Lesson 1 of 8 · Advanced Health Insurance Concepts

Portability Rules — IRDAI Guidelines, Process & Timeline

Portability lets a policyholder move an indemnity health policy to another insurer while keeping the credits earned through continuous cover. This lesson gives the current timelines, what carries over, and what happens when the sum insured is increased.

Fact-checked 8 October 20264 practice questions in the game

What portability protects

Continuous health cover builds up credits: waiting periods already served, the months counted towards the moratorium, and any no-claim bonus. If changing insurer meant starting again, a policyholder would be tied to the first insurer chosen. Portability removes that tie by letting the credits travel with the policyholder to a different insurer.

The current rule is in IRDAI's Master Circular on Health Insurance Business of 29 May 2024, which replaced the earlier portability circulars. Its portability provisions are written for indemnity health policies, the kind that pay hospital expenses actually incurred. A fixed-benefit critical illness or personal accident policy cannot be assumed to be portable as of right.

The timeline today

Once a portability request is made, the new insurer asks the existing insurer for the policy and claims data. The existing insurer has to supply it within 72 hours, through the Insurance Information Bureau (IIB) portal. The new insurer then has to decide on the proposal within 5 days of receiving the information.

Older material quotes a 45-day application window before renewal and a 15-day decision period. Neither is the current rule; the 2024 circular states no application window.

What carries over, and how far

Credits for sum insured, no-claim bonus, waiting periods and the moratorium carry over to the extent of the earlier cover. The phrase matters when the sum insured goes up at the time of porting.

The new insurer may underwrite the increase afresh, and that portion can carry its own waiting period as set by the policy. For pre-existing diseases, no waiting period can exceed 36 months since 1 April 2024. The premium is the new insurer's own; portability protects credits, not price.

Rules at a glance

Policies coveredIndemnity health insurance policiesIRDAI Master Circular on Health Insurance Business, 29 May 2024

Existing insurer supplies dataWithin 72 hours, through the IIB portalMaster Circular, 29 May 2024; older material quotes longer periods

New insurer decidesWithin 5 days of receiving the dataMaster Circular, 29 May 2024; older material says 15 days

Credits carried overSum insured, no-claim bonus, waiting periods, moratorium — to the extent of the earlier coverMaster Circular, 29 May 2024

Pre-existing disease waiting periodNot more than 36 monthsSince 1 April 2024

Worked example

Porting with a higher sum insured (assumed figures)

Assume Priya has held an indemnity policy of ₹5,00,000 for 24 continuous months, and both her old and new policies set a 36-month waiting period for pre-existing diseases. She ports and raises the sum insured to ₹8,00,000.
Split the new cover: ₹5,00,000 is the earlier cover; the increase is ₹8,00,000 − ₹5,00,000 = ₹3,00,000.
On the first ₹5,00,000 her 24 months are credited, so the remaining wait is 36 − 24 = 12 months.
On the ₹3,00,000 increase there is no credit; assume the new policy applies its full 36-month waiting period to it.

Result. After 12 more months a pre-existing condition is claimable up to ₹5,00,000; the extra ₹3,00,000 becomes available for it only after 36 months, under these assumed terms.

Key points

Portability is a move of an indemnity health policy to a different insurer with earned credits intact.
The governing text is the IRDAI Master Circular on Health Insurance Business, 29 May 2024.
The existing insurer supplies data within 72 hours through the IIB portal.
The new insurer decides within 5 days of receiving the data.
Credits for sum insured, no-claim bonus, waiting periods and the moratorium carry over only to the extent of the earlier cover.
An increase in sum insured can be underwritten afresh and carry its own waiting period.

Common misunderstandings

Portability is not open to every health-related policy as of right: the provisions are written for indemnity policies.
Credits do not stretch to a higher sum insured: they apply only up to the earlier cover.
The 45-day application window is not the current rule: the 2024 circular states no such window.
Porting does not carry the old premium across: the new insurer prices the policy.

Questions people ask

Who supplies the policy history to the new insurer?

The existing insurer, within 72 hours of the request, through the IIB portal.

Does the moratorium restart after porting?

No. Continuous cover with the earlier insurer counts towards it, to the extent of the earlier cover.

Can the new insurer apply underwriting?

It may underwrite an increase in sum insured afresh; credits for the earlier cover are carried over.

What this lesson relies on

IRDAI Master Circular on Health Insurance Business (29 May 2024) — portability and waiting periods

This lesson was reviewed independently against these sources on 8 October 2026. Rules change: check the current regulation, scheme document or policy wording before relying on any figure. This is education, not advice.