Assurance vie
Assurance vie is a French life-insurance and investment wrapper that holds savings with tax advantages, especially after eight years.
Assurance vie operates in the French Insurance segment.
Assurance vie: Core Facts
- Definition
- Life-insurance and investment wrapper for long-term savings
- Tax advantage
- More favourable tax treatment on gains after 8 years
- Holdings
- Fonds en euros (capital-guaranteed) and unités de compte (market-linked)
- Inheritance
- Has its own favourable succession rules
- Not the same as
- Assurance décès (term life) or a bank savings account
- Offered by
- Insurers and banks, including AXA, mutuals, and banks
- Liquidity
- Funds remain accessible, though withdrawing early reduces tax benefits
- Regulator
- ACPR
- Status
- Active Definition
- Verified
How Assurance vie compares
Assurance vie is NOT term life insurance (assurance décès) and NOT a bank savings account; it is a long-term savings and investment wrapper with its own tax and inheritance rules. It can hold fonds en euros and unit-linked (unités de compte) investments.
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Assurance vie: Frequently Asked Questions
What is assurance vie?
Assurance vie is a French life-insurance and investment wrapper that holds long-term savings with tax advantages, especially after eight years.
Why is the 8-year mark important for assurance vie?
Assurance vie gains receive more favourable tax treatment once the contract is over eight years old, which is why it is treated as a long-term savings vehicle.
Is assurance vie the same as term life insurance?
Assurance vie is not term life insurance; assurance vie is a savings and investment wrapper, whereas assurance décès pays out on death and is a separate product.
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Where Assurance vie is mentioned on How to France
Guides and reference pages on this site that mention Assurance vie:
Maintained by Jules de Bruin (How to France). This page follows the Grounding Page Standard v1.5. Last verified: 2026-06-23.