What Is Insurance Portability?

Insurance portability lets you take your life insurance coverage with you when you leave a job, allowing you to take control of your policy and pay premiums yourself.

Definition and Examples of Insurance Portability

Life insurance portability allows you to continue coverage after your employer-provided coverage ends, such as when you leave a job. You’ll generally get a term life insurance policy without the need for a health exam or a health questionnaire, and you’ll pay the premiums yourself. The rate you get when you port will be based on your current age, and your coverage may be designed to renew every five years, for example. Each time you renew coverage, your premium will increase, so prepare yourself for rising costs.

Portability is a strategy for keeping life insurance coverage when you face a change in your existing group benefits. If you have health issues that make it hard to get life insurance, you might even use it to maintain long-term insurance coverage. Your employer might also give you the option to convert your group coverage into permanent insurance, which is not the same thing as porting it.

How Does Insurance Portability Work?

When your workplace benefits change, life insurance portability enables you to keep life insurance protection in place. For example, you might face a change in benefits if you leave your job, your spouse loses coverage, you get divorced, or your employer reduces benefits.1 These are known as “triggering events.” If you port your coverage, you’ll generally get a renewable term insurance policy that will continue as long as you pay premiums or until you reach a maximum age set by the insurer. You can pay premiums annually or more frequently, depending on the options available from your insurer.

How To Port a Policy

If you want your existing coverage to continue, you must apply and pay your first premium shortly after leaving your job (or another triggering event). You might need to complete the process within 30 to 60 days, but check with your insurance provider for details.

Portability is an optional feature that isn’t always available; it depends on several factors, including your employer’s choices, insurance company rules, and state laws. If keeping insurance coverage is important as you navigate life changes, verify which options are available before making any decisions.

Premiums

With a ported policy, you pay premiums directly to the insurance company instead of relying on payroll deductions. If your employer was paying for some or all of your coverage, that benefit goes away when you stop working, and you’ll be responsible for 100% of the cost. The amount you pay depends on your age, and the premiums will increase over time. At some point (often between ages 65 and 80), your coverage will end or the death benefit will be reduced.

Amount of Insurance

When you take your coverage with you, you typically keep the same death benefit—up to insurance company limits. For example, if you have a $300,000 death benefit, you could port that amount, assuming it’s below the insurer’s limit. You generally cannot add to your death benefit with a ported policy, but you can buy additional insurance as a separate policy.

Portability vs. Convertibility

With both portability and convertibility, you maintain life insurance coverage after your employee benefits change. There are several similarities between portability and conversion, but the main difference is that when you convert coverage, you get a permanent life insurance policy with a level premium. Porting your coverage typically provides temporary life insurance that increases in cost each year. Here’s a quick breakdown: