I am 42 years old. I run my own business. I wish to buy life insurance, but I don’t get salary slips, which is an important document to buy a policy. How can I get covered?

Congratulations on taking the important step of considering life insurance. It is an essential tool to secure the future of your dependents and safeguard your business interests.

Insurance providers understand that entrepreneurs and business-owners like yourself have different financial structures and offer various alternative ways to evaluate your financial stability. There are several options available to you:

Bank statements: Your bank statements can offer a clear picture of your financial health and stability. As a business-owner, your transactional history and cash flow from your primary bank account (reasonably reflecting your business and savings) will serve as proof of income. By examining your regular deposits and business-related transactions, we can get a comprehensive understanding of your financial standing. A 12-month record of your bank statements is typically sufficient to demonstrate your financial viability. Using account aggregators, your bank statements can be verified digitally with your consent, with your mobile number and an OTP.  

Income tax returns (ITR): Another excellent option is your ITR. They reflect your declared income over time and are particularly useful for self-employed individuals or business owners whose income may fluctuate. Your ITR provides consistency, helping us determine an accurate picture of your earning capacity. This is a reliable document for underwriting purposes, giving us the confidence to offer you a suitable insurance policy.

Vahan portal: If you own a vehicle, we can retrieve information from the Vahan Dashboard, a government database of registered vehicles. These data help us assess your assets and overall financial position. While vehicle ownership may not directly indicate your full financial strength, it adds another dimension to your profile, further enriching the financial underwriting process.

Credit history: Your credit history — whether through credit card transactions, personal loans, or business loans — can be accessed via credit bureaus based on your PAN. This allows us to assess your financial behaviour, creditworthiness, and ability to manage financial obligations. A strong credit score is a key indicator of financial health and can significantly strengthen your life insurance application.

GST details: As a business-owner, your goods and services tax (GST) filings can be another surrogate for salary slips. GST returns provide insight into your business’ turnover and profitability, helping us assess your financial standing and stability. If your business is registered under GST, sharing your filings can help us tailor your insurance coverage based on your business performance.

Other ways

In rare cases, when the above financial surrogates may not fully establish your eligibility, there are still ways to secure a policy. Insurers are often open to considering other financial assets you may own, such as property, investments or business assets, that can demonstrate your financial strength. Flexibility is key, and we believe that every customer deserves a thorough and fair evaluation.

Points to note

You can present any asset you own — property, mutual funds, fixed deposits, or business assets. All of these contribute to demonstrating your financial health for the purposes of underwriting.

Always provide clear, accurate and up-to-date financial documents. This ensures a smooth, hassle-free process with no delays in securing your life insurance policy.

Since every individual’s financial situation is unique, especially for business-owners like yourself, insurance companies now offer policies designed specifically for entrepreneurs and other self-employed individuals.

The writer is MD and CEO, Bandhan Life Insurance

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