CONSULTATION PAPER P December Proposed Policy Positions on the Definition of "Singapore Policy" for Policies Purchased by Individuals

Transcription

1 CONSULTATION PAPER P December 2008 Proposed Policy Positions on the Definition of "Singapore Policy" for Policies Purchased by Individuals

2 PREFACE Under the First Schedule to the Insurance Act (Cap. 142), a life insurance policy or accident and health policy is defined as a Singapore policy if, at the date of issue of the policy and (if the policy was issued before then) at the date of the establishment of the insurer s register of Singapore policies, the policy owner s address is or was an address in Singapore. The current definition of Singapore policy was crafted more than 20 years ago and it is opportune to review its continued relevance with developments in Singapore. In particular, many residents of Singapore currently own overseas properties, and if they were to purchase a life insurance or accident and health insurance policy using their overseas address, their policies would be considered as Offshore policies. Conversely, there are many non-residents who own properties in Singapore and if they were to use a Singapore address in their applications for life insurance or accident and health insurance policies in Singapore, their policies would be considered as Singapore policies. The definition of Singapore policy has therefore created ambiguities for the classification of life or accident and health policies for regulatory purposes. It has further implications on the granting of tax incentives for offshore insurance business since some domestic risks may be inadvertently classified as offshore risks and vice versa. 2 To address the abovementioned issues, MAS proposes to revise the definition of a Singapore policy for life and accident and health insurance policies as well as for personal general insurance policies sold to individuals. 3 MAS also proposes to clarify that policies covering cargo shipped directly from one overseas destination to another without transiting in

3 Singapore should not be deemed as Singapore policies, even if the policy owner is a resident or permanent establishment in Singapore. 4 MAS invites public comments on the proposed policy positions on the definition of a Singapore policy for policies purchased by individuals as set out in this consultation paper by 31 Jan Submissions in electronic form are strongly encouraged and should be sent via to the following address: sifdef_ins10@mas.gov.sg. Written comments should be submitted to - Insurance Supervision Department Monetary Authority of Singapore 10 Shenton Way MAS Building Singapore Fax: (65) Please note that all submissions received may be made public unless confidentiality is specifically requested for the whole or part of the submission.

4 1 BACKGROUND 1.1 The definition of a Singapore policy was crafted more than 20 years ago and it is opportune to review its continued relevance given developments in Singapore over the years. 1.2 Paragraph 2(1) of the First Schedule to the Insurance Act (Cap. 142) ( IA ) defines a Singapore policy as any policy that falls within one of the following descriptions: (a) a life policy or accident and health policy in the case of which, at the date of issue of the policy and (if the policy was issued before then) at the date of the establishment of the insurer s register of Singapore policies, the policy owner s address is or was an address in Singapore; (b) in relation to direct general insurance (other than shortterm accident and health policies) and facultative general reinsurance, a policy in the case of which the risk arises in Singapore or where the insured is a person resident in Singapore or is a permanent establishment in Singapore; and (c) in relation to treaty general reinsurance, a policy in the case of which more than 25% of the total risks in terms of gross premiums arises in Singapore. 1.3 Conversely, paragraph 2(2) of the First Schedule to the IA defines an Offshore policy as any policy other than a Singapore policy issued in the course of the insurer s business in Singapore.

5 1.4 The definition of a Singapore policy in the First Schedule may no longer be appropriate given developments in Singapore over the last 20 years. There are increasingly more Singapore residents who also own overseas properties and if they were to purchase life insurance or accident and health insurance policies using their overseas addresses, their policies would be considered as Offshore policies. Conversely, there are many non-residents who own properties in Singapore and if they were to use a Singapore address in their applications for life insurance or accident and health insurance policies in Singapore, their policies would be considered as Singapore policies. The definition of Singapore policy has therefore created ambiguities for the classification of life or accident and health policies for regulatory purposes. It has further implications on the granting of tax incentives for offshore insurance business since some domestic risks may be inadvertently classified as offshore risks and vice versa. 1.5 In addition, the definition of Singapore policy for direct general insurance (other than a short-term accident and health policy) takes a slightly different approach from that of life or accident and health policy. The definition for direct general insurance (other than a short-term accident and health policy) does not rely on the address but the residency of the insured based on the definition of resident in Singapore in the Income Tax Act (Cap. 134). As a matter of policy, the definition of Singapore policy in respect of insurance effected by individuals should be determined using the same criteria, whether it involves direct general insurance (other than a short-term accident and health policy), life policy or accident and health policy. 1.6 The intent behind paragraph 3(d) of the First Schedule to the IA is to allow a policy in respect of marine cargo risks that transit in Singapore to be classified as an Offshore policy, notwithstanding that the policy owner is resident in Singapore or a permanent establishment in Singapore.

6 The current definition of Singapore policy however does not provide clarity regarding the status of policies where the policy owner is resident in Singapore or a permanent establishment in Singapore, but the marine cargo that has been insured does not transit in Singapore. For instance, the policy owner may be a Singapore-incorporated company handling the worldwide logistics arrangements of a US-based MNC. For ease of administration, it purchases all insurance policies for the group, and thus is named as the policy owner. However, some of the cargoes insured under such policies may be shipped from one overseas destination directly to another, without transiting in Singapore. It would therefore be desirable to clarify the intent that cargo which does not even pass through Singapore should be treated similarly as cargo that transit in Singapore. 1.7 This paper discusses the policy positions to address the above issues. 2 POLICY POSITIONS ON DEFINITION OF A SINGAPORE POLICY FOR POLICIES PURCHASED BY INDIVIDUALS 2.1 The intent of defining Singapore policies and Offshore policies is to provide clarity that domestic and offshore risks are classified accordingly. In essence, Singaporeans, permanent residents in Singapore, holders of work passes or permits and their dependents as well as long term pass holders and their dependents should be considered as Singapore residents and considered as domestic risks should they purchase insurance policies in Singapore. Conversely, tourists and persons in transit through Singapore should constitute offshore risks. 2.2 The use of an address in Singapore in the definition for life or accident and health policy and a resident in Singapore in the definition for direct general insurance to determine if the policy is a Singapore policy

7 are different means to capture domestic risks. However, the use of an address in Singapore to determine residence in Singapore (hence a domestic risk) is no longer precise given developments in Singapore over the past two decades. Therefore, MAS proposes to revise the definition of Singapore policy for all life and general policies purchased by individuals on the basis of the individual s residency status in Singapore. MAS views all residents of Singapore as domestic risks unless there is evidence that they are not ordinarily resident in Singapore. 2.3 In addition, the reference to the issue date of the policy for the definition of Singapore policy will also be replaced with the date of proposal of the policy to better reflect the fact that the relevant time for assessment is when the policyholder took steps to buy the insurance policy and not when it is actually issued. 2.4 The proposed definition of a policy owner who is ordinarily resident in Singapore is as follows: Ordinarily resident in Singapore, in relation to a policy owner or life assured, means a person - (I) who is a citizen of Singapore other than one who has resided outside Singapore for 5 or more years preceding the date of proposal of the insurance policy; (II) who is a permanent resident of Singapore other than one who has resided in Singapore for less than 183 days in the 12 months preceding the date of proposal of the policy; (III) who has a work pass issued under section 7 of the Employment of Foreign Manpower Act (Cap. 91A)

8 other than one who is a non-resident for the purpose of his tax liability under the Income Tax Act (Cap. 134) in the year of proposal of the policy; or (IV) who has a pass or permit issued under regulation 8(1) of the Immigration Regulations (Cap. 133) that has a duration longer than 90 days and who has resided in Singapore for at least 90 days during the 12 months preceding the date of proposal of the policy. 2.5 There will be no change to the classification for policies owned by persons that are not individuals. In other words, for group life or accident and health policies purchased by corporations, the classification will continue to be based on whether the policy owner is a permanent establishment in Singapore. MAS is currently reviewing the classification for commercial general insurance policies and will conduct a separate public consultation on this issue in due course. This is because general insurance covers a wide variety of risks and thus it is more difficult to classify risks purely based on whether the policy owner is established in Singapore or otherwise. 2.6 The definition of Singapore policy will also be clarified in respect of the risks of marine cargo being shipped from one foreign country to another. As the insurance risks of such marine cargo arise predominantly outside Singapore, it would be more appropriate for such risks to be classified as offshore risks. This would be the case regardless of whether (a) the policy owner is resident in Singapore or is a permanent establishment in Singapore; and (b) the marine cargo transits through Singapore.

9 3 IMPLEMENTATION OF PROPOSAL 3.1 MAS will assess the comments and views received before finalising the revised definition of a Singapore policy and amend the First Schedule of the IA as soon as possible. Disclaimer The above proposed wordings of the definition of ordinarily resident to be incorporated in the First Schedule to the IA is still in draft form and is subject to change. It is also subject to review by the Attorney General s Chambers.

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