Taiwan’s Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) has released updated figures for the life insurance sector’s sales of foreign-currency denominated products through August 2025, highlighting strong demand for both investment-linked and traditional policies.
Foreign-Currency Premiums Show Substantial Growth
The FSC reported that new premium income from foreign-currency products reached NT$271.813 billion, up 42% from NT$191.813 billion for the same period in 2024.
Breaking down the figures, investment-linked insurance products contributed NT$42.313 billion, accounting for 16% of the total and reflecting a similar 42% year-on-year rise. Traditional insurance offerings generated NT$229.5 billion, or 84% of the total, also up 42% from NT$161.993 billion a year earlier.
Spillover-Effect and In-Kind Benefit Products: Contracts and Premium Trends
In the third quarter of 2025 (Q3 2025), 15 life insurers had registered a total of 299 spillover-effect products, with 932,074 new contracts sold, a marginal decrease of 1% from the previous year’s 939,542 contracts. Despite the slight fall in contract numbers, first-year premium income for these products rose 46% to NT$27,877.20 million, up from NT$19,074.74 million in Q3 2024.
For in-kind payment insurance products, seven insurers had 52 offerings approved or registered. New contracts reached 343,543, an 81% increase over the 190,040 contracts sold in Q3 2024. However, first-year premium income for these products fell 49% to NT$727.42 million, down from NT$1,436.91 million a year earlier, despite the higher contract volume.
Insurance Sector Financials and Currency Impacts
By the end of September 2025, Taiwan’s insurance companies posted a pre-tax profit of NT$117.7 billion. Life insurers accounted for NT$91.6 billion, down 68.8% (NT$202.3 billion) from the previous year, while non-life insurers saw pre-tax profits rise 18.1% (NT$4.0 billion) to NT$26.1 billion.
Owners’ equity for the sector totalled NT$2,807.4 billion at the end of September. Life insurers’ equity stood at NT$2,645.0 billion, down 1.1% year-on-year, while non-life insurers’ equity increased 9.2% to NT$162.4 billion.
The FSC noted currency movements had a significant impact. The New Taiwan Dollar appreciated 7.59% against the US Dollar since the end of 2024, raising the foreign exchange valuation reserve for life insurers by NT$122.3 billion to NT$341.9 billion. Combined exchange and hedging activities, along with volatility, resulted in a net impact of NT$-653.9 billion on the reserve. Overseas investments by life insurers generated net gains of NT$124.8 billion, excluding volatility effects.
New Outsourcing Regulations Under Review
Amid these financial developments, the FSC is progressing new regulations to govern insurance outsourcing. Following amendments to the Insurance Act in June 2025, the FSC introduced a draft regulation titled Regulations Governing Internal Operating Systems and Procedures for the Outsourcing of Insurance Enterprise Operation.
The draft would replace existing administrative guidelines with enforceable legal standards. Insurance firms would face stricter criteria when engaging external service providers. The FSC also proposes eliminating the provision allowing brokers to collect premiums on behalf of insurers, emphasising that brokers act in the interest of policyholders.
The draft permits outsourcing of tax-related land registration tasks and mandates fixed terms for all outsourcing contracts. According to the FSC, these changes aim to improve service quality, protect consumer interests, and reduce operational risks for insurers.