest insured's 55th birthday for joint plans

Clients with preferred term life insurance rates will receive preferred rates when converting to a longer term length if they’re:

Age 41+ at the time of conversion for face amounts of $250,001 and up, or
Age 18-40 at the time of conversion for face amounts of $1,000,001 and up.

If the policy doesn’t meet the preferred rate criteria listed above, we’ll issue the new policy with standard rates.
Here are some examples:

Original term plan	Client age at conversion	New term plan	Preferred rate available on new policy?
$1,000,000 T10	40	$1,000,000 T20	No
$250,000 T15	30	$250,000 T30	No
$500,000 T10	45	$500,000 T20	Yes
$2,000,000 T15	37	$2,000,000 T30	Yes

Policy expiry

SunTerm plans are renewable until the policy anniversary nearest the insured's 85th birthday (oldest insured person's 85th birthday for joint plans).

Leading edge optional benefits

Payment options

Pay by monthly PAC or annual billing.

Advisor site

Term insurance

The opportunity

Target client profiles

SunTerm is ideal for:

Product details

Marketing material

Sample policy pages

Marketing material

Forms & tools

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