While you serve, low-cost group life insurance (SGLI) quietly protects your family. When you separate, that coverage ends — and the window to keep guaranteed coverage is short. Understanding your options now prevents a gap that could leave your family unprotected.
What happens to SGLI when you leave
Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance (SGLI) covers you during service, up to a maximum benefit, for a low monthly premium. It generally ends a short time after you separate. The key move is deciding what replaces it before that coverage lapses.
VGLI: convert without a medical exam
Veterans' Group Life Insurance (VGLI) lets you convert your SGLI coverage into a renewable civilian policy. The biggest advantage: if you apply within the early window after separation, you can get VGLI without proving you're in good health — which is invaluable if you have service-connected or other health conditions that make private insurance expensive or hard to get.
VGLI premiums rise with age, so it isn't always the cheapest option for a young, healthy veteran — but the no-medical-exam guarantee makes it the right choice for many. Note the enrollment deadlines carefully; miss the guaranteed-acceptance window and you may have to answer health questions.
Compare with private term insurance
If you're young and healthy, a private term life policy may offer more coverage for less money than VGLI, with a level premium for a set period. It's worth getting quotes and comparing:
- VGLI: guaranteed acceptance early on, no medical exam, premiums increase with age.
- Private term: often cheaper if you qualify medically, level premiums, requires underwriting.
Some veterans keep a smaller VGLI policy for its guaranteed coverage and add private term for extra protection.
Don't forget these
- Family coverage: spouses and children may have had coverage under Family SGLI — understand what continues and what doesn't.
- How much you need: a common starting point is enough to cover your debts, replace income for the years your family depends on it, and fund future costs like education.
- Beneficiaries: review and update them after any major life change.
The bottom line
Your SGLI ends when you separate, so decide early. If your health could make private insurance costly, the guaranteed-acceptance VGLI window is a benefit worth using. If you're healthy, compare VGLI against private term. Either way, don't let coverage lapse — confirm current SGLI/VGLI details and deadlines at VA.gov.
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