What Policy Duration Is Ideal for Family Protection?

In India, financial advice often focuses entirely on the price tag. We ask “how much” coverage we need. Is it 1 Crore? 2 Crores? We spend hours calculating the sum assured under our term life insurance policy. But there is a silent risk in insurance planning that rarely gets enough attention: the duration.

Getting the timing wrong can be just as damaging as getting the amount wrong. If your policy ends too soon, you may be left exposed when financial responsibilities are still high. If it runs far longer than your actual needs, you may continue paying premiums even after your family no longer depends on your income. Finding the right balance is the only way to ensure your term insurance for family cover serves its true purpose.

Rethinking the Retire at 60 Rule

For years, the standard advice sounded simple: buy a term life insurance policy that covers you until age 60. This approach worked reasonably well when retirement timelines were predictable and major liabilities were cleared early.

But modern India looks very different. People are marrying later, having children later, and taking on long-tenure home loans that often extend into their late fifties or early sixties. If your policy stops at 60 but your financial responsibilities continue until 65, the gap can put your family at risk. The role of term insurance for family protection is to provide financial support that helps replace lost income when it is still needed. If dependents or liabilities remain, the need for cover often remains too. Choosing an end date based purely on age, rather than actual financial responsibilities, introduces unnecessary risk.

How to Find Your Ideal Duration

If 60 is not a universal answer, what is? The right policy duration is not about hitting a specific birthday. It is about aligning your term life insurance with your personal financial timeline.

To do this well, consider the following factors:

Dependent Age
 Your cover should ideally last until your youngest child is reasonably self-sufficient. While many parents plan for financial independence in the early twenties, this timeline can extend depending on higher education choices, career paths, or other circumstances.

Loan Tenure
Review the remaining schedule on your home loan and other long-term liabilities. In most cases, your term insurance for family cover should continue at least until these major obligations are comfortably manageable or fully repaid.

Spousal Support
If your partner relies on your income, consider how long financial support would be required for them to maintain stability and lifestyle, taking into account their own earning capacity and savings.

Retirement Corpus
Think of insurance as a bridge rather than a permanent fixture. As your investments grow, they may begin generating sufficient income to support your family. At that stage, the reliance on term life insurance typically reduces, though it may not disappear all at once.

The Question of Buying Cover Till 99

At first glance, buying the longest possible policy term can seem like the safest choice. Many insurers in India offer term life insurance that runs until age 85, 90, or even 99. These plans can make sense in certain situations, but they are not automatically the best option for everyone.

At advanced ages, most people have fewer financial dependents, major assets are usually paid off, and daily expenses are largely met through savings or retirement income. In such cases, continuing insurance purely for income replacement may offer diminishing value. That said, some families choose longer-term coverage for legacy planning or to provide additional security to a surviving spouse. The decision should be intentional, not automatic.

For many households, ending coverage around the late sixties or early seventies aligns better with real financial needs, allowing premiums saved in later years to be redirected toward retirement or low-risk investments. The right choice depends on health, affordability, and personal goals.

Conclusion

Insurance is not a trophy to hold forever. It is a financial tool meant to protect your family during the years they depend on you the most.

In a country where individuals largely build their own safety nets, term insurance for family protection remains one of the most responsible financial decisions you can make. But even the best term life insurance policy works only when its duration matches real-world responsibilities. Don’t pick an arbitrary end date. Review your loans, your children’s timelines, and your long-term savings. Choose a policy term that reflects your life, not just your age. That is how you create genuine peace of mind.