Why it earned this rating
Our assessment
Pacific Choice B-Share earns a solid rating because it delivers a wide investment menu and a manageable 5-year surrender schedule in a market — New York — where variable annuity options can be more limited. That said, the base expense load is real, the product has no income rider, and the New York-only restriction means this review applies to a narrow slice of the market.
The short version
For a New York buyer who wants tax-deferred market participation through a variable annuity, does not need a guaranteed income feature, and can live with a 5-year surrender commitment, Pacific Choice B-Share is a workable option. The subaccount depth is genuine. The optional principal-protection riders add an interesting downside safety layer for accumulation-focused buyers who are uneasy about full market exposure. But the fee structure adds up quickly once subaccount expenses are layered onto the 1.20% base charge.
Key facts
The full review
Is Pacific Life & Annuity Pacific Choice B-Share a Good Annuity?
It depends heavily on the buyer's situation. For a New York-based buyer who is looking for subaccount variety, tax deferral, and a shorter-duration B-share structure, it is a reasonable option. It is less appealing for someone who wants guaranteed lifetime income — that feature simply is not available here. And because this product is sold exclusively in New York, it is a non-starter for buyers in other states.
Why Someone Would Buy This Annuity
The main reason to buy Pacific Choice B-Share is tax-deferred market participation through a wide range of professionally managed subaccounts. A buyer who wants to allocate across equity styles, fixed income, international, and specialty strategies inside a single tax-deferred wrapper, without making an indefinite commitment, will find the 5-year surrender schedule and 99 subaccount options meaningful advantages.
A secondary reason is the optional protective features. The GMAB riders can appeal to accumulation buyers who want some assurance that the market will not permanently damage their principal over a 5- or 7-year window. The Stepped-Up Death Benefit II rider can appeal to buyers who want a legacy-protection layer built around the highest anniversary value.
Who This Annuity Is Best For
I think Pacific Choice B-Share fits a fairly specific buyer: someone in New York, accumulation-focused, comfortable with market risk, not looking for a guaranteed income stream, and interested in the breadth of the subaccount menu. It fits someone who views the annuity primarily as a tax-deferred investment account rather than an income vehicle.
It is less attractive for someone who expects to turn on guaranteed income at some point, wants the simplest possible structure, is highly cost-sensitive, or lives outside New York.
What You're Really Buying Here
You are buying a tax-deferred investment account wrapped in an insurance contract. The investment return is driven by whichever subaccounts you select, which means the value can rise or fall with the markets. The insurance wrapper provides tax deferral, a basic death benefit, and access to optional protective riders. Unlike fixed or indexed annuities, there is no floor against market loss unless you add a GMAB rider — and even then, the protection is specifically limited to the waiting period and the premium basis.
How the Core Feature Works
Pacific Choice B-Share allocates your premium among any combination of its 99 variable subaccounts. You select the subaccounts at issue and can reallocate over time, with up to 25 free transfers per year. The base contract also offers Dollar Cost Averaging programs — a 6-month DCA option at 6.00% and a 12-month DCA option at 3.00% — which allow systematic transfers from a holding account into your chosen subaccounts.
Returns are not guaranteed in the variable investment options. Your account value goes up or down based on subaccount performance. The M&E charge (0.95%) and administrative fee (0.25%) are deducted daily from each subaccount's assets, and subaccount-level expense ratios run from 0.28% on the low end to 2.38% on the high end depending on which funds you use.
Why the Secondary Feature Matters
The optional Stepped-Up Death Benefit II is the secondary feature worth highlighting. For buyers who are using this annuity partly for legacy planning alongside accumulation, the GMDB rider locks in the highest contract anniversary value before the oldest owner reaches age 81, adjusted for additional premiums and withdrawals. The rider costs 0.20% annually and can be elected at issue for owners and annuitants age 75 or younger. It adds a meaningful death benefit floor without requiring a full separate legacy-focused annuity.
The GMAB riders — Protected Investment Benefit 5-Year IV and Protected Investment Benefit 7-Year — are designed for buyers who want some accumulation protection. The 5-year version guarantees account value will not fall below 90% of first-year premiums at the end of the waiting period. The 7-year version sets that floor at 100% of first-year premiums at the 7-year mark. Each costs 1.20% annually, on top of the base expenses.
Liquidity and Surrender Schedule
Pacific Choice B-Share uses a per-payment surrender schedule. Each purchase payment carries its own 5-year withdrawal-charge period of 7%, 7%, 6%, 5%, 3%, then 0%. Withdrawals of earnings plus up to 10% of remaining purchase payments are available annually without charges. Surrender charges are also waived upon death, annuitization, terminal illness, nursing home confinement, and required minimum distributions (when enrolled in Pacific Life's RMD program).
The per-payment design means buyers who make multiple deposits at different times will have multiple overlapping surrender windows. That is worth understanding before committing to ongoing contributions.
Fees and Tradeoffs
The base annual expense load is 1.20% (M&E plus admin), plus a $50 annual contract fee waived above $50,000. On top of that, subaccount expenses vary by fund and range from 0.28% to 2.38%. A buyer in the lower-cost index-style subaccounts might pay around 1.50% total all-in; a buyer using actively managed or specialty subaccounts could pay 2.50% or more annually. The optional riders stack on additional charges: 0.20% for the Stepped-Up Death Benefit II, and 1.20% for either GMAB rider.
That fee stack is the clearest tradeoff. Variable annuities offer real benefits — tax deferral, death benefit protection, subaccount variety — but those benefits need to outpace the drag from expenses over time to justify the cost.
Product snapshot
| Feature | Details |
|---|---|
| Product type | Variable annuity (B-Share) |
| Issuing company | Pacific Life & Annuity Company |
| Issue ages | 0–85 |
| Minimum initial premium (NQ) | $10,000 |
| Minimum initial premium (Q) | $2,000 |
| Minimum subsequent premium (NQ) | $250 |
| Minimum subsequent premium (Q) | $50 |
| M&E charge | 0.95% annually (deducted daily) |
| Administrative charge | 0.25% annually (deducted daily) |
| Annual contract fee | $50 (waived at $50,000 net contract value) |
| Subaccount expense range | 0.28%–2.38% |
| Variable subaccounts | 99 |
| Fixed account | Not available |
| Indexed strategies | Not available |
| Free withdrawals | Earnings plus 10% of remaining purchase payments annually |
| Surrender schedule | 7% / 7% / 6% / 5% / 3% / 0% (per payment, 5-year) |
| Surrender charge waivers | Death, annuitization, terminal illness, nursing home, RMDs |
| Death benefit (standard) | Greater of account value or premiums paid adjusted for withdrawals |
| Optional GMDB | Stepped-Up Death Benefit II — highest anniversary value to age 81; 0.20% annual charge; available at issue for owners/annuitants age 75 or younger |
| Optional GMAB (5-year) | Protected Investment Benefit 5-Year IV — 90% of first-year premiums guaranteed at year 5; 1.20% annual charge |
| Optional GMAB (7-year) | Protected Investment Benefit 7-Year — 100% of first-year premiums guaranteed at year 7; 1.20% annual charge |
| Living benefit rider (GLWB/GMWB) | Not available |
| DCA programs | 6-month DCA at 6.00%; 12-month DCA at 3.00% |
| Free transfers per year | 25 |
| State availability | New York only |
Carrier snapshot
Pacific Choice B-Share is issued by Pacific Life & Annuity Company, the New York-licensed entity affiliated with Pacific Life Insurance Company. Pacific Life has operated since 1868 and carries strong financial-strength ratings, including A+ from A.M. Best and AA- from Standard & Poor's. Pacific Life & Annuity Company is organized to serve the New York market specifically, and the Pacific Choice B-Share is one of several variable annuity contracts Pacific Life distributes in that state. Pacific Life has been recognized as one of the World's Most Ethical Companies by the Ethisphere Institute for multiple years.
Final take
Pacific Choice B-Share is a functional, reasonably well-constructed variable annuity for what it is: a New York B-share contract built around subaccount investment access and tax deferral. The fund menu is broad, the surrender schedule is shorter than many alternatives, and the optional riders give buyers meaningful choices around accumulation protection and death benefit enhancement.
What holds this back from a higher rating is the fee structure combined with the narrow geography. New York-only availability limits the audience considerably. And once you add a subaccount's internal expenses to the 1.20% base load, the total cost of ownership is real. For a buyer who genuinely needs what this contract offers, it is a solid fit. For a buyer shopping more broadly or primarily interested in guaranteed income, other products will likely serve them better.