Term life insurance is issued for a specified number of years (the term), and everything is based on that time frame. For example, if you get a thirty-year policy—you would pay a premium (monthly payment) for thirty years and the payout (death benefit) is guaranteed to your beneficiaries if you die anytime during that thirty years. If you are still alive at the end of the thirty-year period, your policy expires. You stop paying monthly premiums and your beneficiaries are also no longer going to get money from the insurance company after you do die.
