August 7, 2026
3:37 pm

Can You Sell a Securian Term Life Policy? (2026)

Securian’s individual term policies clear the settlement market’s size threshold by design, which removes the single most common reason a term policy gets declined without review. Its retail term product, Advantage Elite Select Term, has been offered in five, ten, fifteen, twenty, and thirty-year level periods with coverage starting at $250,000. Institutional buyers generally will not open a file below roughly $100,000 of death benefit, so a Securian retail term contract starts well above the line.

That makes the conversion provision the deciding factor rather than the face amount. A buyer acquires a death benefit that will eventually be paid, and level term is priced on the expectation of expiring unpaid. The asset is not the term coverage; it is the contractual right to convert into permanent insurance at the risk class assigned when the policy was underwritten, with no new medical questions. Once that right expires, there is nothing left to price.

There is one identification step to complete before you go looking for it. Securian is also a substantial writer of employer and association group life, and a group certificate is a different animal from an individual policy. Confirm which one you hold before doing anything else.

In This Article

Individual policy or group certificate?
Minnesota Life or Securian Life, and who supervises them
Where the conversion deadline actually sits
What actually drives the number a buyer would pay
The order that protects your money
When the honest answer is no
What to send for a review
Frequently Asked Questions

Can You Sell a Securian Term Life Policy? (2026)

Individual policy or group certificate?

The distinction matters because ownership is the threshold requirement for any settlement. A buyer becomes the owner and beneficiary of record, which is only possible where an individual owner exists to make the transfer. Under a group plan the master policy is held by the employer or association, not by you.

Three markers settle it:

The word certificate. Group coverage is documented by a certificate of insurance describing benefits under a master group policy. An individual policy names you as owner on its face.
Two numbers. A group policy number separate from your certificate number means group coverage.
How premium is paid. Payroll deduction or employer-paid means group. A bill from the insurer to you means individual.

If it is group coverage, the analysis changes entirely and the valuable right is the conversion privilege that opens when coverage terminates — typically a window of about 31 days, during which terminating coverage can be exchanged for an individual permanent policy with no evidence of insurability. Our pages on whether you can sell a group life insurance policy and on portability versus conversion cover that path, which is worth reading carefully because the deadline is short and unforgiving.

Everything below assumes an individual Securian term policy.

Minnesota Life or Securian Life, and who supervises them

Securian Financial is the brand. The insurance companies are Minnesota Life Insurance Company, which issues in every state except New York, and Securian Life Insurance Company, a New York authorized insurer that issues New York business. Read the signature block on the last page of your contract to see which one is on the hook.

Minnesota Life has been in business since 1880 and is headquartered in St. Paul. Minnesota is one of the states that regulates insurance through its Department of Commerce rather than a standalone insurance department, so that agency handles solvency oversight, form approval, and consumer complaints against Minnesota Life. New York business is supervised by the New York State Department of Financial Services.

The corporate structure is worth understanding because it is unusual. Securian is organized under a mutual insurance holding company, a structure Minnesota Life adopted in 1998 when it converted from a pure mutual to stock form beneath a mutual holding company. The practical effect is that policyholders of Minnesota Life and Securian Life remain the ultimate economic owners, with no outside public shareholders. The companies carry strong financial strength ratings, including AA+ from S&P and A+ from AM Best as of 2026.

None of that governs the sale of a policy. Life settlement transactions are regulated in the state where the policy owner resides, which sets the required disclosures, the licensing standard for everyone who touches the file, and the length of the rescission period after signing. Minnesota supervises the insurer; your own state supervises the transaction.

Where the conversion deadline actually sits

The provision is in the contract, not on your premium notice, under a heading close to “Conversion Privilege,” “Conversion Option,” or “Right to Convert.” Extract three facts and get all three in writing.

The last eligible date. Insurers express this as a number of policy years, as an attained age, or as the earlier of the two. The third construction is the one that costs people the option. A thirty-year term issued at 45 has a level period running to 75, but if the conversion right is capped at a stated attained age, it can end a decade or more earlier — while the premium stays level and nothing about the policy feels urgent. Nobody sends a letter when it happens.

The permanent plans available. Some contracts allow conversion into any permanent plan the insurer currently issues; others designate a specific conversion product. Ask what is available under your form number rather than what appears in current marketing material, since lineups change and forms do not.

Partial conversion and the minimum amount. Converting a portion of the face amount and letting the balance run out is frequently the smartest structure, particularly on a policy that started at $250,000 or more.

Ask for a written statement rather than a phone answer, and request a duplicate contract in the same letter if you cannot locate yours. Our page on a term conversion deadline approaching covers what remains possible when the date is close, and what a term conversion rider is explains the mechanics.

Your Securian term situation	Is a settlement realistic?	First move
Individual policy, conversion open, insured 70+ with health changes	Yes, and size is not the obstacle	Request written conversion terms and a converted premium quote
Group certificate through an employer or association	Not as issued	Find the conversion window; it is usually about 31 days
Conversion window already expired	No	Check the rider schedule for accelerated death benefits
Insured under 65 and in good health	Rarely	Keep the coverage and calendar the conversion deadline
Premium affordable but coverage larger than needed	Not the right question	Ask about reducing the face amount rather than selling
Insured terminally or chronically ill	Possibly, as a viatical	Gather medical records; this can proceed without converting

Where the conversion deadline actually sits

What actually drives the number a buyer would pay

If the window is open, understanding the pricing model tells you where you stand before anyone shops the file.

Buyers work from three inputs. The net death benefit — face amount less any outstanding loan. The projected life expectancy, produced by independent medical underwriting firms that read the medical records and apply mortality tables. Most files carry two separate reports, and they frequently differ by years on the same person, which is one reason offers vary between buyers. And the premium stream required to keep the converted policy in force to that projection.

The output is a present value. A shorter projection and a lower carrying cost raise it. A long projected lifespan and an expensive conversion product lower it, often below anything worth transacting. Our explainer on life expectancy underwriting covers how those reports are built, and our page on what affects a life settlement offer covers the rest of the variables.

The implication for sequence is the one most people invert: have the policy reviewed while it is still term. A review can tell you whether the file would attract interest before you commit to permanent premiums out of your own pocket. Converting first and shopping second means paying real money to manufacture an asset that may draw no bids. Our page on converting term and then selling works the numbers, and the general economics are on our guide to how to sell a term life policy.

The order that protects your money

Confirm individual ownership. If it is a group certificate, switch to the conversion-window analysis immediately, because that clock runs in days rather than years.
Request written conversion terms. Exact expiration date, permanent plans available under your form, partial conversion availability, and the minimum conversion amount.
Get the converted premium quoted at the full face amount and at half. The second number often changes the strategy, especially on a policy that began at $250,000 or more.
Have the file reviewed while it is still term. Conversion language, face amount, converted premium, and general health picture, read together by someone who does this regularly.
Convert only what the arithmetic supports. Partial conversion keeps the permanent premium manageable and preserves coverage the family may still need.
Then take the converted policy to market. Independent life expectancy underwriting, competing offers, escrow, closing, and a state-mandated rescission window, in that order.

Regardless of what you decide, put the conversion deadline on a calendar with a reminder a year ahead. The single most common preventable loss in this subject is a conversion right that expired while somebody meant to look into it.

When the honest answer is no

A Securian term policy generally cannot be sold when any of these applies.

The conversion window has closed. Final. Insurers do not reopen expired conversion rights, and no broker can negotiate one back into existence. Anyone claiming otherwise is a red flag rather than an opportunity.
The insured is under 65 and in good health. Pricing is driven by life expectancy. A long projection means decades of premium outlay for a buyer and a low present value, which usually produces no offer at all rather than a modest one. On a block where face amounts start at $250,000, this is the most common reason a file goes nowhere.
The designated conversion product is expensive relative to the death benefit. High carrying cost destroys the economics regardless of health.
The coverage is still needed. A surviving spouse without pension income, an adult child with a disability, a business loan personally guaranteed, a mortgage that will outlive the borrower. Selling protection the household depends on is not a win.
You hold a group certificate and the conversion window has passed. There is nothing to transfer.

Where a sale is off the table, check what you already own. Many term contracts include an accelerated death benefit rider that pays part of the face amount during a qualifying terminal or chronic illness at no additional premium. A partial conversion can cut the cost to something sustainable. And on a policy this size, simply reducing coverage to what the household actually needs is often the cleanest fix. Our page on the minimum policy size for a life settlement explains why size matters so much in the other direction.

What to send for a review

Three documents, none of them sensitive. The policy cover page, showing the issuing company — Minnesota Life or Securian Life — the insured, the policy number, the form number, the issue date, the face amount, and the level premium period. The most recent premium notice or annual statement. And the conversion provision if you can locate it.

From those, a reviewer can determine which company’s service department to approach, how much level period remains, whether the conversion right appears open under your form, and whether the economics are worth pursuing. Where the language is ambiguous, the next step is a written request to the insurer rather than an inference drawn from a similar policy.

What is not needed at this stage: your Social Security number, bank account details, or a complete medical file. Being pressed for those in a first conversation is a warning sign, and there is no legitimate reason to pay an upfront fee for a policy evaluation. Legitimate reviews cost nothing.

Pine Lake Life Solutions provides education and a free policy review. We do not purchase policies, we are not licensed in every state, and nothing here is legal, tax, or investment advice — anything with tax or estate consequences belongs in front of your own CPA or attorney first. If you work with a financial professional who placed the policy, bring them into the conversation rather than around it; a decision this size should survive being examined by more than one person. Call (305) 209-7183 with the cover page in front of you.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which company actually issued my Securian policy?

Minnesota Life Insurance Company issues in every state except New York, and Securian Life Insurance Company issues New York business. The signature block on the last page of your contract names the one obligated on your policy. Direct service and conversion requests to that entity, since the two companies are separate legal insurers even though both operate under the Securian Financial brand.

Is my Securian term policy large enough for buyers to consider?

Almost certainly on the individual side. Securian’s retail term product has been offered with coverage starting at $250,000, which sits well above the roughly $100,000 working minimum institutional buyers apply. That means size is rarely the obstacle on this block, and the deciding factor is usually whether the conversion right is still open and how much the converted premium would be.

How do I find my conversion deadline?

It is in the policy contract under a heading like Conversion Privilege or Right to Convert, not on your premium notice. Write to the insurer with your policy number and form number and request a written statement of the exact expiration date, the permanent plans available under that form, whether partial conversion is permitted, and the minimum conversion amount.

My coverage came through my employer. Does that change things?

Substantially. A group certificate is not an asset you own, since the master policy is held by the employer or association, so it cannot be sold as issued. What has value is the conversion privilege that opens when coverage terminates, typically for about 31 days, allowing an exchange into an individual permanent policy with no evidence of insurability required.

What does Securian’s mutual holding company structure mean for me?

It means policyholders of Minnesota Life and Securian Life are the ultimate economic owners and there are no outside public shareholders. Minnesota Life adopted the structure in 1998 when it converted from a pure mutual to stock form beneath a mutual holding company. It does not give you an account you can cash out, and it does not change any term policy’s terms.

Should I convert before finding out what the policy is worth?

No. Have the policy reviewed while it is still term, because a review can tell you whether buyers would engage before you commit to permanent premiums. The converted premium is one of three inputs in any valuation, alongside the net death benefit and the projected life expectancy, so get it quoted first, then have the file read, then decide.

Find out what your policy is worth — free, confidential, no obligation.

A 15-minute educational review covers your eligibility, every alternative, and a realistic view of what each path would net you.

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