LIC Premium Hike 2026 Explained. Who is Affected and What to Do

Why LIC Revises Premiums

LIC premiums are based on three components. Mortality charge (cost of providing life cover), expense loading (LIC's operating costs), and reserve (for bonus payouts). When IRDAI updates the mortality tables every few years, or when LIC's expense ratio changes, premiums get revised. The 2026 revision affects mostly term plans and pure protection products.

Which Plans Got More Expensive

Based on LIC's published sales brochures in 2026:

• •LIC New Tech Term (Plan 954): Premiums up by 4 to 7% for age 30-45 buyers.
• •LIC Saral Jeevan Bima (Plan 859): Premiums up by approximately 5% across age bands.
• •LIC New Jeevan Amar (Plan 955): Premiums up by 3 to 5%.
• •Endowment plans (Jeevan Anand, Jeevan Labh): Largely unchanged. These have stable mortality charges baked in.
• •ULIPs (SIIP, Nivesh Plus): Charges unchanged. NAV-based, not affected by mortality table change.

Should You Buy Now or Wait?

If you are planning to buy a term plan in the next 12 months, buy now. Premiums almost never decrease, only stay flat or rise. Locking in today's rate at age 32 is cheaper than the same plan at age 33 or 34. The premium you lock in is fixed for the entire policy term.

If you are eyeing an endowment or ULIP, there is no rush from a pricing standpoint. These products have not changed meaningfully in 2026.

Pro Move. Buy Term Plan This Financial Year

An extra year of age can raise your term premium by 6 to 8%. So a 32-year-old paying ₹12,000/year for a ₹1 crore term plan will pay around ₹13,000 if they wait to age 33. Over a 30-year term, that is ₹30,000 extra. Same coverage. Worse deal.

If you have been postponing buying term insurance, the 2026 premium hike is the nudge to do it before your next birthday.