Corporate Alternative Minimum Tax: Implications For Corporate-owned Life Insurance

Definition of "Corporate alternative minimum tax: implications for corporate-owned life insurance"

INSURANCE tax that exhibits direct impact on the book income preference. Beginning with the year 1990, the book income preference became equal to 75% of the excess of current adjusted earnings of the alternative minimum taxable income (AMTI). Book income preferences are affected by corporate-owned life insurance in the following situations:

  1. If the insured dies, the excess of the life insurance policy's DEATH BENEFIT over the CASH SURRENDER VALUE becomes book income to the corporation.
  2. If the insurance policy's annual premium exceeds the increase in the cash surrender value for a particular year, the result is a decline in the book income and thus a decline in the corporation's exposure to the alternative minimum tax (AMT).
  3. Conversely, if the insurance policy's cash surrender value exceeds the increase in the annual premium for a particular year, the result is an increase in the book income and thus an increase in the corporation's exposure to the alternative minimum tax.

Generally, if the corporation in any given year has taxable income, corporate-owned life insurance results in an alternative minimum tax liability if a significant death benefit is paid to the corporation upon the death of the insured. The result is that the alternative minimum tax will cause a reduction in the net death benefit from the life insurance policy paid to the corporation.

image of a real estate dictionary page

Have a question or comment?

We're here to help.

*** Your email address will remain confidential.
 

 

Popular Insurance Terms

Assets of an insurer that are due and payable in the current year but have yet to be received by the insurer. ...

In insurance, agreement between an insurer and an insured under which the insurer has a legally enforceable obligation to make all benefit payments for which it has received premiums. ...

Coverage in the event an insured's negligent acts and/or omissions involving the construction of a new one- or two-family residential structure result in bodily injury and/or property ...

Wording in life insurance policies to determine the order of deaths when the insured and the beneficiary die in the same accident. For example, if the insured is deemed to have died first, ...

in PERSONAL PROPERTY insurance, coverage is for personal property items that are movable, that is, not attached to the building's structure (the home), such as television sets, radios, ...

Length of time in life and health insurance in which an employee can apply for and pay the first premium without having to show evidence of insurability (take a physical examination). The ...

Transfer of property without payment. ...

Method of integrating an employee's Social Security or other retirement benefits with a qualified retirement plan. Some employers offset (reduce) retirement or disability income benefits ...

Trading of stock to enhance portfolio performance and reduce taxes. This practice is followed when the investor has accumulated losses on stocks and sells these stocks in order to use the ...

Popular Insurance Questions