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

Entitlement of an employee to benefits immediately upon entering a retirement plan. As benefits are earned, they are credited to the employee's account. These "portable" future benefits can ...

Amount of uncertainty in a given situation. Probability that actual experience will be different from what is expected. ...

Period of time of insurance coverage. If a loss occurs during this time, insurance benefits are paid. If a loss occurs after this time period has expired, no insurance benefits are paid. ...

Qualified retirement plan under the internal revenue code Section 457 for employees of the states and political subdivisions within the states. ...

Risk management technique that evaluates property exposures preparatory to managing the risk. Although risk managers consider the original cost, depreciation, market value, and ...

Procedure in employee benefit plans to calculate life insurance and retirement benefits to which an employee is entitled. ...

Life insurance on the life of a child that provides a death benefit to a beneficiary should the child die during a stipulated time period and the maturity value of the policy at the end of ...

Aggregate sums, in certain states, to pay claims of insolvent insurance companies. These funds are maintained by contributions of companies operating in a particular state in proportion to ...

Same as term Funded Pension Plan: plan in which funds are currently allocated to purchase retirement benefits. An employee is thus assured of receiving retirement payments, even if the ...

Popular Insurance Questions