How much of the return you keep, and where the rest goes
Enter the portfolio once. The profile runs it through the same engine as the six instruments, under the tax system that applies to you, and shows the path from gross wealth to wealth kept. Each cost opens the instrument that owns it, with your figures already loaded.
By Eldar Edmond Grady, CEO, PPLI.com. Research checked 27 September 2026.
Singapore law as at 27 September 2026, Year of Assessment 2026, for an individual resident in Singapore who holds the portfolio or policy personally. Home-country rates are the 2026 figures stated on the page.
PPLI.com is a research publisher, not an insurer, broker or financial adviser, and is not licensed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore. Nothing here is an offer of insurance. To buy a policy, deal with an insurer or adviser licensed or exempted by MAS and check it on the MAS Financial Institutions Directory.
One set of facts, six lenses
The profile holds the amount, horizon, allocation, tax system, alternatives terms, any liquidity event and any policy. Every figure it shows is an engine output or an arithmetic identity between outputs.
With a policy modelled on part of the portfolio, the profile shows its charges and its exit tax next to the tax it defers, and reports the result whichever way it goes. For a resident taxed only in Singapore that result is a cost. If no policy is modelled, it ranks the sources of drag on the portfolio held directly, largest first.
The full and executive reports turn the same figures into a printable analysis. Nothing is sent to PPLI.com to produce them.
The identity every result must satisfy
The profile reconciles to the dollar. For any profile:
Wealth kept + fees + tax + policy charges + liquidity friction
+ withdrawals + compounding forgone = gross reference
Gross reference = starting capital x (1 + weighted gross return)^yearsCompounding forgone is defined as the remainder, so the identity closes by construction. What it guarantees is that no cost is counted twice and none is left out: the bars in the chart divide the gap exactly.
What the profile computes, and what it does not
Tax systems
Singapore only, United States person, UK-connected and returning, mainland China domicile, or custom. The UK return is modelled year by year: nothing in the years in Singapore, UK rates after.
The policy
Nothing is taxed inside it each year. When it ends, the gain above premiums is taxed at the exit rate or the rate at death, and the entry cost comes off the premium. For a US person holding to death, estate tax is applied to both sides alike.
What it leaves out
Personal allowances and reliefs, top-slicing, the US PFIC regime, trusts and state or local taxes. It does not compute an individual liability; it applies the rates you set.
Common questions
What does the profile measure?
How much of the gross economic result on your portfolio reaches you after fees, the tax that applies to you, any policy charges, any delay in investing and the compounding each of them forgoes, over the horizon you choose.
Which tax rates does it use?
The rates of the system you choose. Singapore only: 0 on interest, dividends and gains on investments. United States person: 40.8% on interest and 23.8% on qualified dividends and long-term gains. UK-connected and returning: 0 while in Singapore, then 45%, 39.35% and 24%. Mainland China domicile: 20%. Every rate can be changed.
How is a policy taxed in the profile?
Nothing is taxed inside it each year. When it ends, the gain above premiums is taxed at the exit rate or the rate at death that you set, and any entry cost is taken from the premium. For a US person holding to death, estate tax is applied alike to both sides.
Is anything I enter sent to PPLI.com?
No. The profile is stored in your browser under one key and can be cleared at any time. The reports are built in the browser too.
Does the profile recommend a policy?
No. You set the share and the charges, and the analysis reports the result, including when the charges are the larger figure. To buy a policy, deal with an insurer or adviser licensed or exempted by MAS.
Instruments and related reading
Wealth simulatorThe allocation over a whole horizonOpen →Tax drag calculatorThe annual tax cost, row by rowOpen →Hedge Fund X-RayFees and tax on the hedge fund sleeveOpen →Private credit real yieldThe credit sleeve on committed capitalOpen →PPLI break-evenA policy on part of the portfolioOpen →Liquidity event plannerA sale and what follows itOpen →PPLI.com is a research publisher, not an insurer, broker or financial adviser, and is not licensed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore. This page is general information about how tax systems treat a portfolio and a life insurance policy. It is not an offer of insurance and not advice on any product. A policy from an insurer not licensed in Singapore is outside the Policy Owners' Protection Scheme and outside Singapore statutory nominations.
The authorities this page relies on
Income Tax Act 1947 s 13(7A), s 13(1)(za) and s 13(1)(zd)
Foreign-sourced income received in Singapore by a resident individual is exempt, except income received through a partnership in Singapore (s 13(7A)(b)). Dividends paid by Singapore-resident companies under the one-tier system are exempt (s 13(1)(za)), as is interest on deposits with approved banks (s 13(1)(zd)). sso.agc.gov.sg, ITA 1947 s 13
IRAS, gains from sale of property, shares and financial instruments
Gains from the sale of shares and financial instruments are generally not taxable, and gains from trading can be. IRAS lists "payouts from insurance policies as they are capital receipts" among gains that are generally not taxable. iras.gov.sg, gains
Estate Duty Act 1929 s 2A
The Act applies only to persons dying before 15 February 2008. IRAS: estate duty has been removed for deaths on and after that date. sso.agc.gov.sg, EDA s 2A
Rev. Proc. 2025-32 and 26 USC 1411
For 2026 the 37% rate applies above US$640,600 of taxable income for a single filer and the 20% rate on long-term gains and qualified dividends above US$545,500. The 3.8% net investment income tax (s 1411) does not apply to nonresident aliens, so it does apply to US citizens abroad. Top combined rates: 40.8% and 23.8%. irs.gov, Rev. Proc. 2025-32
26 USC 101(a)
Amounts received under a life insurance contract by reason of the death of the insured are excluded from gross income. law.cornell.edu, s 101
26 USC 4371
An excise tax of 1 cent per dollar, 1%, applies to life insurance premiums paid to a foreign insurer. With no US-Singapore treaty there is no treaty waiver. law.cornell.edu, s 4371
IRS, estate tax: 2026 exclusion and rate
Basic exclusion amount US$15,000,000 for 2026. The unified rate schedule in the Form 706 instructions taxes the excess above US$1,000,000 of taxable amount at 40%. irs.gov, estate and gift tax
ITTOIA 2005 s 528, time-apportionment relief
The gain on a policy is reduced in proportion to the days in the policy period on which the holder was not UK resident, so a family returning to the UK is charged only on the UK-resident share. legislation.gov.uk, s 528
PRC Individual Income Tax Law, arts 1, 3 and 4
A person domiciled in China, meaning habitually resident there because of household registration, family or economic ties, is a resident taxed on worldwide income (art 1). Interest, dividends and property-transfer income are taxed at 20% (art 3). Insurance compensation is exempt (art 4). chinatax.gov.cn, IIT Law
SDIC, Policy Owners' Protection Scheme
Covers policies of MAS-licensed direct life insurers, for a foreign-incorporated insurer only those issued by its Singapore branch. Caps: S$500,000 guaranteed death benefit and S$100,000 guaranteed surrender value per life per insurer. Investment-linked values tied to underlying assets are not covered. sdic.org.sg, coverage
Ask a research question
If a step in the method is unclear, or you think a figure or a source is wrong, write to us. We answer questions about the research. PPLI.com does not sell or arrange policies.
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