Guatemala

Axco provides details on the life insurance sector including Guatemalan market participants, reinsurance and distribution channels. The reports describe classes of business from both individual and group life such as whole life, endowment, term life and unit-linked.
Information on non-life classes for example critical illness and private medical insurance.

The report describes the public and private healthcare system in Guatemala, the scope of cover, accessibility financing and provides an analysis of how the public and private systems complement each other.

Axco reports on the three pillars of Guatemalan pension provision.

• State pension benefits including benefit calculations and eligibility criteria 
• Workplace pension provision; types of schemes calculations eligibility and; tax implications
• Voluntary individual pension provision, type of products and tax implications

The Guatemala report provides an in-depth analysis of the regulatory framework governing social security as well as details on financing and eligibility. Information includes but is not limited to

• state pensions,
• permanent disability benefit
• occupational accident and disease
• maternity and paternity payments 

In 2019 Guatemala was ranked 74 in the world for all classes of business, according to Axco Global Statistics, for life business 80, while for PA and healthcare, 56. The life market is characterised by low insurance penetration and fluctuating levels of growth.

Life market income in 2019 was GTQ 1.88bn (USD 244.09mn), representing growth of 9.82% on the previous year, 20.79% of total market income. Group business grew by 10.68%, accounting for GTQ 1.66bn (USD 215.28mn), while individual life grew by 3.75% to ....

Pensions are only provided through the state social security system, with no real participation by the insurance sector. There are no plans for the privatisation of state social security or pensions, although this could give a major boost to the industry. There are no annuities sold by the insurance market, with some sources saying attempts to introduce them in the past have been thwarted by excessive if not obstructive regulation and delays in approval processes.

An ageing population is not one of the country's most immediate problems, with the estimated old age dependency ratio, defined as the proportion ....

Universal healthcare for all Guatemalans is required in the Constitution of 1985, but currently remains a long-term goal, principally due to underfunding: public hospitals and clinics provide their services free of charge to any patient.

Public sector healthcare in Guatemala is provided by IGSS, Ministry of Public Health and Social Assistance (MSPAS), the military health service and other non-governmental organisations (NGOs), and private hospitals: this fragmented system results in an inability to provide ....