Making a claim on life insurance

Family members

Required attachments:

• Copy of the report on family relationships or a list of the parties to the estate confirmed by the Digital and Population Data Services Agency. The report on family relationships refers to the information saved on the insured person in the official records, covering information about their children and changes of address, from the age of 15 onwards (also required for the estate inventory). 
• If the insured person had a child who has passed away, we will also need a report on their family relationships.
• If the insured person had no children or spouse, we will also need reports on the family relationships of the insured person’s parents.

How is the compensation distributed?

• Half of the compensation is paid to the marital spouse of the insured person and the other half is divided equally between the children of the insured person. In the case of a deceased child, the descendants of the deceased child are appointed as the beneficiaries.
• If the insured person was not married at the time of their death or the spouses had applied for divorce, the compensation is paid in full to the descendants of the insured person. If the insured person has no descendants, the compensation is paid in full to the marital spouse of the insured person.
• If the insured person had no marital spouse or living descendants at the time of their death, the compensation is divided between the heirs stipulated in the Finnish Code of Inheritance. If the closest living relatives are first cousins, the compensation is paid to the estate of the insured person.
  • Good to know: In terms of taxation, the siblings of the insured person or their children, for example, are not considered the insured person’s next-of-kin, so any compensation paid to them is considered income subject to capital income tax.

Children

Required attachments:

• Copy of the report on family relationships or a list of the parties to the estate confirmed by the Digital and Population Data Services Agency. The report on family relationships refers to the information saved on the insured person in the official records, covering information about their children and changes of address, from the age of 15 onwards (also required for the estate inventory). 
• If the insured person had a child who has passed away, we will also need a report on their family relationships.

How is the compensation distributed?

• The compensation is divided equally between the children of the insured person. In the case of a deceased child, the descendants of the deceased child are appointed as the beneficiaries. If the deceased child has no descendants, the compensation is divided between the insured person’s living children.
• If the insured person had no descendants at the time of their death, the compensation is paid to their estate.

Children and grandchildren

Also applies if the beneficiary clause is ‘grandchildren’.

Required attachments:

• Copy of the report on the insured person’s family relationships. The report on family relationships refers to information saved on a person in the official records, covering information about their children and changes of address, from the age of 15 onwards.
• Copies of the reports on the family relationships for all the insured person’s children. The report is required for all the insured person’s children even if they don’t have children of their own. We will need the reports on the family relationships of the insured person’s children in order to establish the grandchildren. No reports are required on the family relationships of the grandchildren.

How is the compensation distributed?

The compensation is divided evenly between the beneficiaries, and there is no subrogation right. Hence if some of the children or grandchildren are deceased, the compensation is divided between the surviving ones. The beneficiary clause may, however, include separate instructions for subrogation.

Spouse

Required attachments:

• Report on family relationships covering the marriage.

How is the compensation paid?

• The compensation is paid to the person to whom the insured person was married or with whom the insured person was in a registered partnership at the time of their death.
• If the insured person was not married at the time of their death or the spouses had applied for divorce, the compensation is paid to the insured person’s estate.

Estate

Required attachments:

• A document proving that the person who has signed the claim form is a party to the estate, such as the report on family relationships, the estate inventory deed or the will.
• An account statement or other report containing the estate’s account number. If the compensation should be paid to a Nordea account, you don’t need to deliver the account statement.
• The claim form can be signed by any party to the estate alone. 

How is the compensation paid?

• If the beneficiary clause is ‘estate’ or the beneficiary clause is void because there are no beneficiaries, the compensation is paid to the account stated by the insured person’s estate.
• The compensation will be part of the estate’s assets and be divided from the estate’s account on the same basis as the rest of the inheritance.

Named beneficiaries

Required attachments:

• All required reports on family relationships establishing the family relationship between the insured person and the beneficiary. 

How is the compensation distributed?

• If more than one person is named as a beneficiary, the compensation is divided equally between the beneficiaries unless otherwise stated in the beneficiary clause.
• Beneficiary clauses with named beneficiaries do not contain the same subrogation right as general beneficiary clauses, meaning that the compensation is divided between the named beneficiaries who are alive at the time of the insured person’s death. The insured person may, however, always give separate instructions for subrogation.
• If a certain share of the compensation, in percentages or euros, is allocated to a beneficiary who has died before the insured person, this share is paid to the insured person’s estate. If a beneficiary dies after the insured person but before the compensation is paid, the share allocated to this beneficiary is paid to their estate.

What is a report on family relationships?

A report on family relationships refers to information recorded on a person, including their children and changes of address, in the official registers they have belonged to from the age of 15 onwards. The period covered by the report will be indicated in it. If the person has belonged to different registers during their lifetime, the report will need to be ordered from each register separately.

• If the person has been a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of FinlandOpens new window, you must order the report from the church register. 
• If the person has not been a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland, you must order the report from the Digital and Population Data Services AgencyOpens new window, the National Archives of FinlandOpens new window or the Orthodox Church of FinlandOpens new window. 
• If the person has resided abroad, you must order a corresponding report from the local authority covering the period during which the person lived outside Finland. You can visit the Finland Abroad websiteOpens new window to find out how these reports are ordered from any relevant countries.

How to fill in the claim form

• Each beneficiary must file their own claim. All beneficiaries don’t, however, have to send their claim forms at the same time. 
• If the beneficiary is a minor, all guardians must sign the claim form. 
• By filling in all fields in the claim form carefully, you can ensure that your claim is processed quickly. We can’t pay the compensation if you have not provided all the required information.
• The compensation will be divided based on the beneficiary clause and paid to each beneficiary’s personal account. 
• If the estate is the beneficiary, the compensation can only be paid to an account held by the estate. The compensation will then be distributed together with the rest of the inheritance. The claim form of an estate can be signed by any party to the estate alone. 

Country of taxation

• Include in the claim form information on all countries in which you are liable to pay tax. Also include your tax identification number (TIN) in these countries. 
• In Finland the TIN is your personal identity number. 
• Remember to answer separately to the question about tax liability in the US. 
• If you are not liable to pay tax outside of Finland, it’s important to state this in the form because we will return all incomplete claim forms to the beneficiaries for completion.

Attachments to the claim form

• If you want to send us the claim form by post, please attach a copy of the identity document of the person who has signed the form. 
• If the beneficiary is a minor, we will need signatures from all guardians and copies of their identity documents. The identity document of the minor is not needed. 
• If the beneficiary is the estate and you want the compensation to be paid to an account outside of Nordea, you will need to attach to the claim form an account statement or another document proving that the account is held by the estate.
• Other documents that need to be attached to the claim form depend on the beneficiary clause in the insurance policy. You can see the beneficiary clause in the notice of life insurance compensation we have sent to the estate.

Waiving the compensation

If you waive the compensation, your share will be distributed to the other beneficiaries, your heirs or the insured person’s estate, depending on the beneficiary clause. You should always check the content of the beneficiary clause to know who will receive the compensation if you decide to waive your share.

Refusing inheritance does not apply to compensation from an insurance policy. You will need to waive the compensation with a separate waiver. If you have refused inheritance, you are allowed to accept compensation from an insurance policy if you want.

There is no fixed format for a waiver, but it will need to include the following: 

• number of the insurance policy
• information on the insured person
• details of the person waiving the compensation
• date and signature.

You can send us the waiver digitally from Nordea OmapostiOpens new window.

Living abroad

When a loved one dies abroad

Although the Digital and Population Data Services Agency notifies us of the death of a customer, this information often comes with a delay. 

If your loved one has died abroad and no letters from Nordea Life Assurance Finland have arrived in their home address, you can send us a claim form. Attach to the claim form the official certificate stating the time of death. We will then send the notice of life insurance compensation to your loved one’s last known home address and start processing your claim.

If you have online banking credentials from any Finnish bank, you can deliver the documents digitally from Nordea OmapostiOpens new window.

Postal address from abroad:

Réponse Payee Finlande
Nordea Bank Finland Plc
2478 Nordea Life Assurance Finland Plc
FI-00006 VASTAUSLÄHETYS
FINLAND
Write this detail on the envelope: IBRS/CCRI, 5009665-2478

Documents from abroad

• We will often need you to attach a report on the insured person’s family relationships to the claim form in order to establish the beneficiaries. We will also need reports covering periods of residing abroad, especially if the beneficiaries include children who have been born abroad. Local population registers are different in the different countries.
• Visit the Finland Abroad websiteOpens new window to find out whether it is possible to obtain such reports from the authorities in the relevant country and how. If it is not possible to obtain the report, you can print out a document stating this from the website. (Matkustaminen ja palvelut - Perhe ja kansalaisuus - Virkatodistus ja osoitetiedustelut).

If you want to have the compensation paid abroad

Include your detailed bank information in the claim form:

• IBAN (International Bank Account Number) and BIC (Bank Identifier Code).
• If your country does not use IBANs, include the exact payment details: account number, SWIFT/BIC or ABA/Routing no., your bank’s name, address and country. 
• If you don’t have a Finnish personal identity number, you will need to attach a copy of your passport or other travel document to the claim form.

Country of taxation of a beneficiary who lives abroad

Finnish financial institutions are obliged to collect certain information concerning the country of taxation from their customers and report it to the Finnish Tax Administration. If your country of taxation is not Finland, Nordea Life Assurance Finland may be obliged to disclose the information to the Finnish Tax Administration that will forward the information to other countries based on international treaties.

Countries have separate practices for determining whether a person is liable to pay tax in them. Under special circumstances, such as if you’re studying or working abroad, you may be liable to pay tax in more than one country. Your most likely countries of taxation are the ones where you pay income tax.

If you live abroad or want us to pay the compensation to a foreign bank account, we will need your TIN (Tax Identification Number) before we can make the payment. Include in the claim form information on all countries in which you are liable to pay tax. Also include your TIN in these countries. If you are not liable to pay tax outside of Finland, remember to state this in the form. In Finland the TIN is your personal identity number. Remember to answer separately to the question about tax liability in the US. Please note that you will need to fill in the information even if you are only liable to pay tax in Finland. If you are liable to pay tax in more than one country, fill in the information on the back of the form.

If you are entitled to a compensation that is considered taxable capital income, you will need to apply for a tax-at-source card from the Finnish Tax Administration. The tax-at-source card will tell us whether you are a non-resident taxpayer in Finland and whether we need to withhold the tax-at-source. You can print out the application for a tax-at-source card on the Tax Administration’s website. You can also log in to the Tax Administration’s online service MyTax to apply for the card and deliver it to us from Nordea Netbank, for example. For more information, please contact Tax Administration.

Further information on different countries’ rules concerning tax liability and the tax identification numbers is available in the OECD’s portal on the automatic exchange of taxation informationOpens new window.