1. Reserves for all policies and contracts issued prior to July 1, 1977, may be calculated, at the option of the insurer, according to any standards which produce greater aggregate reserves for the policies and contracts than the minimum reserves required by the laws in effect on June 30, 1977. 2. Reserves for any category of policies, contracts, or benefits, as established by the commissioner, issued on or after July 1, 1977, may be calculated, at the option of the insurer, according to any standards which produce greater aggregate reserves for the category than those calculated according to the minimum standard provided in this chapter, but the rate or rates of interest used for policies and contracts, other than annuity and pure endowment contracts, may not be greater than the corresponding rate or rates of interest used in calculating any nonforfeiture benefits provided in the policies and contracts. 3. An insurer that has adopted any standard of valuation producing greater aggregate reserves than those calculated according to the minimum standard provided in this chapter may, with the approval of the commissioner, adopt any lower standard of
valuation, but not lower than the minimum provided in this chapter; provided, however, that for the purposes of this section, the holding of additional reserves previously determined by the appointed actuary to be necessary to render the opinion required by section 26.1-35-01.1 may not be deemed to be the adoption of a higher standard of valuation.
26.1-35-09. Reserve calculation - Valuation net premium exceeding the gross premium charged. 1. If in any contract year the gross premium charged by an insurer on any policy or contract is less than the valuation net premium for the policy or contract calculated by the method used in calculating the reserve but using the minimum valuation standards of mortality and rate of interest, the minimum reserve required for the policy or contract is the greater of either the reserve calculated according to the mortality table, rate of interest, and method actually used for the policy or contract, or the reserve calculated by the method actually used for the policy or contract but using the minimum valuation standards of mortality and rate of interest and replacing the valuation net premium by the actual gross premium in each contract year for which the valuation net premium exceeds the actual gross premium. The minimum valuation standards of mortality and rate of interest referred to in this section are those standards stated in sections 26.1-35-02 and 26.1-35-04. 2. For a life insurance policy issued after December 31, 1986, for which the gross premium in the first policy year exceeds that of the second year and for which no comparable additional benefit is provided in the first year for the excess and which provides an endowment benefit or a cash surrender value or a combination thereof in an amount greater than the excess premium, the provisions of this section must be applied as if the method actually used in calculating the reserve for the policy was the method described in section 26.1-35-05, ignoring subsection 2 of that section. The minimum reserve at each policy anniversary must be the greater of the minimum reserve calculated in accordance with section 26.1-35-05, including subsection 2 of that section, and the minimum reserve calculated in accordance with this section.