Can a felon get life insurance?
Short answer
Yes, in most cases. Final expense applications ask about felony convictions, pending charges, probation and parole within set time windows, not forever. Some carriers reach their best rate class once a felony is more than two years old; others draw the line at seven or ten years and offer a graded plan in between. One carrier, Royal Neighbors, excludes felonies entirely — which is why shopping several carriers matters.
A record doesn’t make you uninsurable. What matters is what the application actually asks, and how long ago it happened. On the final expense applications we’ve reviewed, the criminal-history questions are about felonies — convictions, pending charges, probation, parole and current incarceration — and nearly every one of them comes with a time window.
How carriers draw the lines
These come from the carriers’ own underwriting guides (more detail on our criminal record page):
| Carrier | Inside the window | After the window |
|---|---|---|
| NewBridge | Felony conviction, pending charges, parole or probation in the last 24 months: not eligible | More than 2 years: Preferred, its best class |
| Transamerica FE Express | Felony charges, pending included, within 2 years: decline | 2+ years: Premier |
| Transamerica Immediate Solution (older guide) | Within 3 years: decline. 3–5 years: Graded. 5–10 years: Standard | Over 10 years: Preferred |
| United Home Life | Pending charges, or a conviction, parole or probation within 7 years: graded whole life | More than 7 years: Premier |
| Royal Neighbors | Not accepted if the insured or the owner has a felony — any plan, guaranteed issue included | — |
Transamerica’s Immediate Solution chart also declines multiple offenses within ten years, and Transamerica declines anyone currently incarcerated, on probation or on parole.
What that means in plain English
- More than two years out and done with supervision: day-one coverage at a top class is realistic at several carriers.
- Inside the two-to-seven-year range: a graded plan — permanent coverage with a limited benefit for natural-cause death in the early years — is often the bridge.
- Health problems on top of the record? Guaranteed-issue whole life asks no health questions (Mutual of Omaha to age 85, Corebridge and Americo to 80), but non-medical eligibility rules still apply, so we confirm each product’s rules before we quote.
Misdemeanors and old arrests
The final expense questions in the guides we reviewed are about felonies. Answer exactly what each question asks — no more, no less. If you’re not sure whether an old case was a felony, or how it was resolved, pull the court record before you apply. A resolved charge can change the answer.
Don’t leave it off the application
Some carriers check on their own: KSKJ’s simplified-issue decision runs against a criminal background check, along with prescription history and a motor vehicle report. And in Michigan, a policy can be contested for its first two years (MCL 500.4014). Leaving a felony off is how a family ends up with a denied claim instead of a check. The honest path is also the one that works: match your dates to a carrier whose window you’ve already cleared.
Let us check the dates for you
Tell us the conviction date and when supervision ended, and we’ll check them against the carrier guides we work with before you apply. Start here or call 586-343-1505 — no cost, no judgment.
Sources: Carrier underwriting guides from NewBridge (Continental General), Transamerica, United Home Life, Royal Neighbors of America and KSKJ, as compiled on our criminal record and felony guide (verified September 2026) · Michigan Compiled Laws §500.4014 (two-year incontestability)
Updated October 11, 2026. General information, not legal, tax or financial advice. United Eagles Financial is an independent life insurance agency, not an insurance carrier; coverage depends on carrier underwriting and state availability.