Life insurance in Minnesota

How your policy is protected if an insurer fails

Minnesota is one of six jurisdictions that protect life insurance death benefits up to $500,000, according to NOLHGA. If a life or health insurer licensed in Minnesota becomes insolvent, the Minnesota Life & Health Insurance Guaranty Association continues coverage for Minnesota residents, usually by moving policies to a healthy insurer, up to the limits in Minn. Stat. §61B.19. Keep paying premiums so your coverage stays in force.

Limits are as of October 4, 2026, from the association's FAQ and the statute. The $410,000 annuity limit applies to structured settlement annuities and to annuities that began paying for the annuitant's lifetime, or for a period certain of at least 10 years, before the insurer became impaired or insolvent. Unallocated annuities that fund 401, 403(b) or 457 retirement plans are covered up to $250,000 per Minnesota participant, with a $10,000,000 ceiling per plan. Multiple fixed annuities with the same failed company share one $250,000 limit; the rest becomes a claim against the insurer's estate.

The association is not a government agency; it is funded by assessments on member insurers. Minnesota law bars agents and companies from using it in advertising, though since August 1, 2009 an agent may explain the coverage verbally during the application process. It remains a backstop, not a substitute for choosing a financially strong insurer. See state life and health guaranty associations and what happens if your life insurance company fails.

Who regulates life insurance in Minnesota

Insurance is regulated by the Minnesota Department of Commerce, which also oversees banking, real estate and other financial services. Its consumer services line is 800-657-3602 in Greater Minnesota or 651-539-1500 in the Twin Cities, and complaints can be called in to 651-539-1600.

Free look, grace periods and policy rules

• Free look: you can cancel an individual life policy by returning it with written notice before midnight of the 10th day after you receive it. The insurer must refund the entire premium within 10 days, and the policy is void from the start (Minn. Stat. §72A.51). A replacement policy must give you 30 days from delivery for an unconditional refund (§61A.57). See the free-look period: returning a policy for a refund.
• Grace period: a one-month grace period applies to every premium after the first, and coverage continues during it; if the insured dies in the grace period, the overdue premium can be deducted (§61A.03).
• Suicide clause: Minnesota limits a suicide exclusion to deaths within one year of the policy's issue date, shorter than the two years common elsewhere (§61A.031). If you or someone you know is struggling, call or text 988 (Suicide & Crisis Lifeline).
• Interest on claims: insurers, including fraternal benefit societies, must pay interest from the date of death to the payment date at no less than the rate they pay on proceeds left on deposit. If they don't pay within 60 days after receiving proof of death, the rate rises by 2 percentage points (§61A.011).

Taxes, estates and community property

Minnesota has an estate tax but no inheritance tax. The exclusion has been $3,000,000 since 2020, including for 2026, and rates run from 13% to 16%, according to the Minnesota Department of Revenue. With a federal exclusion of $15,000,000 in 2026, many Minnesota estates owe state tax but no federal tax, and a policy you own counts toward the estate. An irrevocable life insurance trust can keep proceeds out of it; see state estate and inheritance taxes and life insurance and an estate attorney.

Minnesota is not a community property state.

Finding a lost policy or unclaimed benefits

Look for premium payments in bank records, check with former employers about group coverage, and use the free NAIC Life Insurance Policy Locator. Unclaimed benefits are eventually turned over to the Minnesota Department of Commerce, which runs the state's free missing-money search. If the insured lived or worked in Wisconsin, Iowa or North Dakota, search those states too. See how to find a lost life insurance policy and unclaimed life insurance money and state unclaimed property.

Life insurers based in Minnesota

• Securian Financial (Minnesota Life) is based in St. Paul.
• Thrivent, a member-owned fraternal benefit society founded by Lutherans, is headquartered in Minneapolis and Appleton, Wisconsin.
• Allianz Life, the U.S. life and annuity arm of Germany's Allianz, is based in Golden Valley.
• RiverSource is the insurance brand of Minneapolis-based Ameriprise Financial.
• Federated Life is part of Federated Insurance in Owatonna.
• UnitedHealthcare life affiliates covers the life insurance affiliates of UnitedHealth Group, based in Minnetonka.

Where to get help

• Minnesota Department of Commerce: 800-657-3602, mn.gov/commerce, 85 7th Place East, Suite 280, Saint Paul, MN 55101. File online through the department's complaint page or call 651-539-1600. See how to file a complaint against a life insurer.
• Minnesota Life & Health Insurance Guaranty Association: 612-322-8713, mnlifega.org, 225 S. 6th Street, Suite 2900, Minneapolis, MN 55402.
• Unclaimed property: the Department of Commerce's missing money search.