Document and Entity Information - shares	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2016	Oct. 31, 2016
Document And Entitiy Information [Abstract]
Document Type	10-Q
Document period end date	Sep. 30, 2016
Amendment flag	false
Entity registrant name	REINSURANCE GROUP OF AMERICA INC
Entity central index key	0000898174
Entity current reporting status	Yes
Entity voluntary filers	No
Current fiscal year end date	--12-31
Entity filer category	Large Accelerated Filer
Entity well-known seasoned issuer	Yes
Common Shares Outstanding		64,207,730
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2016
Document Fiscal Period Focus	Q3