Can heirs find out the beneficiary of a French life-insurance policy?

When a relative dies in France, the assurance-vie (French life-insurance wrapper) is often the first source of family tension. Heirs hear that "the money went elsewhere", that "the policy was secret", or that "it should have come back to the family". These reactions are understandable, but they typically stem from a confusion between two very different questions: can you find out that a policy exists? And can you find out who actually receives the proceeds?

This article sets out what French law allows in 2026, which mechanisms exist to search for a policy, and where the boundaries of confidentiality lie. It also covers the one exception that courts recognise — excessive premiums — and explains how the French transmission tax regime works in practice.

Not automatically, and not as a matter of right. An heir does not have access to the beneficiary clause the way a creditor has access to a statement of assets. The assurance-vie is, by design, a contract that sits outside the estate.

What an heir can obtain:

• confirmation that a policy exists (via AGIRA or, for notaries, FICOVIE)
• the fact that the insurer has contacted or will contact a beneficiary
• information relevant to a potential court challenge on the premiums paid

What an heir cannot demand:

• the name of the designated beneficiary, if that person is not the heir making the request
• the precise capital amount, except through court proceedings

This distinction flows from the core structure of French life-insurance law: the proceeds are not an asset of the estate. They represent a right created directly between the policyholder and the insurer.

Two complementary mechanisms exist to search for a policy after a death.

AGIRA: the standard search route#

AGIRA (Association pour la Gestion des Informations sur le Risque en Assurance — the body that searches for unclaimed life-insurance policies) accepts requests from any person who believes they may be a beneficiary or from heirs of a deceased policyholder.

Step-by-step procedure:

1. Download and complete the AGIRA request form (available on the AGIRA website or via service-public.fr)
2. Attach a certified copy of the death certificate
3. Attach proof of identity for the applicant
4. Send the file to AGIRA by post or electronically, depending on current procedures
5. AGIRA forwards the request to all member organisations (insurers, mutuals, provident institutions)
6. Each insurer checks its records and has a statutory deadline of 15 working days to respond to AGIRA
7. If a policy is found with an identified beneficiary, the insurer contacts that beneficiary directly — not necessarily the person who submitted the request

That final point is critical: the heir triggers the search, but the insurer reports to the beneficiary, not to the heir, when they are different people.

FICOVIE: the notary's tool#

FICOVIE (Fichier national des contrats d'assurance-vie — the national life-insurance register) is maintained by the French tax authority. It records all assurance-vie and capitalisation policies with an outstanding balance above 7,500 euros. During a succession, the notary handling the estate can query FICOVIE to identify whether the deceased held one or more policies.

Yes, as a general rule. The beneficiary clause is a unilateral act of will by the policyholder. It is not a public document. It may be lodged with a notary (an accepted clause or a clause en dépôt), or held solely in the insurer's records.

This confidentiality is not a gap in the law: it is a deliberate protection. It allows the policyholder to organise a transmission without their choices being known or challenged — either during their lifetime or automatically upon death.

In practice:

• an heir may learn that a policy exists without knowing who receives it
• if the clause designates a third party (a friend, an unmarried partner, a charity), the legal heirs are not entitled to that information spontaneously
• only the designated beneficiary — once identified by the insurer — receives direct notification

Our view: in complex family situations (blended families, children from different relationships, an unmarried partner), the confidentiality of the beneficiary clause can create tension even when the transmission is entirely lawful. The real prevention is to anticipate these tensions while alive — by drafting a clear clause and preparing relatives for the logic of the contract.

In principle, no. The assurance-vie sits outside the French succession. The capital paid to the beneficiary does not form part of the estate assets, is not divided among heirs under civil law rules, and is not subject to standard inheritance tax — subject to the specific tax rules described below.

This is precisely what makes it a powerful transmission tool, particularly for business owners who want to pass wealth to persons without a direct family relationship, or to favour one child without formally disrupting civil equality among heirs.

But excessive premiums can change the picture#

French law provides one exception: if the premiums paid into the policy were "manifestement exagérées" (manifestly excessive) in light of the policyholder's age, overall wealth, and family circumstances, heirs can ask a court to bring those premiums back into the estate.

There is no statutory fixed threshold. Courts assess the facts case by case, looking at:

• the ratio of premiums paid to total wealth at the time of payment
• age and health at the time of large payments
• whether large payments were made shortly before death
• what the heirs receive in the rest of the estate

For contentious cases of this kind, specialist legal advice from a French estate lawyer (avocat en droit des successions) is essential. Our firm can analyse overall financial coherence, but the litigation itself falls outside the scope of an accounting engagement.

The assurance-vie has its own tax regime, separate from standard inheritance tax. The rules differ depending on when the premiums were paid.

Premiums paid before age 70 (article 990 I CGI)#

Each beneficiary receives a personal tax allowance of 152,500 euros on the capital transmitted. Above that:

• a levy of 20% applies up to 700,000 euros of taxable capital per beneficiary
• a levy of 31.25% applies above 700,000 euros

Worked example: a policyholder dies leaving 400,000 euros in a single policy, funded entirely before age 70. Two beneficiaries are designated equally (200,000 euros each). Each benefits from the 152,500-euro allowance. The taxable amount per beneficiary is 47,500 euros, taxed at 20%, giving a levy of 9,500 euros each. The total tax cost on a 400,000-euro transmission is 19,000 euros — often far less than conventional inheritance tax would have been.

Premiums paid after age 70 (article 757 B CGI)#

The allowance is global: 30,500 euros shared across all beneficiaries and all policies combined. Above that threshold, the premiums re-enter the estate and are taxed under standard inheritance tax rates according to the family relationship. However, the gains (interest, capital gains) generated by those premiums remain exempt from tax, even for post-70 payments.

Spouse or civil partner (PACS)#

A surviving spouse or PACS partner designated as beneficiary is fully exempt, regardless of when premiums were paid and regardless of the capital amount (under the TEPA legislation).

Here are the realistic steps after a death, in logical order:

1. Gather the deceased's papers: bank statements, insurer correspondence, account summaries — look for any sign of a policy
2. Consult the notary handling the estate: they can query FICOVIE and identify registered policies
3. Submit an AGIRA request if no policy has been identified through papers or the notary (form on service-public.fr, death certificate required)
4. Wait for insurer responses (statutory 15-working-day deadline after the request is forwarded)
5. If a policy is found and you are the designated beneficiary, the insurer contacts you directly
6. If you are not the beneficiary, you will know a policy exists but not who receives it
7. If you suspect excessive premiums, consult a specialist estate lawyer before taking any legal action

The most common problem in the estate files we review is not fraud. It is a beneficiary clause written fifteen or twenty years ago, never updated, that designates a former spouse, or refers to "children born or unborn" without accounting for children from a later relationship.

These situations create protracted disputes, serious family tensions, and sometimes expensive litigation — not because anyone sought to deceive, but because the clause did not keep pace with life.

Updating a beneficiary clause does not require restructuring the policy. It can be done with a simple amendment (avenant) filed with the insurer. The real cost is failing to do it.

For business owners or individuals with a substantial estate, the assurance-vie remains one of the most tax-efficient French transmission tools — provided it is used with clear intent.

Practical recommendations:

• Review the beneficiary clause after every major family event: marriage, divorce, birth, death of a previously designated beneficiary
• Distinguish premiums paid before and after age 70 to manage the transmission tax efficiently
• Ensure consistency between the policy and any testamentary provisions or gifts already made
• Let your notary know the policies exist and understand their logic, to avoid delays when the estate is settled
• For blended families, have the clause drafted by a notary rather than relying on the insurer's standard wording

Disclaimer: this article is published for information purposes by Hayot Expertise, a chartered accountancy firm in Paris. It does not constitute individual legal advice. For any estate dispute, challenge based on excessive premiums, or drafting of a complex beneficiary clause, specialist advice from a French notary or estate lawyer is required. Tax rules cited are current as of 26 May 2026 and may change.