John Hancock: Important details about the transition for AG49-A

09-23-2020

Effective November 25, 2020, the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) will enact enhancements to Actuarial Guideline XLIX (AG49) known as AG49-A. By this date, all IUL illustrations sold by John Hancock and all US life insurers must comply with these new regulations. For additional information, refer to the details below.

This regulation affects all of the currently sold John Hancock IUL products (Accumulation IUL ‘19, Protection IUL ‘20 and Protection Survivorship IUL ‘19) in all states, including New York. Note: Accumulation IUL ’20 launched on 09/21/20 with these new guidelines.

The following changes will occur due to AG49-A:

• Illustrations of products with additional charges that support multipliers, cap buyups and other enhancements will not illustrate significantly better than products without these features and associated charges. In light of these changes, maximum AG49 rates on some of our accounts will change.
• On indexed loans, the maximum illustrated difference between loan interest rate charged and loan interest rate credited (including any multipliers or bonuses) may not exceed 0.5%.

These changes will not impact the policy’s actual performance or product features. These features will continue to be administered as outlined in the contract, and John Hancock will continue its support of policy features that adapt to changing market conditions and provide real world value in both up and down market cycles.

Please note the following key transition dates to the AG49-A guidelines:

• November 9: JH Illustrator and Winflex web will be updated so illustrations of these products will comply with the new regulation.
• November 24: By this date, John Hancock must have provided a final underwriting offer, received all administrative requirements to issue the policy, and received at least the minimum initial premium to place the policy in force.
• Any policy placed November 25th or after will require an illustration run under the new AG49-A guidelines.

Please refer to the FAQ document attached below for more information and the maximum rate changes.