Skip to content
Back to index
V0613-26 17 March 2026 · SG de Tributación de las Operaciones Financieras Criterion in force
ISD · seguro de vida

Life insurance payout taxed under Inheritance and Gifts Tax if policyholder differs from beneficiary

A life insurance beneficiary receives a payment for absolute permanent disability, with the policyholder being their spouse. The DGT rules that since the policyholder and beneficiary are different, the amount is subject to Inheritance and Gifts Tax.

The question raised

Question posed: Taxation of the indemnity received.

The DGT's ruling

When the policyholder and the beneficiary of a life insurance policy are different persons, the amounts received are subject to Inheritance and Gift Tax. In this case, as the spouse is the policyholder and the claimant is the beneficiary, the permanent disability indemnity is taxed as a gratuitous legal transaction 'inter vivos'. Double taxation is avoided since the same increase in assets cannot be taxed under both taxes.

Apply this to a real case

What is published here, applied to a company or a specific case. The first meeting is free.

Email
Contact