Commentary on Sections Structure of Chapters Overview Section 507: Method for making periodic calculations under section 498
1997.This section provides the core calculation rules which determine whether there is a gain and, if so, the amount of the gain, when there has been an assignment for money or money’s worth or a surrender of part of, or a share in, rights under the policy or contract. The calculation introduces the terms “net total value of rights surrendered or assigned” and “net total allowable payments”. Subsequent rules (see section 509) determine whether a chargeable event occurs in respect of that gain. It is based on sections 540, 541, 542, 543, 545, and 546 of ICTA.
1998.But the calculation under this section is displaced when certain transactions have occurred (see section 510).
1999.Subsection (4) sets out how the net total value of rights surrendered or assigned is found. Step 1 identifies, and step 2 totals, all relevant amounts from the current and previous insurance years. Step 3 then subtracts all such amounts taken into account on previous “calculation events”. That leaves the total of those amounts since the last such event. These amounts may relate to a period of one or more insurance years, depending on when the latest calculation event occurred (the value of the rights assigned or surrendered may have been too low for this calculation to show a gain). Section 508 contains rules for how the values of part surrenders or assignments of rights are to be measured.
2000.Subsection (5) sets out how to calculate net total allowable payments, that is, the amount that may be deducted from the product of the calculation in subsection (4). It is similar in approach to the calculation of total allowable deductions in section 494, but treats the premiums paid in a special way. An allowance is made, equal to 5% for each insurance year to date (including the year in which the premium was paid), of each premium payment or payments. The allowance, in respect of any particular premium payment, or the payments for a particular year, cannot exceed 100% of that premium or premiums.
2001.Through the definition of “allowable payment”, subsection (6) excludes a “retained replacement policy premium” from the amounts that can be taken into account as allowable payments in the calculation under subsection (5). As mentioned in the commentary on section 495, a retained replacement premium is a sum which becomes payable by the insurer in connection with the ending of the policy, but which is retained by the insurer and used to meet some or all of the premiums payable under a later policy.
2002.The source legislation provides that retained replacement premiums are to be ignored in calculating the amount of premiums taken into account under sections 540 and 541 of ICTA. But, in the case of a chargeable event within section 540(1)(a)(v) of ICTA, it is section 546 of ICTA that provides the method of calculating gains. In particular, section 546(1)(b) of ICTA deals with premiums to be taken into account in the calculation of part surrenders and assignments. Clearly, it is that section that paragraph 20(3) of Schedule 15 to ICTA was intended to affect, although it does not refer to section 546 of ICTA.
2003.The calculation of net total allowable payments in subsection (5), read with the definition of “allowable payment” in subsection (6), therefore rewrites the source legislation so that retained replacement premiums are ignored in the calculation of the gain arising on a part surrender or assignment.
2004.See also section 546 (table of provisions subject to special rules for older policies and contracts).