Canadian life insurance application activity continued to grow in November

The November 2025 reading of the MIB Life Index, published by Massachusetts-based, MIB Group, has found that month-over-month application activity has pulled back but larger growth trends continued during the month.

Canadian life insurance application activity continued to grow in November 2025, with year-over-year activity up 4.7 per cent, and year-to-date activity coming in 6.1 per cent higher when compared to the same period ending in November 2024.

Month-over-month, November application activity dropped 3.1 per cent when compared to October’s figures.

Interestingly, they say 23 per cent of the total life index volume for Canada in November did not include a product type, which can have a significant impact on the firm’s analysis. “We believe the vast majority of these submissions are for life insurance applications and have included them in the composite analysis,” they write. When adjusted to remove submissions where product types are not indicated, activity was up 20.8 per cent, year-over-year and up 14.9 per cent, year-to-date.

Growth surge in the senior age bands 

Notably, double digit, year-over-year growth among those over age 61 carried the month, while application activity in other age bands declined: Applications for those up to age 30 declined 12.2 per cent, the largest decrease. The number of clients between 31 and 50 applying for life insurance declined 4.2 per cent and those between 51 and 61 climbed 8.5 per cent. The most noticeable jump in application activity, however, occurred for those between 61 and 70 years of age and for those over age 71 – application activity was up 44.6 per cent and 93.5 per cent, respectively.

“It is notable that ages 71+ has displayed a consistently increasing surge in year-over-year growth since July, and ages 61+ has seen double-digit, year-over-year growth every month since May,” they write.

Broken down by policy type, it is also noticeable that growth was highest among those applying for the smallest policies.

“Based on data reported to MIB, November 2025 saw double-digit, year-over-year growth for face amounts up to and including $250,000, growth for amounts over $500,000, up to and including $1-million,” they write. Amounts over $2.5-million, up to and including $5-million also grew, while all other face amounts saw flat application activity. “On a year-to-date basis, all face amounts were at growth,” they add.