Tax Year Prior to 2020: Can a self employed person use life insurance premiums as deductions for 2017 returns?

[DoninGA]

No.  In most cases, the premiums you pay for life insurance policies intended to provide for your family in the event of your death are not tax-deductible, regardless of the account you pay them from, the size of the policy or the amount of the premiums.

See this website - https://finance.zacks.com/can-deduct-life-insurance-am-selfemployed-6185.html

[JHA1]

Thank you.

[gateman]

According to chapter 6 deductible premiums page 21 paragraph 10 you can as long as you are not the beneficiary. life insurance on my self I'm not the beneficiary. that's what it looks like they are saying.

10. Life insurance covering your officers and employees if you aren’t directly or indirectly a beneficiary under the contract.

[DoninGA]

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@gateman wrote:

According to chapter 6 deductible premiums page 21 paragraph 10 you can as long as you are not the beneficiary. life insurance on my self I'm not the beneficiary. that's what it looks like they are saying.

10. Life insurance covering your officers and employees if you aren’t directly or indirectly a beneficiary under the contract.

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You are referring again to a business expense on a business return.  Does not apply to a personal tax return deduction.

[hameshatumkochaha]

I am confused.  If someone is self-employed and has say LLC then the person's life insurance beneficiary is not the company but a family member that is NOT an employee of the company and a beneficiary of all the life insurance then is the life insurance premium deductible or not for the self-employed LLC owner's business schedule C as an expense?  I ask because in pub 535 life insurance premium when the coverage doesn't give the person or the business as beneficiary appears to be listed as a deductible expense... 

[VictorW9]

Though you can deduct the cost of premiums you pay for employee life insurance, you cannot deduct these premiums if you stand to benefit from the policy in any way. If you are the beneficiary of a policy held for an employee or officer, either directly or indirectly, the premiums you pay are not deductible as a business or personal expense.