PRODUCT REVIEW — BRANCH 23
AG Insurance relies on the Branch 23 tax wrapper to justify its 4.5% entry friction. But for an investor in accumulator ETFs, this wrapper provides zero tax advantage — only significantly higher costs.
IN SHORT
AG Fund + charges 2% premium tax + 2.5% entry fees = 4.5% total entry friction. To justify such costs, AG Insurance relies on the Branch 23 tax wrapper. Problem: for an investor in accumulator ETFs, this advantage does not exist. Tax treatment is identical (same 10% capital gains tax), but AG costs you €168,000 in missed profits over 30 years.
Fees shown are based on AG Insurance Key Information Documents (KID/DICI) available on the FSMA website. The 2.50% entry fee and ~1.70%/year are standard rates — some brokers may apply different tariffs.
The AG Fund + pitch relies on the exemption from withholding tax. This is a technically correct but irrelevant argument for a modern investor: accumulator ETFs like IMIE do not distribute dividends and therefore incur no withholding tax either.
The treatment of capital gains is identical between Branch 23 and accumulator ETFs. Branch 23 has never been 'more tax-efficient' than an accumulator ETF — it is simply much more expensive due to its 4.5% entry friction and high management fees.
The right question is not about taxation. It is: why pay 4.5% at entry and 1.70%/year in fees for a tax treatment identical to an ETF at 0.17%/year?
Non-fiscal Branch 23 has never offered a real tax advantage over an accumulator ETF like IMIE. Not before, not now. What you are paying for is an insurance wrapper that costs 8 to 10 times more — with no tax benefit in return.
Premium tax: 2% — The Legal Entry Price
Identical to all Branch 23 products. Levied on each payment. Over 30 years at €300/month, this represents €2,160 in tax alone.
Entry fee: 2.50% — The Avoidable Addition
Unlike the tax, these fees are a commercial choice of AG. Combined with the tax, you need about 8.7 months just to recover your initial stake before generating a single euro of real return.
Double layer of annual fees: ~1.40% to 1.95%
AG contract fees (~0.70%) are added to the TER of the 'Rainbow' funds (~1.00%). On €100,000, this represents up to €1,950/year in fees, compared to €170/year for an ETF.
⚠ AG's 'Rainbow' funds are not index ETFs — they are active funds whose TER is added to the insurance contract fees. The net performance of the whole rarely reflects that of the global market.
Comparison based on a payment of €300/month (€3,600/year) for 30 years. Total invested: €108,000. We use the same figures as for NN Strategy to allow direct comparison.
| AG Fund + | World ETF IMIE | |
|---|---|---|
| Entry friction | −4.50% (tax + fees) | −0.12% TOB (purchase) |
| Estimated net return | ~6.30%/year | ~8.00%/year |
| Final gross capital | ~€221,400 | ~€408,000 |
| Capital gains tax (10%) | −€10,810 | −€29,000 |
| TOTAL NET VALUE | ~€210,590 | ~€378,611 |
| REAL NET PROFIT | +€102,590 | +€270,611 |
AG Fund + generates ~2.6 times more net profit (+€102,590 vs +€270,611) — a gap of €168,021.
Within the Branch 23 universe: NN Strategy (+€115,140 net) is structurally cheaper than AG Fund + (+€102,590), mainly due to lower entry fees. Both lose massively to the ETF.
Note: the ETF simulation applies CGT as if all the capital were sold in one go. In practice, progressive selling reduces real CGT to almost zero — making the gap even more favorable to the ETF.
Methodology note: the 8% return used for IMIE is based on the historical average of the MSCI ACWI IMI over 20 years (2005–2025). The net return of 6.30% for AG Fund + assumes total fees of 1.70%/year — at the bottom of the observed range. The comparison is therefore conservative and favourable to AG Fund +.
Simulate with your own numbers in our calculator.
Open the calculator →Branch 23 allows designating specific beneficiaries outside classic succession rules. AG Insurance being the leading insurer in Belgium, this mechanism is perfectly established. For an investor over 60 looking to organize their succession, this legal advantage is real.
AG Insurance distributes its products through banks (BNP Paribas Fortis) and brokers. The 2.5% entry fees remunerate this network. You pay the price for the convenience of not opening a broker account dearly: €168,000 in unrealized profits over 30 years.
Branch 23 remains a legitimate estate planning tool for built-up wealth. But for the wealth accumulation phase, the AG Fund + wrapper represents a cost without any real tax counterpart compared to a direct ETF.
AG Fund + is the most expensive Branch 23 product in our analysis. The insurance wrapper offers no measurable tax advantage over an accumulator ETF — it never has. What remains: 4.5% entry friction and ~1.70%/year in fees for an asset you can buy directly at 0.17%/year.
The product is not fraudulent, but it is structurally 8 to 10 times more expensive than a direct ETF investment for an identically identical tax treatment. You are paying for an insurance wrapper that provides no measurable benefit.
If you subscribed recently (less than 3 years), check the surrender fees (1%) before cancelling — but beyond 3 years, the switch to ETF is mathematically justified in almost all cases.
Legitimate use case:
Estate planning for investors 60+, objective of targeted transmission outside classic succession.
To avoid for:
Any investor seeking to build up wealth. The 4.5% entry friction and high annual fees have never had a real tax counterpart compared to an ETF.
Last updated: April 2026
Illustrative simulation only. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.