If you reside in a “community property state” (Arizona, California, Idaho, Louisiana, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, Washington, Wisconsin), you need your spouse's consent to designate any primary beneficiary other than your spouse. This need arises from state property law.
If you are a resident of certain states, you may be required to list your spouse as your primary beneficiary and designate him or her to receive at least 50 percent of the benefit. In some states, you can name someone else with your spouse's written permission.
Upon the death of a spouse, the surviving spouse is entitled to retain their half of the community property. The deceased spouse's half is typically distributed according to their will or, if there is no will, according to California's intestate succession laws.
Do I have to name my spouse as beneficiary for 50 percent of my life benefit? No, the Policy is set up to pay the percentage you list for each named beneficiary regardless of whether you have a spouse. Naming your beneficiary is strictly your personal decision.
There are several reasons a spouse might not be named as the beneficiary: The deceased spouse purchased the policy before the marriage and forgot to update the beneficiary. The deceased might have chosen someone else (such as an adult child or even a beloved charity) instead of a spouse to receive the benefits.
Life insurance steps to take during divorce
Couples often name each other as beneficiaries on financial accounts like retirement plans and life insurance policies. If no children are involved, you can usually call your insurance company and ask them to remove your ex-spouse as a beneficiary.
In many cases, the spouse can inherit your house even if their name was not on the deed. This is because of how the probate process works. When someone dies intestate, their surviving spouse is the first one who gets a chance to file a petition with the court that would initiate administration of the estate.
California is a community property state, meaning that half of the assets acquired during a marriage automatically belong to the spouse. As a result, you cannot disinherit a spouse entirely, as they are entitled to their share of the community property.
It's generally a bad idea to name more than one beneficiary, for two reasons. First, if you name your spouse and someone else as beneficiaries, your spouse loses the special benefits and flexibility they would otherwise have. Second, it complicates things.
In community property states, a spouse is automatically considered the life insurance beneficiary unless they indicate explicitly otherwise in the policy.
The United States has nine community property states: Arizona, California, Idaho, Louisiana, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, Washington, and Wisconsin.
Now there is a 10-year clean-out rule for many beneficiaries of inherited IRAs. The IRA funds must be distributed to them within 10 years of the owner's death. This requirement applies to many IRAs inherited after 2019.
These states include Arizona, California, Idaho, Louisiana, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, Washington, and Wisconsin.
As noted above, spousal consent is always going to be required when a married participant wants to change their designated beneficiary to someone other than their spouse.
In most states, it is impossible to totally disinherit your spouse in a will. Spouses have a right of election, and can claim a certain fraction of the estate as their elective share, no matter what the will says. In community property states, a surviving spouse owns half of their shared property.
An inheritance is considered separate property: You don't have to share it with your spouse. But if you want to make sure inherited assets remain separate, you need to follow guidelines on how to hold and use your inherited funds.
First, of course, your husband or wife has to agree, in writing, not to inherit the plan funds when you pass away. Then, you'll need to make sure you fill out a new beneficiary designation form, specifying which person (or people) should inherit your plan.
If you are married or in a common-law relationship of more than two years, your spouse is automatically your beneficiary.
What Does It Mean If Your Name Is Not on the Deed? If your name isn't on the deed, you're not the legal owner. However, in a divorce, the court looks at the contribution of both spouses to the marriage, which includes non-financial contributions, when dividing assets.
California intestacy laws outline a specific order in which the deceased's family members are entitled to inherit property and what portion of the assets each should receive. If your deceased spouse died with no surviving children, parents, siblings, nieces, or nephews, you are entitled to inherit everything.
A life insurance beneficiary designation usually overrides a current spouse or a will. Spouses in community property states must split the death benefit with the named beneficiary. Review (and update) your beneficiaries any time your situation changes.
Do I have to name my spouse as my beneficiary? No. The Group Policy is set up to allow you to designate anyone you want as your beneficiary.