Pioneer PRISM XC Variable Annuity - Pioneer Investments

entire amount of all future payments are includable in
taxable income.
The IRS has not furnished explicit guidance as to how the
excludable amount is to be determined each year under
variable income annuities that permit transfers between
investment portfolios after the annuity starting date.
Consult your tax adviser.
Taxation of Death Benefit Proceeds. Amounts may
be distributed from a Non-Qualified Contract because of
your death or the death of the annuitant. Generally, such
amounts are includible in the income of the recipient as
follows: (i) if distributed in a lump sum, they are taxed in
the same manner as a surrender of the contract, or (ii) if
distributed under a payout option, they are taxed in the
same way as annuity payments.
See the Statement of Additional Information as well as
“Death Benefit — General Death Benefit Provisions” in this
prospectus for a general discussion on the federal income
tax rules applicable to how death benefits must be
distributed.
Transfers, Assignments or Exchanges of a
Contract. Where otherwise permitted under the terms of
the contract, a transfer or assignment of ownership of a
Non-Qualified Contract, the designation or change of an
annuitant, the selection of certain maturity dates, or the
exchange of a contract may result in certain adverse tax
consequences to you that are not discussed herein. An
owner contemplating any such transfer, assignment,
exchange or event should consult a tax adviser as to the tax
consequences.
Withholding. Annuity distributions are generally subject
to withholding for the recipient’s federal income tax
liability. Recipients can generally elect, however, not to
have tax withheld from distributions.
Multiple Contracts. The tax law provides that deferred
annuities issued after October 21, 1988 by the same
insurance company or an affiliate in the same calendar year
to the same owner are combined for tax purposes. As a
result, a greater portion of your withdrawals may be
considered taxable income than you would otherwise
expect. Please consult your own tax adviser.
Ownership of the Investments. In certain
circumstances, owners of variable annuity contracts have
been considered to be the owners of the assets of the
underlying Separate Account for Federal income tax
purposes due to their ability to exercise investment control
over those assets. When this is the case, the contract
owners have been currently taxed on income and gains
attributable to the variable account assets. There is little
guidance in this area, and some features of the contract,
such as the number of funds available and the flexibility of
the contract owner to allocate premium payments and
transfer amounts among the funding options, have not
been addressed in public rulings. While we believe that the
contract does not give the contract owner investment
control over Separate Account assets, we reserve the right
to modify the contract as necessary to prevent a contract
owner from being treated as the owner of the Separate
Account assets supporting the contract.
Further Information. We believe that the contracts will
qualify as annuity contracts for federal income tax
purposes and the above discussion is based on that
assumption. Further details can be found in the Statement
of Additional Information under the heading “Tax Status
of the Contracts.”
Taxation of Qualified Contracts
The tax rules applicable to Qualified Contracts vary
according to the type of retirement plan and the terms and
conditions of the plan. Your rights under a Qualified
Contract may be subject to the terms of the retirement plan
itself, regardless of the terms of the Qualified Contract.
Adverse tax consequences may result if you do not ensure
that contributions, distributions and other transactions
with respect to the contract comply with the law.
Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs). IRAs, as
defined in Section 408 of the Internal Revenue Code
(Code), permit individuals to make annual contributions of
up to the lesser of the applicable dollar amount for the year
(for 2009, $5,000 plus, for an owner age 50 or older,
$1,000) or the amount of compensation includible in the
individual’s gross income for the year. The contributions
may be deductible in whole or in part, depending on the
individual’s income. Distributions from certain retirement
plans may be “rolled over” into an IRA on a tax-deferred
basis without regard to these limits. Amounts in the IRA
(other than non-deductible contributions) are taxed when
distributed from the IRA. A 10% penalty tax generally
applies to distributions made before age 59½, unless an
exception applies. The contract (and appropriate IRA tax
endorsements) have not yet been submitted to the IRS for
review and approval as to form. Such approval is not
required to constitute a valid Traditional IRA or SIMPLE
IRA. Such approval does not constitute an IRS
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