1. 5082 POINTS
    J Paul Wilson CFP, CHFC
    Certified Financial Planner, JPW Insurance Retirement Investments, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
    Good question! Creditor protection is an important concern, especially for the self-employed.

    There are basically two types of annuities, immediate and deferred. Both are considered insurance products and as such can offer creditor protection under certain circumstances.

    Immediate annuities, as the name suggests, provide an immediate income stream in exchange for a lump sum. They are often used to provide a guaranteed income in retirement planning.

    Deferred annuities are accumulation products that have the option of an annuity at some point in the future. In Canada for example, they can be Guaranteed Interest Annuities (GIA), that are similar to Guaranteed Investment Certificates (GIC) or Segregated Funds (variable annuities) that are similar to mutual funds.

    With both types of annuities, in order to offer creditor protection, you would need to have been solvent when you put the money into the contracts. In other words, you would not have been trying to attempt fraud.

    If the above condition is met, the income flow from immediate annuities is afforded creditor protection.

    Deferred annuities, like insurance policies, receive creditor protection based on the beneficiary designation. Eligible beneficiaries include those in the "protected class": spouse, parents, children and grandchildren. In addition, irrevocable beneficiaries also qualify.

    Please check with a lawyer for your individual situation.

    If you have further questions, or feel that I could be of assistance, please do not hesitate to contact me.

    If you would like to work with a local life insurance broker, you could start with a Google search. For example, if you search for: life insurance broker Halifax or life insurance agent Halifax, my name, along with several others, will come up. You can use the same method to find a life insurance broker in your community.
    Answered on May 15, 2014
  2. 5082 POINTS
    J Paul Wilson CFP, CHFC
    Certified Financial Planner, JPW Insurance Retirement Investments, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
    In Canada, all annuities can have potential protection from creditors and unforeseen depending on the circumstances.

    In ordered to be afforded creditor protection, the beneficiary needs to be in the preferred class. Which means the relationship to the life insured is spouse, child, grandchild or parent.

    If you have further questions, or feel that I could be of assistance,  please do not hesitate to contact me.
    Answered on July 19, 2014
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