Indexed universal life insurance (IUL) is permanent life insurance from international insurers, with a US dollar death benefit from US$1m and a cash value that earns index linked credits within a 0% floor and a cap; policy charges still apply, so cash value can fall. Gibraltar residents, British expatriates and business owners can hold IUL, personally or through an offshore trust or company where the insurer accepts it. Gibraltar has no capital gains tax and abolished estate duty in 1997; UK inheritance tax can still apply to British people who were long-term UK residents. Capital for Life specialises in IUL and PPLI for internationally mobile families and the advisers who serve them. Information, not advice.
Can I buy IUL while living in Gibraltar?Yes. Gibraltar residents and expatriates aged 18 to 79 can hold IUL from international insurers, with cover from US$1m.
Everything on this page is information, not advice. You can come to us directly, or through your financial adviser, trustee or private bank.
We work with you directly. Policies are issued on the basis of your country of residence, not your nationality, and we coordinate the illustrations, underwriting and medicals with the insurer.
To request an illustration, email quotes@capitalforlife.com.
Where you introduce a client, your own regulatory permissions govern the advice given to your client, and the client relationship stays with you. We provide the specialist structuring: insurer comparison, underwriting coordination and policy design.
Yes. Gibraltar residents, including British expatriates and people who moved under Category 2 or HEPSS status, can buy IUL from international life insurers, subject to underwriting.
Eligibility is set by your country of residence and the insurer's underwriting, not your nationality. Insurers accept applicants aged 18 to 79, and cover starts at US$1m of death benefit. There is no fixed upper limit for qualified applicants: large (jumbo) cases are structured across more than one insurer. If you live in Spain and work in Gibraltar, insurers assess you as a resident of Spain, so the insurers and terms available to you can differ.
A policy can be owned personally, or by an offshore trust or company. Each insurer sets its own rules on which ownership routes it accepts for Gibraltar residents, so the route is agreed before the application goes in.
Capital for Life specialises in IUL and PPLI for internationally mobile families and the advisers who serve them. It works with UK nationals abroad and with clients across Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia and Australia. The full guide to the product is what is indexed universal life insurance.
Cover starts at US$1m with no fixed upper limit. Cases of US$10m and more, often called jumbo life insurance, are structured across several international insurers.
A US dollar policy that stays in force wherever you live next, including a move back to the UK or on to Spain, so the cover and the cash value move with you.
A company can own the policy on a founder, partner or key executive, including an executive with HEPSS status, and receive the death benefit. See Key Person for Life.
Borrow against the cash value to clear property loans or fund a purchase in Gibraltar, Spain or further afield, once sufficient cash value has built.
| Feature | Term life | Whole of life | IUL |
|---|---|---|---|
| Length of cover | A set number of years | Lifetime, while premiums are paid | Lifetime, while the policy is funded |
| Cash value | None | Depends on the contract; guaranteed protection plans often have none | Yes, earning index-linked credits within a 0% floor and a cap |
| Borrowing against the policy | No | Only where the contract builds a cash value | Yes, through policy loans from the insurer |
| Suited to | A need for a fixed period, such as a mortgage | Lifetime cover at a set cost | Lifetime US dollar cover with a cash value to borrow against |
The uses that lead are borrowing against the policy for property and business, retirement income in US dollars alongside a pension, and a defined US dollar legacy for family. Each is a structure to consider, not a recommendation.
Once cash value has built, you can borrow against it to buy property in Gibraltar, Spain or abroad, fund a business opportunity or pay school fees, and keep your investments in place. The loan is a contractual right under the policy, arranged with the insurer.
The policy stays in force while the loan runs. Loan interest applies, and any outstanding loan is deducted from the death benefit. See how IUL policy loans work.
An IUL builds a second pool of retirement money in US dollars, alongside a Gibraltar or UK pension and outside any employer scheme.
You choose when to start drawing on it, at 50, 60 or later, usually through policy loans. See Income for Life.
The death benefit is set from day one and paid in US dollars to the beneficiaries you name, in the shares you choose, or to the trust that owns the policy. Families use it to leave a defined sum to children who live in different countries, such as the UK and Spain.
See Family for Life and, for company owners, key person cover.
US$10m of cover on a 10-pay basis
$324,225 × 10 = $3,242,250. The death benefit is 3.08 times the planned funding.
This is an illustrative example, not a client. A 55-year-old British entrepreneur, a non-smoker, sold his company and moved to Gibraltar with Category 2 status. He wants a defined US dollar sum for his three children, who live in London and Madrid, and cash for his family when his estate is settled.
The indicative premium table puts the planned premium for US$10m of cover at US$324,225 a year on a 10-pay basis, or US$3,242,250 in total. He was UK resident for the 20 tax years before he moved, so for UK inheritance tax he stays a long-term UK resident for up to 10 tax years after leaving. [5] Ownership, personal or through a trust, is settled with his tax adviser before the application goes in.
Premium from the indicative table for a male non-smoker in the 50 to 59 band. An illustration on his own age and health replaces it.
Share of selections, multiple selections allowed · 1,800 verified enquiries, June 2024 to June 2025
If you hold an offshore bond, an international IUL will look familiar. It is also a life insurance policy issued outside the investor's home country, and for UK tax it is treated in the same way as an offshore bond. The difference is what sits inside: an offshore bond holds an investment portfolio, while an IUL holds a death benefit and a cash value that earns index linked credits. Offshore bonds and IUL compared.
IUL is a life insurance policy first, with credits earned inside the insurer's index accounts. Families who want open investment choice use private placement life insurance (PPLI) or an offshore bond instead, and some hold both for different jobs.
An IUL policy has two parts: a death benefit and a cash value. Premiums, after charges, build the cash value, which earns credits linked to an index such as the S&P 500, within a cap and a 0% floor.
The cap rate limits the credit in a strong year. The floor means a negative index year produces a nil credit instead of an index loss. Policy charges are deducted regardless, which is why cash value can still fall in a flat or negative year.
Once sufficient cash value has built, you can borrow against it. Fixed and participating loans behave differently in different index conditions. The death benefit is paid to your beneficiaries under the policy terms.
Hypothetical S&P 500 returns · 9.3% annual cap · 0% floor
| Year | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| S&P 500 return | +13.7% | -9.1% | +5.5% | +19.4% | -14.2% | +7.8% | -3.5% | +14.0% |
| IUL credit | 9.3% | 0% | 5.5% | 9.3% | 0% | 7.8% | 0% | 9.3% |
They are Gibraltar's two special income tax categories for individuals who move there. A Category 2 individual pays tax on the first £118,000 of assessable income only, with a minimum of £37,000 a year. A HEPSS individual, a senior employee earning more than £160,000, pays tax on the first £160,000. [1]
The individual needs approved residential accommodation in Gibraltar, available for their exclusive use for the whole year, must not have been resident in Gibraltar in the previous five years, and receives a certificate from the Finance Centre Director. [1] Category 2 individuals are taxed under the Allowance Based System only. [2]
In June 2026 the Government of Gibraltar announced a rise in the minimum net wealth for new applicants from £2 million to £5 million, with existing Category 2 individuals grandfathered. [3] The application fee rose from £1,233 to £5,000 on 22 June 2026. [4]
High Executive Possessing Specialist Skills status is for employees who will earn more than £160,000. The employer must satisfy the Finance Centre Director that the appointment will promote and sustain economic activity of particular economic value to Gibraltar, and conditions on residential accommodation and previous non-residency apply. [1]
HEPSS individuals are taxed under the Gross Income Based System only, on the first £160,000 of assessable income. [2]
Both statuses set how Gibraltar taxes your income. UK inheritance tax and the tax rules of any future country of residence are separate questions, covered in the tax and estate planning sections below.
Planned premiums for US$1m of cover start from about US$11,000 a year on a 10-pay basis, for a non-smoker aged 30 to 39. The premium for your cover depends on your age, gender, health, smoker status, the death benefit and how the policy is funded.
Many clients pay US$100,000 or more a year to build more cash value. Premiums can be paid as a lump sum or over a set number of years, often 5 to 10. Paying over several years (multi-pay) is Carlton Crabbe's preferred route. Capital for Life can also arrange premium financing, where a lender advances part of the premium against the policy; interest costs and lender criteria apply. See premium financing for IUL.
An insurer policy illustration shows the premium, cover and cash value for your own profile before any decision.
Each rule carries the date it was checked. Tax rules change; confirm the position with your tax adviser before acting.
| Personal income tax | Individuals choose between the Allowance Based System and the Gross Income Based System. The tax year runs from 1 July to 30 June. As at November 2026. [1] |
|---|---|
| Capital gains tax | None in Gibraltar. As at November 2026. [1] |
| Estate duty | Abolished in Gibraltar with effect from 1 April 1997. As at November 2026. [1] |
| Tax residence | Ordinarily resident means present in Gibraltar for at least 183 days in a year of assessment, or for more than 300 days over three consecutive years. As at November 2026. [1] |
| Category 2 | Tax on the first £118,000 of assessable income only, with a minimum of £37,000 a year. Application fee £5,000 from 22 June 2026; £5m minimum net wealth for new applicants announced 18 June 2026. Checked November 2026. [1] [3] [4] |
| HEPSS | Tax on the first £160,000 of assessable income, under the Gross Income Based System, for employees earning more than £160,000. As at November 2026. [1] [2] |
| Spain and Gibraltar | The international tax agreement between Spain and the United Kingdom regarding Gibraltar, signed 4 March 2019 and in operation from 4 March 2021, sets tie-breaker rules where an individual is tax resident in both. Gibraltar FAQs, November 2021; checked November 2026. [7] |
| UK and Gibraltar | A UK and Gibraltar double taxation agreement has been in force since 24 March 2020. As at November 2026. [6] |
| UK inheritance tax | Since 6 April 2025, a long-term UK resident (UK resident for 10 or more of the previous 20 tax years) can be charged on non-UK assets, and keeps that status for up to 10 tax years after leaving the UK. HMRC, published 6 April 2025; checked November 2026. [5] |
| Currency | IUL policies are issued in US dollars. Gibraltar uses the Gibraltar pound and the pound sterling. Statistics Office, August 2026. [8] |
| Who can apply | Residents and expatriates aged 18 to 79, subject to underwriting. Eligibility follows your country of residence. As at November 2026. |
| Cover and premium | Cover from US$1m. Planned premiums from about US$11,000 a year (10-pay, non-smoker aged 30 to 39). As at November 2026. |
| Medical underwriting | Non-medical terms for up to US$3m of cover for healthy applicants under 55. Otherwise a medical is needed, at a clinic approved by the insurer. As at November 2026. |
| Ownership | Personal, or an offshore trust or company where the insurer accepts it for Gibraltar residents. As at November 2026. |
| Opening time | 8 to 12 weeks from application to policy issue. As at November 2026. |
Gibraltar in figures · HM Government of Gibraltar Statistics Office, August 2026
Gibraltar has no capital gains tax, abolished estate duty from 1 April 1997, and does not generally charge income tax on interest. How Gibraltar treats a policy's growth, loans and withdrawals for you is a point to settle with a Gibraltar tax adviser, and British residents can still be within UK inheritance tax. [1] [5]
Outcomes depend on residence, citizenship, ownership and what you do with the policy over its life. Gibraltar's tax system is mainly source based, and tax in a country of citizenship, a former home country or a future country of residence can still apply. [7]
Capital for Life does not provide legal or tax advice. We prepare the policy facts your tax adviser needs and work alongside specialist tax advisers on cross border cases.
The policy is portable. It stays in force and in US dollars wherever you live, and you keep access to its cash value and cover.
Your tax position follows your residence. If you return to the UK, an international IUL is treated for UK tax in the same way as an offshore bond. If you move to Spain or elsewhere, that country's rules apply, so ownership and structure are reviewed before you move rather than after.
An offshore trust can hold the policy for internationally mobile families, where the insurer accepts it for Gibraltar residents.
The death benefit is paid in US dollars to the beneficiaries named under the policy, or to the trust that owns it. Gibraltar has no estate duty, and for British residents the estate question is often UK inheritance tax under the long-term residence rules. [1] [5]
You choose who receives the death benefit and in what shares, wherever they live.
A policy held in trust supports planning across jurisdictions and privacy for beneficiaries, where the insurer accepts trust ownership for Gibraltar residents.
Estate duty was abolished in Gibraltar with effect from 1 April 1997. [1]
A long-term UK resident keeps that status for up to 10 tax years after leaving the UK, and fewer if they were UK resident for fewer of the previous 20 years. [5]
Applying runs from a first consultation to policy issue and typically takes 8 to 12 weeks.
Your objectives, age, health, residence and the cover you want.
Illustrations from the insurers available for your profile, with premium and cover options side by side.
Application forms, ownership documents and financial disclosure on source of wealth, assets and income.
Non-medical terms up to US$3m for healthy applicants under 55. Above that, blood tests, an ECG, a treadmill test and health history at a clinic approved by the insurer, booked at your convenience.
The underwriting decision, the first premium and the policy documents.
IUL for residents of Gibraltar
Yes. Gibraltar residents and expatriates can buy IUL from international life insurers, with cover from US$1m. Eligibility is set by your country of residence and the insurer's underwriting, not your nationality, and insurers accept applicants aged 18 to 79. If you live in Spain and work in Gibraltar, insurers assess you as a resident of Spain, so the insurers and terms available to you can differ.
Planned premiums for US$1m of cover start from about US$11,000 a year on a 10-pay basis, for a non-smoker aged 30 to 39. Many clients pay US$100,000 or more a year to build more cash value. The premium for your profile depends on your age, gender, health, smoker status, the death benefit and how the policy is funded, and a policy illustration shows the exact figures.
It depends on your age and the cover. Healthy applicants under 55 can be offered non-medical terms for up to US$3m of cover. Otherwise a medical is needed, which can include blood tests, an ECG, a treadmill test and a review of health history, at a clinic approved by the insurer. Insurers also ask for financial disclosure on source of wealth, assets and income.
No. Estate duty was abolished in Gibraltar with effect from 1 April 1997, and Gibraltar has no capital gains tax. Other countries' rules can still apply: a British person who was a long-term UK resident can stay within UK inheritance tax for up to 10 tax years after leaving the UK, and an inheritance can be taxed where your heirs live.
It depends on the job the cover has to do. For lifetime US dollar cover from US$1m with a cash value that can be borrowed against, indexed universal life from an international insurer is built for that purpose. Term cover suits a need for a fixed number of years, such as a mortgage, at a lower cost. A policy illustration compares the options on your own age, health and cover.
It can. Since 6 April 2025, UK inheritance tax on non-UK assets depends on long-term UK residence: being UK tax resident for 10 or more of the previous 20 tax years. A long-term UK resident who moves to Gibraltar keeps that status for up to 10 tax years after leaving the UK, and for fewer years if they were UK resident for fewer of the previous 20. A tax adviser confirms your own position.
Yes, once sufficient cash value has built. A policy loan is a contractual right under the policy, arranged with the insurer, and the policy stays in force while the loan runs. Loan interest applies, and any outstanding loan is deducted from the death benefit. Fixed and participating loans behave differently in different index conditions.
They apply as residents of Spain. Insurers issue policies on the basis of your country of residence, so a cross frontier worker who lives in Spain is assessed as a Spanish resident, even with a job in Gibraltar, and the insurers available to Spanish residents can differ. Where someone is tax resident in both Gibraltar and Spain, the 2019 international tax agreement between Spain and the United Kingdom regarding Gibraltar sets tie-breaker rules that decide a single tax residence.
The policy stays in force and in US dollars wherever you live, and you keep access to its cash value and cover. Your tax position follows your residence: if you return to the UK, an international IUL is treated for UK tax in the same way as an offshore bond, and other countries apply their own rules. Ownership and structure are best reviewed before you move rather than after.
Yes. A company can own an IUL policy on a founder, partner or key executive, pay the premiums and receive the death benefit. The payout funds the business through the loss or a buy-sell agreement between shareholders, and the cash value builds as a company asset. Cover starts at US$1m, and healthy applicants under 55 can be offered non-medical terms up to US$3m.
Capital for Life specialises in IUL and PPLI for internationally mobile families and the advisers who serve them. Tell us your age, residence and the cover you want, and we send illustrations from the insurers available to you.
To request an illustration, email quotes@capitalforlife.com.
Each insurer sets its own caps, charges, underwriting terms and ownership rules. A policy illustration shows the figures for a specific policy.
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