Home Life insurance Life insurance questions How life insurance works during a divorce How life insurance works during a divorce Written by Desiree Ghazi Reviewed by Nupur Gambhir Nupur Gambhir Nupur Gambhir is a content editor and licensed life, health, and disability insurance expert. She has extensive experience bringing brands to life and has built award-nominated campaigns for travel and tech. Her insurance expertise has been featured in Bloomberg News, Forbes Advisor, CNET, Fortune, Slate, Real Simple, Lifehacker, The Financial Gym, and the end-of-life planning service. Updated on: August 8, 2023 Why you can trust Insure.com Quality Verified At Insure.com, we are committed to providing the timely, accurate and expert information consumers need to make smart insurance decisions. All our content is written and reviewed by industry professionals and insurance experts. Our team carefully vets our rate data to ensure we only provide reliable and up-to-date insurance pricing. We follow the highest editorial standards. Our content is based solely on objective research and data gathering. We maintain strict editorial independence to ensure unbiased coverage of the insurance industry. Life insurance can get tricky during a divorce. There are many possibilities to consider when getting a divorce: While term life insurance won’t be considered an asset, a cash value policy like whole or universal life can be. Because of this, life insurance may be considered part of a divorce settlement. Additionally, a court may mandate that one of the parties purchases a life insurance policy with the other as a beneficiary. After a divorce, you should also update your life insurance beneficiaries accordingly. For example, if you had listed your spouse as your beneficiary, you may want to update the beneficiary designation to someone new. When you’ll need to consider life insurance a marital assetA permanent policy’s accumulated cash value is considered a marital asset. When splitting assets, it may be as simple as withdrawing the cash from the policy and splitting it. After which, you’ll cancel the policy.Sometimes, you may ask the court to keep the policy — but there’s a chance you’ll have to keep your former spouse on the policy as a beneficiary. Pension protection with life insuranceWhile child care is the main reason for a divorce-related life insurance policy, pension protection is another consideration.Police, firefighters and other civil servants often have pensions that build until retirement, when the two ex-spouses would then be entitled to an equal share. The Uniformed Services Former Spouses Protection Act entitles military spouses to a portion of retirement pay.Since an ex’s early death can threaten the pension amount that a former couple would share, a life insurance policy could also protect the future earnings of an ex-spouse.Why courts may order you to buy a policy on your former spouse“Once you start a matrimonial action, the state orders everything frozen,” says New York City divorce attorney Bruce Provda, partner at Provda Law. “You can’t change, sell or encumber any asset without a court order.”After filing, each spouse has to fill out forms detailing assets and liabilities, including mortgage, checking and savings accounts, credit and debt, investments, retirement and pension plans and, if relevant, insurance. Each one must also list the names and ages of their children and any other dependents.Sometimes, the court will mandate that one ex-spouse must have a policy with the other as a beneficiary. This usually happens if one spouse owes the other child support or alimony. The life insurance policy would be in place to replace the child support or alimony if the paying spouse died. QuickTake What is demutualization and what does it mean for policyholders? How to protect your life insurance money from being stolen Can you cash in a paid up life insurance policy? Can someone take out a secret life insurance policy on you? Can you change the coverage of your term life insurance? Can I withdraw money from my life insurance policy? How can I get life insurance if I'm in poor health? Are you too old to buy affordable life insurance? Do life insurance policies pay out if you die of old age? Protect yourself from insurance revenge during divorce Can I take out a life insurance policy on my spouse? What to do if your life insurance policy lapses How to find lost life insurance policies Can I withdraw money from my term life insurance? How to forfeit life insurance proceeds? 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Can a life insurance beneficiary change on deathbed? how to find a lost life insurance policy what happens to cash value in whole life policy at death How long do you have to be a non smoker for life insurance? See more > Updating your policy after a divorce If you have a term life insurance policy or didn’t split your policy with your former spouse, make sure your policy is updated after the divorce. This may mean your former spouse is no longer the beneficiary on the policy. If you don’t adjust the beneficiary designation on your policy after your divorce and then die, the death benefit will be paid out to whoever is listed in your policy — even if it’s a former spouse. A will or any written document cannot override a life insurance policy designation. Getting divorced is difficult regardless of the situation. Talk to a financial advisor when navigating life insurance during a divorce. × Get Free Life Insurance Quotes Today! Zip Code Please enter valid zip Age Age 16 – 20 21 – 24 25 – 34 35 – 44 45 – 54 55 – 64 65+ Coverage Amount Coverage Amount $50,000 – $100,000 $100,000 – $200,000 $200,000 – $300,000 $400,000 – $500,000 $500,000 – $1,000,000 $1,000,000 – $2,000,000 $2,000,000 – $5,000,000 $5,000,000+ Coverage Type Coverage Type Whole Life Term Life Final Expense Not Sure Gender Gender Male Female Non-Binary Tobacco Use Yes No Compare Quotes Related Articles Term Life Insurance Index: Sales rise by 1% in Q2, reaching record high By Nupur Gambhir How much term life insurance costs By Huma Naeem The 10 largest life insurance companies By Chris Kissell How to get life insurance if you’re uninsurable By Penny Gusner What to avoid before the life insurance medical exam By Desiree Ghazi Life insurance for people with dementia By Satta Sarmah-Hightower On this page When you'll need to consider life insurance a marital assetPension protection with life insuranceWhy courts may order you to buy a policy on your former spouseUpdating your policy after a divorce ZIP Code Please enter valid ZIP See rates