Private Placement Life Insurance: Potential Tax Changes and Reasons Why

Are taxpayers who acquire Private Placement Life Insurance (“PPLI”) doing something wrong? Certain politicians and academics think so. They argue that taxpayers who have the financial ability to purchase PPLI are somehow “abusing” the system. This article explains the general tax rules favoring life insurance policyholders and their beneficiaries, recent reports and cases putting PPLI in a bad light, and three recent proposals urging legislative changes by Congress and/or increased enforcement by the Internal Revenue Service.