Most of us understand the importance of living well by staying healthy, active and engaged, to enable us to care for and spend quality time with our loved ones for as long as possible.

 

But it's as important to think about leaving well, to ensure your loved ones are protected and provided for when you're no longer around.

 

According to UBS's Global Wealth Report 2025, the average wealth per adult in Singapore is about US$441,596, or approximately S$566,000. This is a substantial amount of money for anyone to leave behind and it makes sense to plan ahead to ensure the wealth we leave can be meaningfully passed on to support our loved ones' future.

A legacy is what you leave behind, including your assets and possessions, to your beneficiaries to create a lasting connection to them. When planning the legacy you want to leave, you should also include clear instructions of how you want to divide your assets and how you wish for them to be used.

 

When you pass on, you also leave behind memories and your values to the younger generation. This is why it is important that you live a meaningful life and impart the values that you prioritise by practicing them in your daily lives.

Similar to how the generation that came before left you a legacy you could build upon, you have the opportunity to do the same for those who come after. 

 

The way you lead your life has a profound impact on those close to you. These are the values you believe in that will act as a compass for the next generation.

 

You also spend your entire life building your estate and you don't want to neglect distributing it to your beneficiaries in the manner you wish. This is especially important if you have young children or other family members who are relying on you for their livelihoods.

 

While leaving a legacy is commonly associated with wealth and prized possessions, even those without vast wealth need to consider leaving a legacy that affords your beneficiaries a means to sustain their standard of living, when you are not around to provide for them.

Leaving a financial legacy starts long before you enter the twilight years of your life. If you have children, you can start by instilling financial literacy and responsible money habits. 

 

You also need to safeguard your loved ones with a financial legacy that will enable them to continue their current standard of living and to pay for important big-ticket items before your children are able to start working after they finish schooling. This safety net should include a payout that takes care of your home loan and other outstanding personal debt, as well as tertiary education funds for your children.

 

This highlights the importance of having adequate life insurance coverage for the amount they will need. For example, policies such as AIA Guaranteed Protect Plus (IV) or AIA Secure Flexi Term will provide your family financial liquidity should the unforeseen happen to you. This way, they are not forced to sell off important assets like the family home or other illiquid investments.

 

You can also tailor the distribution of your assets such that you can achieve two objectives: 1) leave the right assets to the right beneficiaries who will know how to manage those assets; and 2) use your life insurance payout to offset differences in the nominal value of how much you leave each beneficiary.

 

For example, if you have a property worth $1 million and cash savings worth $500,000, a $1 million life insurance payout can be split between two beneficiaries, with one receiving the home and $250,000 from the life insurance payout, and the other receiving the cash savings ($500,000) and $750,000 from the life insurance payout. In total, each beneficiary receives $1.25 million, with the one who needs the home more urgently being left the particular asset. The same situation applies if you have a beneficiary managing a family business or investments in stocks or other private companies.

 

 

A crucial part of leaving behind a meaningful legacy is ensure your intentions are clearly documents and legally protected. This goes beyond just deciding who get what, it's about making the right preparations, so your loved ones are supported and not burdened during a difficult time. 

 

Start by creating a will to detail how you want your estate and personal belongings to be distributed. This becomes especially important if you have specific wishes such as leaving different aspects and amount of your assets to family members, or giving to charities. 

 

However, some assets in Singapore do not form part of your estate and require separate instructions:  

 

 

In addition to distributing your assets, it's important to leave clear instructions pertaining to your end-of-life care. These includes: 

 

You may need to consider protecting your legacy against costly medical treatments in Singapore. Understanding the importance of insurance can be key, and you should also consider adequate critical illness insurance that will give you a payout if you are diagnosed with a critical illness covered under the policy, without having to dip into your savings or liquidate assets which you may have already designated for your beneficiaries.

 

To plug this gap, you can consider AIA Absolute Critical Cover to provide comprehensive coverage against 175 conditions, including 10 Pre-Early Benefit, 150 multi-stage critical illnesses and 15 special conditions. For more details, refer to the product brochure.

 

Legacy planning is a powerful way to ensure your loved ones are taken care of financially, emotionally, and spiritually. By proactively managing your estate, making nominations, and having the right insurance in place, you can leave behind not just wealth, but peace of mind.