Life Insurance for Expats: U.S. Citizens Living Abroad Coverage Guide

This guide is designed to help you learn the options for life insurance for expats, digital nomads, global workers and etc. We will address issues as to why there needs to be a separate category, eligibilty, process and tips. We will also answer some of the most common questions when it comes to life insraunce for U.S. citizens living abroad.

Please feel free to reach out to us and let us review your unique situation. We are here to answer any questions you might have and to guide you through the process of securing a piece of mind.

Table of contents:

Why does residency matter in life insurance applications

What insurance companies are looking for when insuring expats

Life Insurance for Expats: What Are Your Coverage Options?

Things to consider when securing life insurance for expats

Helpful Tips to help qualify for coverage

FAQs About Life Insurance for Expats

Why Does Residency Matter in Life Insurance Applications?

The number of Americans choosing to live abroad is growing. With the power of globalization and the internet, more people have the freedom to work and live virtually anywhere in the world. We won’t bore you with statistics and forecasts, that’s not why you are reading this article. We would, however, mention that where you live and international travel makes a difference in your life insurance application.

Why?

Many countries are less developed compared to the US. There could be concerns about public health, safety, kidnapping, terrorism, military actions, and so on.

Actuaries consider many countries to pose a higher risk to one’s life. Typically, life insurance carriers divide the list of countries into A, B, C, and D categories. A is the best category. Generally, companies accept and approve life insurance for expats if they are living in one of A category countries. Think of residency as one additional criterion companies are taking into consideration. Past travels and plans are almost always part of your life insurance application. 

Every carrier has a different view on which country belongs to which category and puts a different weight on the question of travel. This is why is important to work with an insurance broker, who understands the complexity of residency and can guide you when searching for global life insurance.

 

 

What Do Insurance Companies Look for When Insuring Expats?

As we mentioned, residency is simply an additional underwriting factor companies are considering. Here is a list of things a company would ask when reviewing an application.

Residency status – companies would ask what is your immigration status. Are you a US citizen just traveling abroad or are you living abroad? We’ve dedicated an entire article about how insurance carriers view residency in terms of travel and insurance.

In this post, we will turn our attention specifically to US citizens/permanent residents who are traveling abroad.

 

Are you traveling less than 3 months per year to “A” category countries:

If this applies to you, you would be able to secure a life insurance policy with just about any carrier. They would still need to know the length of past and future travels, as well as the countries you’ve visited or are planning to. 

For example:

We’ve recently worked with a couple planning to tour Europe for their anniversary. The husband did not have sufficient coverage and he was able to fill out the application and complete the exam before leaving. For extra peace of mind, he purchased conditional/temporary insurance. This option gave them the security that if something happened to him while traveling, their 2 kids would be financially taken care of.

* Just for clarification – condition/temporary insurance is coverage offered by carriers while your application is underwriting. It is available after you complete your medical exam. Please send us a message if you have questions about conditional insurance.

 

Are you traveling abroad for more than 3 months per year to “A” category countries:

In this case, the companies would have additional questions when underwriting your application:

Which country (ies) are you planning to visit or reside in? They would want to make sure it is a county or territory that has been deemed “safe”. As we mentioned above, every company has its category.

Are you traveling abroad for more than 3 months per year to a B category county:

If this applies to you, please reach out to us immediately. Applications would be considered on an individual basis.

What separates us from other insurance brokers:

We would ask the right questions during our conversation. Then we would reach out to the companies we deem as best fit directly. That way, we would know exactly what should we expect to apply. This is an extra step we take to save you time and hassle down the road.

Financial ties to the US – this is another thing companies would be looking out for when underwriting your life insurance application. They want to know who will suffer a financial loss if something were to happen to you. Do you still have any financial obligation to tie you to the US? For example house, dependent family, business, etc.

Remember:

Occupation – this is another factor that they will take under consideration for several reasons:

• Is it dangerous; does it pose a higher risk – like a search or rescue flight pilot for example
• Does your occupation put you in a different class?

 * Many companies may not offer coverage on missionaries, journalists, political officials, and their families.

Life Insurance for Expats: What Are Your Coverage Options?

Depending on your unique situation and your needs, you can choose from 2 available life insurance options:

Term insurance 

These types of policies are pretty straightforward. You select the coverage amount you need and qualify for and the length of protection.

For example:

$1,000,000 coverage for 15-year term. This means that for the next 15 years, you would have a fixed monthly/annual premium. As long as the premiums are paid, the company will pay out to your beneficiary/ies $1,000,000 should you pass away. Typically, these policies are at a lower cost and they do not offer cash value build-up.

*What has been updated – as of 2025, most companies that will consider coverage for expats will require a minim death benefit of $1,000,000. In addition, they will issue a plan with a minum lenght of 20 years. This is the case for majority of the companies, not all. You might qualify for a lower coverage, if you meet additional criteria.

Permanent insurance 

There are several different variations of a permanent policy. They could be complex based on your needs and what you want to achieve. Their main objective is cash accumulation and/or lifelong protection. They are more expensive compared to the term products, but their features make them a very powerful financial tool. We have dedicated multiple guides on permanent life insurance options.

Key Considerations When Applying for Life Insurance Abroad

Naming a foreign national as a beneficiary on your life insurance policy 

It is not uncommon to want to name someone living outside of the US as a beneficiary to your life insurance policy. It is possible and again, we’ve dedicated an entire article on how to name a foreign national as a beneficiary that you can check out.

But there’s a catch

Think of the logistics of claiming the benefit. Will your beneficiary be able to contact the insurance company to file a claim. Does he or she speak English? In addition, in what ways he or she will be able to receive the death benefits. Just because it is possible, it may not mean that naming a foreign national as a beneficiary is a good idea, especcially if they live abroad.

Need to be in the US for the entire process 

This is a big one. Regardless of the option, coverage amount, or company you select, you NEED to be in the US for the entire life insurance application process:

• Solicitation
• Application
• Underwriting / medical exam
• Issuance/ policy acceptance

Depending on the company and your unique situation, an application could take anywhere from 3-8 weeks. Please allow enough in the US for carriers to review your application.

In some cases, we can work with our carriers and get them to approve a Limited Power of Attorney. Having this will allow someone you trust to accept the policy on your behalf, in case you need to leave the US.

Need to have a US address and a bank account

Your life insurance policy would be based on your address and the carrier would follow the requirements of your residence state. Also, they would require a US bank account to set up the monthly premium deductions, if paying every month. If you decide to pay annually, some carriers would still require the initial payment to be auto-deducted out of your checking account.

Tips to Help Expats Qualify for Life Insurance Coverage

Understand your needs – this is always crucial when considering life insurance. Why are you looking? What or who do you want to protect with a policy? Knowing your “why” would help us better determine the best-suited product for you and the coverage amount.

Be honest and upfront with us – this will help out on to provide you with accurate information and match you with the best carrier for you.

Have your documents easily available – pre prepared to confirm you still have financial ties to the US and that setting up life insurance in the US makes sense. For example: do you own a home in the US, do you have tax liablity, do you hold any assets in the US and etc.

Prepare for the medical exam – yes there will be a medical exam. Unfortunatly when it comes to life insurance for expats, companes will not waive thsi requiments. In addition, they could ask for a copy of your medical records.

Work with an insurance broker – this is important because brokers have a wide range of carriers to choose from. We know the guidelines and which carrier is best suited to offer life insurance coverage for expats. This could be the difference of getting your applictaion approved or declined.

FAQs About Life Insurance for Expats

What to expect when reaching out to us

We wanted to add this extra section to set the releasing expectation of what you should expect when you reach out to us. As we mentioned earlier, we are very particular about what we do. We would ask all the questions and take the time to review your situation and match you with the best carrier for you.

We can reach out to several companies ahead of time to confirm eligiblity. In our experience, this ensures that we will get the most recent information and true evaluation of your options. This would save you time, hassle, and money in the long run.

In conclusion:

We hope you find this guide helpful. We know you might have a lot of questions when searching for life insurance for expats and we are here to help. Just reach out to us via the quote form on the page, by leaving a comment below or simply giving us a call.

Thank you