Term Life Last reviewed: 2026-10-03 Part of Term life

What Happens When Your Term Life Insurance Ends

Written and reviewed by Hans Goldstein, licensed insurance producer, NPN 20602398 · CA Insurance License #4273294
Last reviewed October 3, 2026 · Published October 3, 2026

Short answer: at the end of the level period, most term policies do not just stop. They switch to annual renewable rates that climb every year. In one published Pacific Life illustration, a $250,000 policy for a 45-year-old man cost $372 a year for 20 years, then $10,210 in year 21, about 27 times as much. You have four options: convert to permanent without a new exam, keep paying the renewal rates, apply for new coverage, or let it lapse.

The jump after the level period

Term life is priced level for 10, 15, 20 or 30 years. After that, many policies are guaranteed renewable, often to age 90 or 95, but at annual renewable term rates based on your age that year. Those rates are built for people who stay only because they could not qualify elsewhere, so they are steep.

Pacific Life PL Promise Term 20, male 45, $250,000 (sample illustration)

Policy year	Age	Annual premium
1 to 20	45 to 64	$372
21	65	$10,210
36	80	$55,753

Source: Pacific Life PL Promise Term sample illustration (third-party hosted copy; secondary source). Renewal premiums shown are the illustrated rates after the level period; your contract's rates may differ.

Few people pay $10,210 for coverage that cost $372 the year before. Most let it lapse, which is fine if the need is gone and a problem if it is not.

Your four options

1. Convert to permanent coverage

If your policy is convertible and you are still inside the window, you can move some or all of it to a permanent policy without a medical exam, at your original health class. This is the best option when your health has changed. Most windows close at the earlier of the level period end or age 70, so check now: term conversion deadlines and rules.

2. Keep paying the renewal rates

Sensible only for a short bridge, for example a few months while a new policy is underwritten, or when you are too ill to qualify for anything else and need coverage for a year or two.

3. Apply for a new policy

If you are healthy, a new term or permanent policy at your current age may cost far less than the renewal rates. You will go through underwriting again, so do not cancel the old policy until the new one is approved and in force. See paramed exam vs no-exam underwriting for which route usually prices better.

4. Let it lapse

If the mortgage is paid, the kids are independent and your spouse would be fine, the need may simply be over. That is the plan term insurance was built for.

What to do this week

Find the date your level period ends and the conversion deadline, which may be earlier.
Ask: who would be hurt financially if I died next year? If no one, letting it end may be fine.
If you still need coverage, price a new policy and a conversion side by side before the level period ends.
Never let a policy lapse before a replacement is approved and in force.

Term owners

Your term ends. Then what?

Send your email and I'll send the one-page decision checklist: convert, renew, replace or let it go.

We’ll email it to you. Hans Goldstein · NPN 20602398.

Rather talk it through? Or book 15 minutes on Hans’s calendar.

How to decide what you still need

The question is not how much coverage you had. It is what would go unpaid now. Common needs that outlive a 20-year term: a spouse's income, a business loan or buy-sell agreement, estate taxes or liquidity for heirs, and final expenses. A large estate may need coverage that lasts for life, which points toward a guaranteed death benefit; see GUL vs IUL.

Term makes sense when...

You are a disciplined saver who really does invest the difference, every month, for decades.
The premium is small enough that you will not miss it (around $100 a month), so it will not lapse.
The need is temporary: a mortgage payoff, kids until they are independent, income replacement through your working years, a business loan or a key person for a set term.
You need a big death benefit on a tight budget right now, as with a young family.
You want to lock in your health now with convertible term and convert part of it to permanent later (how term conversion works).

Permanent makes sense when...

Forced savings helps you: a premium you pay like a bill builds cash value you would not have saved on your own.
You want coverage that lasts your whole life, not just 20 or 30 years.
There is an estate or ILIT purpose: liquidity for estate tax, equalizing heirs, or a trust (ILIT guide).
Cash value is a goal and you can fund it properly for 15+ years (max-funded IUL).
You are healthy and under about 55, so the cost of insurance has decades to stay low while cash value builds.

What it does not do: return your premium

Standard term does not refund anything when it ends. Return-of-premium term does, at a much higher premium, and permanent life with cash value is one of the few ways to get money back while keeping coverage. If your term is ending and you wish you had something to show for it, a converted or new permanent policy funded well is the way to build that; see cash surrender value explained.

What it costs

Ballpark ranges by age, sex, health class and face amount, with dates and sources: What term life costs, by age →

Get your exact number in 15 minutes on a call with Hans.

Term ending in the next few years?

Send the carrier and the date your level period ends. Within one business day Hans lays out your options side by side: convert, replace or let it go.

Rather talk it through? Or book 15 minutes on Hans’s calendar, or call 213-414-2808.

Hans Goldstein · 213-414-2808 · NPN 20602398, independent licensed insurance producer

Frequently asked questions

Does term life insurance expire?

The level premium period ends, but many policies stay renewable each year at much higher rates, often to age 90 or 95. In one Pacific Life sample illustration, a $250,000 policy jumped from $372 a year to $10,210 in year 21.

Do I get my money back when term life ends?

No, not with standard term. Return-of-premium term refunds premiums at a higher price, and permanent life insurance builds cash value you can access.

Can I convert my term policy when it ends?

Only if you are still inside the conversion window, which often closes at the earlier of the level period end or age 70. Check your policy's conversion provision before the level period ends.

What should I do before my term policy ends?

Decide whether anyone still depends on the coverage. If so, compare a conversion with a new policy while you can still qualify, and keep the old policy in force until the new one is approved.

Sources

Hans Goldstein, CA Insurance License #4273294 · NPN 20602398 · Goldstein & Co. LLC dba Goldstein Insurance Services, CA License #6016830

Contact: hans@hansgoldstein.com · 213-414-2808

General education, not tax or legal advice. Tax treatment depends on your facts and on current law, which can change. Talk to your CPA or estate attorney. Guarantees are backed by the financial strength and claims-paying ability of the issuing insurance company. Guarantees apply only to the contractual terms of the policy. Caps, participation rates, loan rates, charges and dividends are not guaranteed and can change. Hans is paid a commission by the insurer if you buy a policy through him. For life insurance, ask and he will tell you what he earns on your specific policy. Product and company names are trademarks of their owners. Goldstein Insurance Services is an independent agency, not affiliated with or endorsed by any insurer named here. Life insurance requires underwriting; not everyone qualifies. This page describes products in general terms; read the policy and the insurer's disclosures before you buy.