Estate planning at Global Atlantic

Yes, and Global Atlantic's own annuity paperwork imposes two rules most people miss. First, the Change of Beneficiary form (FA5014) states that for contracts with a TRUST AS THE OWNER, the trust must be listed as the beneficiary -- you cannot have the trust own the contract and name an individual as beneficiary on that form. Second, a trust-owned contract must have the title and signature pages of the trust agreement, or the Trustee Certification and Indemnity form (FA5150), on file with Forethought Life Insurance Company. Separately, the same form warns that a beneficiary change will NOT be processed if the annuity is owned by a custodian (a custodial IRA, for example) -- you must go to the custodian instead. On the tax side, a non-qualified annuity owned by a trust generally loses tax deferral under IRC Section 72(u) unless the trust is acting as the agent of a natural person, which is why many planners name the trust as beneficiary rather than owner. Confirm with a tax advisor first, then call the Annuity Service Center at 866-645-2449; annuity paperwork goes to Forethought Life Insurance Company, P.O. Box 758507, Topeka, KS 66675-8507 (fax 785-286-6104, accepted only if your signature is already on file).