Does Every Health Insurance Policy Have a Moratorium Period?

If you are wondering whether a moratorium period applies to your health insurance policy, the short answer is yes. In India, this is not something insurers choose to include; it is a regulatory requirement that protects you as a policyholder. Here is what you need to know about how it works and why it matters.

What is a moratorium period?

A moratorium period is a fixed timeframe after which your insurer can no longer reject or question your claims based on non-disclosure or mistakes you made in your original application. After completion of sixty continuous months of coverage (including portability and migration), no policy or claim shall be contestable by the insurer on grounds of non-disclosure or misrepresentation, except for established fraud. This period of sixty continuous months is called the moratorium period.

In plain terms, once you have held active health cover for five years without any gaps, your insurer cannot dig into your old records to reject a claim. The only exception is proven fraud.

Is the moratorium mandatory for all policies?

These rules apply under the IRDAI (Insurance Products) Regulations, 2024, and the Master Circular on Health Insurance dated 29 May 2024. This means every general and health insurer regulated by IRDAI must follow them. Whether you have an individual policy or a family floater, the moratorium applies.

The moratorium applies to the sum insured of your first policy. If you later increase your cover, a separate five-year count begins from the date you enhanced the amount.

Key points to remember

• Five-year duration: After eight continuous years, no lookback was applied under older rules. This period of eight years was called the moratorium, but it has now been reduced to five years.


• Portability counts: If you switch or migrate your health insurance plan, the time spent with your previous insurer also counts towards the moratorium period.


• Fraud is still excluded: Even after five years, insurers can reject claims if fraud is proven.


• Permanent exclusions remain: Conditions that your policy permanently excludes will never be covered, regardless of the moratorium.

The moratorium exists to reward honest, long-term policyholders and to prevent insurers from unfairly rejecting claims years later over minor disclosure errors. If you keep your policy active without breaks and disclose your health history honestly, this rule works strongly in your favour.