Florida Statute 222.14
“Exemption of cash surrender value of life insurance policies and annuity contracts from legal process”
What it means
One sentence protects two asset classes. The cash surrender values of life insurance policies issued on the lives of Florida citizens or residents, and the proceeds of annuity contracts issued to them, “upon whatever form,” are not liable to attachment, garnishment, or legal process in favor of any creditor of the insured — or of any creditor of the annuity's beneficiary.
The single exception: a policy or annuity effected for the benefit of a creditor carries no shield against that creditor. There is no dollar cap in the section.
- Cash surrender value of life insurance on a Florida citizen or resident's life is exempt from legal process.
- Annuity proceeds issued to Florida citizens or residents are exempt — from the creditors of the annuity's beneficiary.
- The exemption fails only where the policy or contract was effected for the benefit of that creditor.
- No dollar limit appears in the statute.
How it plays out
Annuities are the quiet workhorse of Florida exemption planning, and estates keep asking the follow-up: does an inherited annuity keep protection in the beneficiary's hands? The statute exempts annuity proceeds from the beneficiary's own creditors, which surprises judgment holders more than it should. We map every policy and annuity at the start of an administration — what §222.14 exempts never needed probate, and saying so early changes the whole conversation about the estate's debts.
Where this shows up
Pages on this site where § 222.14 does real work:
Questions people ask
