Comparison between life insurance policies and capitalisation policies*
| Life insurance | Capitalisation | |
| Insured | YES | NO |
| Death cover | YES | NO |
| Beneficiary Clause | YES | NO |
| Term | Fixed or indeterminate term. | Fixed term. |
| Term extendible implicitly | NO | YES |
| Unwinding | At the death of the insured or on full surrender. | At the end of the policy or on full surrender. |
| Subscription by an individual | YES | YES |
| Subscription by a legal entity | YES | YES |
| Underlying investments | Subject to prudential rules in Luxembourg. Certain national rules may however be mandatory. | Subject to prudential rules in Luxembourg. Certain national rules may however be mandatory. |
| May be used as security | YES | YES |
| Taxation | Depends on the policyholder's country of residence. | Depends on the policyholder's country of residence. |
* Certain differences or similarities which may arise between life insurance policies and capitalisation policies are also subject to the legal provisions in the policyholder's country of residence. Certain particularities or exceptions may vary from one country to another, for example in the case of life insurance policies taken out by legal entities or capitalisation policies taken out by individuals.
Comparison between life insurance policies and capitalisation policies*
Luxembourg capitalisation policies
Case Study on Luxembourg capitalisation policies in Belgium
Comparison of the taxation of capitalisation policies in Belgium, France, Luxembourg, Monaco and Portugal
Capitalisation policies in France
Transfers via capitalisation policies in France
A Luxembourg life insurance contract includes an insured, death cover or a beneficiary clause, unlike a capitalisation contract which has none of these features. The life insurance contract can either be for a fixed term or an indefinite period, while the capitalisation contract must have a duration. Both life insurance capitalisation contracts can be taken out by a individual or a legal entity and the underlying investments are subject to the rules of the Comissariat aux Assurances.