Statute provides for two tax-efficient alternatives to a life assurance policy held within a registered occupational pension scheme:

1. •

   the relevant Life policy (RLP), and

2. •

   the excepted group life policy (EGLP)

EGLPs are, in fact, a form of RLP under statute, but as they relate to the provision of cover for multiple—rather than single—life arrangements, they form a distinct and separate insurance product line. Accordingly, in what follows, 'RLP' refers to single-life policies and 'EGLP' refers to multiple / group life policies.

Carried over from section 539A of the Income and Corporation Taxes Act 1988 in the lead up to ‘A-Day’, and currently contained in the Income Tax (Earnings and Pensions) Act 2003 (ITEPA 2003) and sections 480–482 of the Income Tax (Trading and Other Income) Act 2005 (ITTOIA 2005), EGLPs and RLPs provide lump sum benefits on the death, before age 75, of:

1. •

   employees

2. •

   directors (including single directors of a service company)

3. •

   ‘salaried’ partners taxed under PAYE

The statutory rules governing RLPs apply