COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENT LIABILITIES	9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2017
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]
COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENT LIABILITIES	COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENT LIABILITIES Effective for 2017, the Company entered into an outsourcing agreement with an information technology and data services company to provide application maintenance and development services for its Japanese operation. As of September 30, 2017, the agreement has a remaining term of five years and an aggregate remaining cost of 7.8 billion yen ($69 million using the September 30, 2017, exchange rate). The Company is a defendant in various lawsuits considered to be in the normal course of business. Members of the Company's senior legal and financial management teams review litigation on a quarterly and annual basis. The final results of any litigation cannot be predicted with certainty. Although some of this litigation is pending in states where large punitive damages, bearing little relation to the actual damages sustained by plaintiffs, have been awarded in recent years, the Company believes the outcome of pending litigation will not have a material adverse effect on its financial position, results of operations, or cash flows. See Note 3 of the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements for details on investment commitments. Guaranty Fund Assessments The United States insurance industry has a policyholder protection system that is monitored and regulated by state insurance departments. These life and health insurance guaranty associations are state entities (in all 50 states as well as Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia) created to protect policyholders of an insolvent insurance company. All insurance companies (with limited exceptions) licensed to sell life or health insurance in a state must be members of that state’s guaranty association. Under state guaranty association laws, certain insurance companies can be assessed (up to prescribed limits) for certain obligations to the policyholders and claimants of impaired or insolvent insurance companies that write the same line or similar lines of business. In 2009, the Pennsylvania Insurance Commissioner placed long-term care insurer Penn Treaty Network America Insurance Company and its subsidiary American Network Insurance Company (collectively referred to as Penn Treaty), neither of which is affiliated with Aflac, in rehabilitation and petitioned a state court for approval to liquidate Penn Treaty. A final order of liquidation was granted by a recognized judicial authority on March 1, 2017, and as a result, Penn Treaty is in the process of liquidation. The Company estimated and recognized the impact of its share of guaranty fund assessments resulting from the liquidation using a discounted rate of 4.25%. The Company recognized a discounted liability for the assessments of $62 million (undiscounted $94 million), offset by discounted premium tax credits of $48 million (undiscounted $74 million), for a net $14 million impact to net income in the quarter ended March 31, 2017. The Company expects a majority of these assessments to be paid over the next year and a majority of the tax credits to be realized over the next five years. The Company uses the most current cost estimate provided by the National Organization of Life and Health Guaranty Associations (NOLHGA) to calculate its estimated assessments and tax credits. To the extent Medicare part D related premiums are included in the industry premiums within the latest NOLHGA annual report, the Company's assessments estimate will increase. Since this information is not available at this time, the Company cannot at this time estimate the extent of the increase, if any. Guaranty fund assessments in the second and third quarters of 2017 were immaterial.

COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENT LIABILITIES

Effective for 2017, the Company entered into an outsourcing agreement with an information technology and data services company to provide application maintenance and development services for its Japanese operation. As of September 30, 2017, the agreement has a remaining term of five years and an aggregate remaining cost of 7.8 billion yen ($69 million using the September 30, 2017, exchange rate).

The Company is a defendant in various lawsuits considered to be in the normal course of business. Members of the Company's senior legal and financial management teams review litigation on a quarterly and annual basis. The final results of any litigation cannot be predicted with certainty. Although some of this litigation is pending in states where large punitive damages, bearing little relation to the actual damages sustained by plaintiffs, have been awarded in recent years, the Company believes the outcome of pending litigation will not have a material adverse effect on its financial position, results of operations, or cash flows.

See Note 3 of the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements for details on investment commitments.

Guaranty Fund Assessments

The United States insurance industry has a policyholder protection system that is monitored and regulated by state insurance departments. These life and health insurance guaranty associations are state entities (in all 50 states as well as Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia) created to protect policyholders of an insolvent insurance company. All insurance companies (with limited exceptions) licensed to sell life or health insurance in a state must be members of that state’s guaranty association. Under state guaranty association laws, certain insurance companies can be assessed (up to prescribed limits) for certain obligations to the policyholders and claimants of impaired or insolvent insurance companies that write the same line or similar lines of business.

In 2009, the Pennsylvania Insurance Commissioner placed long-term care insurer Penn Treaty Network America Insurance Company and its subsidiary American Network Insurance Company (collectively referred to as Penn Treaty), neither of which is affiliated with Aflac, in rehabilitation and petitioned a state court for approval to liquidate Penn Treaty. A final order of liquidation was granted by a recognized judicial authority on March 1, 2017, and as a result, Penn Treaty is in the process of liquidation. The Company estimated and recognized the impact of its share of guaranty fund assessments resulting from the liquidation using a discounted rate of 4.25%. The Company recognized a discounted liability for the assessments of $62 million (undiscounted $94 million), offset by discounted premium tax credits of $48 million (undiscounted $74 million), for a net $14 million impact to net income in the quarter ended March 31, 2017. The Company expects a majority of these assessments to be paid over the next year and a majority of the tax credits to be realized over the next five years. The Company uses the most current cost estimate provided by the National Organization of Life and Health Guaranty Associations (NOLHGA) to calculate its estimated assessments and tax credits. To the extent Medicare part D related premiums are included in the industry premiums within the latest NOLHGA annual report, the Company's assessments estimate will increase. Since this information is not available at this time, the Company cannot at this time estimate the extent of the increase, if any. Guaranty fund assessments in the second and third quarters of 2017 were immaterial.