Heritage Growth Advantage Plus Fixed Indexed Annuity

For clients evaluating principal-protected strategies and asking broader structural questions such as those covered in are annuities guaranteed, the Heritage Growth Advantage Plus provides a clear example of how indexed annuities function. You are not directly invested in the stock market. Your principal and previously credited interest cannot decline due to negative market performance. Instead, interest is credited based on the positive performance of selected indexes, subject to participation rates or cap rates that are contractually locked in for the surrender period — a feature that distinguishes this product from most competing FIAs where rates may be reduced by the carrier at renewal.

Heritage Growth Advantage Plus: Key Product Features at a Glance

Premium Bonus and Long-Term Positioning

One of the defining features of the Heritage Growth Advantage Plus is its premium bonus. At issue, a stated percentage of your premium is added to your account value — immediately creating a higher starting base on which all future index-linked and fixed interest is calculated and compounded. That enhanced value is then allocated among the fixed or indexed strategies you select and begins building returns from day one. When held for its intended duration through the full surrender period, the bonus increases the long-term growth base and can meaningfully improve projected accumulation relative to a non-bonus FIA at the same participation rates.

As with most bonus annuities, the additional amount is subject to recapture if excess withdrawals occur during the surrender charge period. Withdrawals above the 10% annual free withdrawal allowance trigger proportionate bonus recapture in addition to the withdrawal charge and MVA. This makes the product most appropriate for assets that are genuinely intended to remain in place for the full surrender term without significant access needs beyond the free withdrawal provision. When structured correctly within a retirement plan, the bonus strengthens the compounding effect from year one without requiring any additional complexity or risk. For clients evaluating how the HGA+ bonus compares to other structures in the market, our bonus annuity comparison resource provides useful context. And for clients evaluating whether a bonus product is the right structural choice at all, our guide on bonus annuity pros and cons covers the tradeoff analysis clearly.

Guaranteed Crediting Structure for the Full Surrender Period

Unlike the majority of fixed indexed annuities currently in the market, which reserve the carrier’s right to adjust participation rates and cap rates on an annual basis at each crediting term renewal, the Heritage Growth Advantage Plus guarantees those crediting parameters for the full duration of the surrender charge period. In most states, that period is 10 years; in California it is 9 years. During the entire surrender period, the participation rate on every indexed account will not be reduced below the rate established at contract issue. This guarantee applies contractually and cannot be unilaterally changed by the carrier during the defined period.

This structural feature matters more than it might initially appear, because long-term performance modeling for an FIA depends on stable crediting assumptions. If a carrier reduces participation rates midway through a 10-year surrender period — which is legally permitted in most standard FIA contracts — the projected growth trajectory changes significantly, sometimes dramatically. Clients who built their retirement plan around an assumed participation rate may find that the actual accumulation diverges materially from the illustration. The HGA+ eliminates that uncertainty for the full surrender period, creating a defined and reliable environment for retirement modeling. Individuals repositioning qualified assets frequently review planning frameworks such as how to transfer a Solo 401(k) to an annuity to ensure structural guarantees align with their time horizon before committing to any specific contract.

How Interest Is Credited

Your premium may be allocated to a fixed account or to one or more indexed accounts, or split between both. The fixed account credits interest daily at a guaranteed rate declared at contract issue — providing certainty for whatever portion of the premium is allocated there. Indexed accounts credit interest at the end of a defined crediting term, typically one or two years, based on the upward movement of the selected index and the participation rate associated with that strategy. The S&P MARC 5 index offers both annual and two-year point-to-point crediting with participation rates. The Morgan Stanley Dynamic U.S. Equities Index provides exposure to U.S. large-cap equity through a volatility-targeted structure that adjusts its allocation based on market conditions. Allocations among the available strategies may be adjusted at the end of each crediting term, providing annual flexibility to respond to changing conditions or personal objectives.

If the index performance for the crediting term is positive, interest is credited according to the contract formula — the index gain multiplied by the guaranteed participation rate. If the index performance is zero or negative, no interest is credited for that term, but the contract value does not decline. Zero is not a loss. Your original premium, the premium bonus, and all previously credited gains remain protected regardless of how the index performs. This annual reset mechanism ensures that each new crediting term begins from the current protected account value, preventing any reversal of prior credited interest. For clients evaluating how participation rate strategies differ from cap rate strategies in practice, our guide on index annuity crediting methods explains the mechanics of each approach in plain language.

Tax Deferral and Retirement Coordination

Like other deferred annuities, growth inside the Heritage Growth Advantage Plus is tax-deferred. Interest compounds without annual taxation until funds are withdrawn, which allows the full credited amount to contribute to the next period’s base rather than being reduced by a tax payment each year. For clients in peak earning years who anticipate lower tax brackets in retirement, this deferral can enhance long-term compounding efficiency in ways that annually-taxed alternatives cannot replicate. Qualified funds transferred from IRAs or 401(k)s maintain their tax-deferred status when properly structured through a direct trustee-to-trustee transfer. For the mechanics of that process, our guide on how to transfer a retirement account to an annuity covers what is required to complete the rollover without triggering withholding or the 60-day rollover clock.

Pre-retirees coordinating accumulation and income phases often compare protected growth strategies with income-focused planning models such as those discussed in guaranteed income at age 60. Others integrate annuities into broader estate positioning frameworks alongside planning conversations similar to wealth transfer strategies the affluent use. The Heritage Growth Advantage Plus’s direct-to-beneficiary death benefit — bypassing probate — provides an efficient transfer mechanism that integrates naturally into estate planning conversations alongside wills, trusts, and other legacy tools.

About Investors Heritage Life Insurance Company

Investors Heritage Life Insurance Company is headquartered in Frankfort, Kentucky, and is owned by Aquarian Insurance Holdings LLC. The company holds an AM Best Financial Strength Rating of B++ (Good), with the outlook revised to Stable in July 2025 — an improvement from the prior Negative outlook. The rating revision reflects meaningfully improved balance sheet metrics: capital and surplus increased 52% to $281 million in 2024, and risk-adjusted capitalization improved from weak to strong as measured by AM Best’s Capital Adequacy Ratio. The company is also reinsured by New Reinsurance Company Ltd., a subsidiary of Munich Reinsurance Company, which provides additional claims-paying support for the Heritage Growth Annuity product line.

Buyers comparing the Heritage Growth Advantage Plus against FIA products from A-rated carriers should evaluate the guaranteed participation rate feature — which is uncommon even among higher-rated competitors — against the financial strength difference. The guaranteed crediting structure creates a meaningful product-level advantage that may justify consideration alongside carrier ratings for clients with a clear 10-year accumulation horizon. An independent broker comparison that presents both the product economics and the carrier financial strength side by side is the most reliable basis for that evaluation. For a fuller assessment of Investors Heritage as a carrier, our resource on whether Investors Heritage is a good insurance company addresses the carrier evaluation framework directly.