Non-Resident/Cross-Border Sales

A “non-resident sale” (often referred to as a “cross-border sale”) occurs whenever a customer buys an annuity contract outside his or her state of residence. This includes solicitation and completion of the annuity application and delivery of the annuity contract. 

Athene does not encourage non-resident sales. However, in today’s mobile society, it’s likely that you will experience situations that provide an opportunity to sell an annuity contract to a non-resident in the state in which you are located or conducting business. The rules surrounding non-resident sales can be challenging, especially in cases where the applicant/owner and the proposed annuitant are different people. It may be difficult to tell (1) where the solicitation took place, (2) which state’s rules should apply and (3) which state’s forms should be used. To help, we’ve put together Athene guidelines for non-resident sales (24728) to make sure you understand the rules and regulations pertaining to “cross-border sales” of annuities.

Even in cases where these guidelines are followed, Athene reserves the right to decline non-resident applications based on the information provided, or other information known to the Company.

Athene does not allow a non-resident sale via telephone or video solicitation (e.g., Zoom). When conducting business in this manner, the applicant must be in their state of residence for both the solicitation and signing of all application documents. The application’s signed city and state sections must also accurately list the applicant in their state of residence. Please refer to Athene guidelines for telephone & video solicitation (52269) for details.

State insurance departments will not tolerate any deliberate bending of the rules while selling products to clints outside their state of residence, nor will Athene. If a sale is made appropriately in a state other than the applicant’s residence state, you must maintain the correct non-resident license(s) and only sell products approved in the non-resident state(s). You must also be familiar and comply with all rules and regulations in each state for which a non-resident license is held. 

State specific regulations:

Some states prohibit cross-border sales to residents of their states. It is our interpretation that the following states do not permit sales of insurance products to their residents outside of their state: Arkansas*, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Mississippi*, New York, Utah, Washington, and Wisconsin.

* Arkansas residents may purchase an annuity in Mississippi or Tennessee. Mississippi residents may purchase an annuity in Arkansas or Tennessee. You must have a non-resident license in the applicant’s state of residence.  

Please note: Applications must be signed where Athene is licensed to business. This excludes some U.S. territories and any foreign country.