Last Updated on January 28, 2018 by lifepolicyshopper

Quick Tip: Complete the Instant Quotes form to receive an instant listing of carrier quotes - free - with no obligation. You can begin your free online research - right now...

Checkout our article Life Insurance - Replace SGLI

Life Insurance – Citizen Soldier

We have access to the best carriers on the planet. We specialize in finding the best life insurance plans for the citizen Solider when they lost their SGLI when leaving the National Guard. Life Insurance – The Citizen is what we do. The majority of National Guard soldiers and airmen hold a civilian job full-time while serving part-time as a National Guard member. These part-time guardsmen are augmented by a full-time cadre of Active Guard & Reserve (AGR) personnel in both the Army National Guard and Air National Guard, plus Army Reserve Technicians in the Army National Guard and Air Reserve Technicians (ART) in the Air National Guard.

The National Guard is a joint activity of the United States Department of Defense (DoD) composed of reserve components of the United States Army and the United States Air Force: the Army National Guard of the United States and the Air National Guard of the United States respectively.

Local militias were formed from the earliest English colonization of the Americas in 1607. The first colony-wide militia was formed by Massachusetts in 1636 by merging small older local units, and several National Guard units can be traced back to this militia. The various colonial militias became state militias when the United States became independent. The title "National Guard" was used from 1824 by some New York State militia units, named after the French National Guard in honor of the Marquis de Lafayette. "National Guard" became a standard nationwide militia title in 1903, and specifically indicated reserve forces under mixed state and federal control from 1933.

Life Insurance – Citizen Soldier

Since National Guardsmen are both members of the military and also have civilian jobs, there is access to term life insurance benefits through the military in the form of the Serviceman’s Group Life Insurance (SGLI) Program and might be available through the civilian employer. Also each state Military Department, through their National Guard Association offers some type of term life insurance program for National Guard members. 

Term life insurance coverage

The Citizen Soldier should carry the SGLI term life insurance and prior to retirement one should buy a suitable term life policy to be in place before the SGLI expires. Any of the programs typically offered are very expensive. The programs like VGLI and SGLI conversions to whole life are all very expensive and increase in cost as you age.

Permanent life insurance coverage

Prior to turning age 50 the Citizen Soldier should obtain some type of private permanent coverage. In fact, the younger the Citizen Soldier obtains permanent coverage, the less the monthly premium will cost. And to take this a step further – permanent coverage should really be considered while the Citizen Soldier is in the 30s and 40s.

Permanent coverage needs to be in place after the SGLI has expired to have in your retirement years to ultimately be in place to handle final expenses. Use the online quote engine here to get an idea of how much a permanent policy will cost at your current age. There are several permanent coverage options. There is whole life, universal life and even a term policy to the age of 100.

Permanent coverage is where it can get pretty complicated for the Citizen Soldier. Because it’s here one might consider using permanent life insurance instead of the military survivor benefit program (SBP) or the federal employee survivor benefit program and maximize retired pay.

Universal Life Insurance

Veteran Universal Life Insurance is insurance that works for veterans to aid them in their post military endeavors. Universal life insurance means that you can vary or even suspend your premium payments depending on the financial pressures you face. Unlike typical life insurance, which pays out only on the demise of the policy holder, or at a nominated age, veteran universal life insurance is an investment scheme as well as life insurance.

This means that you build up a balance which you can borrow against or from to finance various purchases. The flexibility that is built in with payments is unparalleled in the insurance world, and can really help you and your family financially. If the policy is performing well, your beneficiaries may even receive more than the nominated death benefit.

You can also borrow on the balance of the insurance, for things like post retirement income. These withdrawals are deducted from the death benefit which is paid out to the beneficiaries. All these benefits do come at a cost however, a cost that you bear in the form of higher premiums than normal life insurance.

Where the advantage comes in is that you can effectively combine life insurance and tax efficient growth, not only that, but the policy can be tailored to suit the needs of a growing family. You can choose which investments your policy goes towards.

This means that you can choose the amount of risk you take on, all whilst reaping the rewards that come with investments. Veteran universal life insurance can be an excellent means of safeguarding your family financially and a tax efficient way to access cash in the retirement years.

Whole life policies can vary a great deal when it comes to the way they are paid out. In some policies, the payout can be a fixed sum of money that has been decided on at the time the policy is started. In other cases, the payout may be dependent on investment performance after mortality costs and other expenses are deducted.

Within the arena of whole life polices, the timing and the amount of the premiums may vary as well. In some policies the premiums are paid at regular intervals such as monthly or every six months and the premium amount is fixed. In other cases, the premium amount will vary according to how the insurance investment is performing.

Whole life can also have a lot of flexibility in how it is bought and used. For example, some policies allow for the payout over a specified period of time, such as ten years. Once this period is over, the policyholder can continue the insurance coverage but usually at a higher premium rate.

These types of life insurance policies are useful for people who need increased coverage while they have dependent children, but will need reduced coverage later on in life that is all but guaranteed. This is not always the case with term life insurance where an illness can prevent the person from getting the policy.

It should be understood that whole life insurance often requires that the policyholder pay premiums for the life of the policy. Another scenario for whole life is for the policyholder to pay u front the cost of the entire policy, or that the cost of the policy be paid within a certain amount of time, such as five years. This can be expensive, and many consumers simply cannot afford the cost when it is presented in this fashion.

There are certain benefits associated with a whole life policy. Many companies will guarantee that the policy's cash values will increase regardless of the performance of the company. This can make a whole life policy an attractive investment for some people.

In addition, there is liquidity with these policies that other types of insurance may not be able to match. Cash values are often thought to be liquid enough to be used for investment capital, but the policyholder must be financially healthy enough to continue making the higher premium payments.

There can be some tax advantages as well, as cash value access is tax-free up to the total premiums paid. The remainder of the value can be tax-free if taken in the form of loans from the policy. If the policy lapses, tax payment will be due on the outstanding loans. If the insured dies, death benefit is reduced by the amount of any outstanding loan balance.

For more information on how to best replace SGLI read more here.