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John Hancock Life Insurance Co of New York Separate Account B, et al. – ‘N-6/A’ on 7/15/14

On:  Tuesday, 7/15/14, at 6:31pm ET   ·   As of:  7/16/14   ·   Private-to-Public:  Document/Exhibit ¶  –  Release Delayed   ·   Accession #:  1193125-14-269400   ·   File #s:  811-08329, 333-194819

Previous ‘N-6’:  ‘N-6/A’ on 5/19/14   ·   Next:  ‘N-6’ on 10/31/17   ·   Latest:  ‘N-6/A’ on 6/5/20   ·   3 References:   By:  John Hancock Life Insurance Co. of New York Separate Account B – ‘485BPOS’ on 4/21/23 By:  John Hancock Life Insurance Co. of New York Separate Account B – ‘485BPOS’ on 4/22/22 By:  John Hancock Life Insurance Co. of New York Separate Account B – ‘485BPOS’ on 4/23/21 

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  As Of                Filer                Filing    For·On·As Docs:Size              Issuer               Agent

 7/16/14  John Hancock Life Ins Co of NY… B N-6/A¶      7/15/14   10:10M                                    Donnelley … Solutions/FA
          → John Hancock Life Insurance Co. of New York Separate Account B ⇒ Simplified Life

Document/Exhibit                   Description                      Pages   Size 

 1: N-6/A       Jhny B - Simplified Life                            HTML   5.07M 
10: CORRESP   ¶ Comment-Response or Other Letter to the SEC         HTML      9K 
 2: EX-99.(26)(D)(1)  Specimen Flexible Premium Variable Universal  HTML    177K 
                Life Insurance Policy                                            
 3: EX-99.(26)(D)(2)  Specimen Return of Premium Rider              HTML     22K 
 4: EX-99.(26)(D)(3)  Specimen Accelerated Benefit Rider            HTML     16K 
 5: EX-99.(26)(E)  Specimen Policy Application                      HTML     41K 
 6: EX-99.(26)(G)  Specimen Reinsurance Agreement                   HTML     81K 
 7: EX-99.(26)(I)  Powers of Attorney                               HTML     37K 
 8: EX-99.(26)(K)  Opinion of Counsel                               HTML     10K 
 9: EX-99.(26)(N)  Consents of Independent Registered Public        HTML      8K 
                Accounting Firm                                                  

Table of Contents

U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM N-6

SEC File No 811-8329

REGISTRATION STATEMENT UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933

Pre-Effective Amendment No. 1 [X]

REGISTRATION STATEMENT UNDER THE INVESTMENT COMPANY ACT OF 1940
AMENDMENT NO. 58 [X]

John Hancock Life Insurance Company of New York Separate Account B

(Exact Name of Registrant)

John Hancock Life Insurance Company of New York

(Name of Depositor)

197 Clarendon Street
Boston, MA 02116

(Complete address of depositor’s principal executive offices)

Depositor’s Telephone Number: 617-572-6000

JAMES C. HOODLET
John Hancock Life Insurance Company of New York
U.S. INSURANCE LAW
JOHN HANCOCK PLACE
BOSTON, MA 02117

(Name and complete address of agent for service)

It is proposed that this filing will become effective as soon as practicable after the effective date of the Registration Statement.

Pursuant to the provisions of Rule 24f-2, Registrant has registered an indefinite amount of the securities under the Securities Act of 1933.

Table of Contents

Prospectus dated July 25, 2014

for interests in

John Hancock Life Insurance Company of New York Separate Account B

Interests are made available under

SIMPLIFIED LIFE

a flexible premium variable universal life insurance policy

JOHN HANCOCK LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY OF NEW YORK
(“John Hancock NY”)

The policy provides the following investment accounts:

* * * * * * * * * * * *

Please note that the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) has not approved or disapproved these securities, or determined if this prospectus is truthful or complete. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.

GUIDE TO THIS PROSPECTUS

This prospectus is arranged in the following way:

• Starting on the next page is a Table of Contents for this prospectus.
• The section after the Table of Contents is called “Summary of Benefits and Risks.” It contains a summary of the benefits available under the policy and of the principal risks of purchasing the policy. You should read this section before reading any other section of this prospectus.
• Behind the Summary of Benefits and Risks section is a section called “Fee Tables” that describes the fees and expenses you will pay when buying, owning and surrendering the policy.
• Behind the Fee Tables section is a section called “Detailed Information.” This section gives more details about the policy. It may repeat certain information contained in the Summary of Benefits and Risks section in order to put the more detailed information in proper context.
• Finally, on the back cover of this prospectus is information concerning the Statement of Additional Information (the “SAI”) and how the SAI, audited financial statements for John Hancock NY and the Separate Account, personalized illustrations and other information can be obtained.
  
  

Prior to making any investment decisions, you should carefully review this product prospectus and all applicable supplements. In addition, you will receive the prospectuses for the underlying funds that we make available as investment options under the policies. The funds’ prospectuses describe the investment objectives, policies and restrictions of, and the risks relating to, investment in the funds. In the case of any of the portfolios that are operated as feeder funds, the prospectus for the corresponding master fund is also provided. If you need to obtain additional copies of any of these documents, please contact your John Hancock NY representative or contact our Service Office at the address and telephone number on the back page of this product prospectus.

SUMMARY OF BENEFITS AND RISKS

The nature of the policy

The policy’s primary purpose is to provide lifetime protection against economic loss due to the death of the insured person. The policy is unsuitable as a short-term savings vehicle because of the substantial policy-level charges. We are obligated to pay all amounts promised under the policy. The value of the amount you have invested under the policy may increase or decrease daily based upon the investment results of the investment accounts that you choose. This policy does not offer a fixed account option upon which you can invest. The amount we pay to the policy’s beneficiary on the death of the insured person (we call this the “death benefit”) may be similarly affected. That’s why the policy is referred to as a “variable” life insurance policy. We call the investments you make in the policy “premiums” or “premium payments.” The amount we require as your first premium depends upon the specifics of your policy and the insured person. Except as noted in the “Detailed Information” section of this prospectus, you can make any other premium payments you wish at any time. That’s why the policy is called a “flexible premium” policy.

You should discuss your insurance needs and financial objectives with your registered representative before purchasing any life insurance product.

Summary of policy benefits

Death benefit

When the insured person dies, we will pay the death benefit minus any policy debt and unpaid fees and charges. There are two ways of calculating the death benefit (Option 1 and Option 2), as described below.

• Option 1 - The death benefit will equal the greater of (1) the Face Amount plus any amount payable under a supplementary benefit rider, or (2) the minimum death benefit (as described under “The minimum death benefit” provision in the “Detailed Information” section of this prospectus).

• Option 2 - The death benefit will equal the greater of (1) the Face Amount plus any amount payable under a supplementary benefit rider, plus the policy value on the date of death , or (2) the minimum death benefit.

Your policy will be issued with death benefit Option 2. After the first policy year, you may request to change the death benefit from Option 2 to Option 1.

Surrender of the policy

You may surrender the policy in full at any time. If you do, we will pay you the policy value less any outstanding policy debt and less any surrender charge that then applies. This is called your “net cash surrender value.” You must return your policy when you request a surrender.

If you have not taken a loan on your policy, the “policy value” of your policy will, on any given date, be equal to:

• the amount you invested,

• plus any gain or minus any loss of the investment experience of the investment options you’ve chosen,

• minus all charges we deduct, and

• minus all withdrawals you have made.

If you take a loan on your policy, your policy value will be computed somewhat differently (see “Effects of policy loans”).

Withdrawals

After the first policy year, you may make a withdrawal of part of your net cash surrender value. Generally, each withdrawal must be at least $500. Your policy value is automatically reduced by the amount of the withdrawal and any surrender charge that then applies. A withdrawal may also reduce the Face Amount (see “Surrender and withdrawals — Withdrawals”). We also reserve the right to refuse any withdrawal that would cause the policy’s Face Amount to fall below $50,000.

Policy loans

If your policy is in force and has sufficient policy value, you may borrow from it at any time by completing the appropriate form. Generally, the minimum amount of each loan is $500. The maximum amount you can borrow is determined by a formula as described in your policy. Interest is charged on each loan. You can pay the interest or allow it to become part of the outstanding loan balance. You can repay all or part of a loan at any time. If there is an outstanding loan when the insured person dies, it will be deducted from the death benefit. Policy loans permanently affect the calculation of your policy value, and may also result in adverse tax consequences.

Optional supplementary benefit riders

When you apply for the policy, you can request any of the optional supplementary benefit riders that we make available. Charges for most riders will be deducted monthly from the policy value. Some riders may not be available in combination with other riders or benefits (see “Other policy benefits, rights and limitations — Optional supplementary benefit riders you can add”).

Investment options

The policy offers a number of variable investment options, as listed on page 1 of this prospectus. These variable investment options are subaccounts of John Hancock Life Insurance Company of New York Separate Account B (“Separate Account”), a separate account operated by us under New York law. The variable investment options have returns that vary depending upon the investment results of underlying portfolios. These options are referred to in this prospectus as “investment accounts.” The investment accounts cover a broad spectrum of investment styles and strategies. Although the portfolios of the series funds that underlie those investment accounts operate like publicly traded mutual funds, there are important differences between the investment accounts and publicly traded mutual funds. You can transfer money from one investment account to another without tax liability. Moreover, any dividends and capital gains distributed by each underlying portfolio are automatically reinvested and reflected in the portfolio’s value and create no taxable event for you. If and when policy earnings are distributed (generally as a result of a surrender or withdrawal), they will be treated as ordinary income instead of as capital gains. Also, you must keep in mind that you are purchasing an insurance policy and you will be assessed charges at the policy level as well as at the fund level. Such policy level charges, in aggregate, are significant and will reduce the investment performance of your policy.

Summary of policy risks

Lapse risk

If the net cash surrender value is insufficient to pay the charges when due and the No-Lapse Guarantee is not in effect, your policy can terminate (i.e. “lapse”). This can happen because you haven’t paid enough premium or because the investment performance of the investment accounts you’ve chosen has been poor or because of a combination of both factors. You will be given a “grace period” within which to make additional premium payments to keep the policy in effect. If lapse occurs, you may be given the opportunity to reinstate the policy by making the required premium payments and satisfying certain other conditions (see “Lapse and reinstatement”).

Since withdrawals reduce your policy value, withdrawals increase the risk of lapse. Policy loans also increase the risk of lapse.

Investment risk

As mentioned above, the investment performance of any investment account may be good or bad. Your policy value will rise or fall based on the investment performance of the investment accounts you’ve chosen. Some investment accounts are riskier than others. These risks (and potential rewards) are discussed in detail in the prospectuses of the underlying portfolios.

Transfer risk

There is a risk that you will not be able to transfer your policy value from one investment account to another because of limitations on the dollar amount or frequency of transfers you can make.

Early surrender risk

There are surrender charges assessed if you surrender your policy in the first ten policy years. Surrender charges may also apply to a Face Amount decrease (see “The death benefit — Requesting a decrease in coverage”). Depending on the policy value at the time you are considering surrender, there may be little or no surrender value payable to you.

Market timing and disruptive trading risks

The policy is not designed for professional market timers or highly active traders, including persons or entities that engage in programmed, large or frequent transfers among the investment accounts or between the investment accounts and any available fixed account. The policy is also not designed to accommodate trading that results in transfers that are large in relation to the total assets of the underlying portfolio.

Variable investment accounts in variable life insurance products can be a prime target for abusive transfer activity because these products value their investment accounts on a daily basis and allow transfers among investment accounts without immediate tax consequences. As a result, some investors may seek to frequently transfer into and out of investment accounts or to make large transfers in reaction to market news or to exploit a perceived pricing inefficiency. Whatever the reason, long-term investors in an investment account can be harmed by large or frequent transfer activity. For example, such activity may expose the investment account’s underlying portfolio to increased portfolio transaction costs and/or disrupt the portfolio manager’s ability to effectively manage the portfolio’s investments in accordance with the portfolio’s investment objectives and policies. This could include causing the portfolio to maintain higher levels of cash than would otherwise be the case, or liquidating investments prematurely. Accordingly, frequent or large transfers may result in dilution with respect to interests held for long-term investment and adversely affect policy owners, beneficiaries and the underlying portfolios.

To discourage market timing and disruptive trading activity, we impose restrictions on transfers (see “Transfers of existing policy value”) and reserve the right to change, suspend or terminate telephone, facsimile and internet transaction privileges (see “How you communicate with us”). In addition, we reserve the right to take other actions at any time to restrict trading, including, but not limited to:

(i) restricting the number of transfers made during a defined period,

(ii) restricting the dollar amount of transfers,

(iii) restricting transfers into and out of certain investment accounts,

(iv) restricting the method used to submit transfers, and

(v) deferring a transfer at any time we are unable to purchase or redeem shares of the underlying portfolio.

We may also impose additional administrative conditions upon, or prohibit a transfer request made by a third party giving instructions on behalf of multiple policies, whether owned by the same owner or different owners. If you engage a third party for asset allocation services, then you may be subject to these transfer restrictions because of the actions of that party in providing those services. We will notify the third party you have engaged if we exercise this right.

While we seek to identify and prevent disruptive trading activity, it may not always be possible to do so. Therefore, no assurance can be given that the restrictions we impose will be successful in preventing all disruptive trading and avoiding harm to long-term investors.

Tax risks

Life insurance death benefits are ordinarily not subject to income tax. Other Federal and state taxes may apply as further discussed below. In general, you will be taxed on the amount of lifetime distributions that exceed the premiums paid under the policy. Any taxable distribution will be treated as ordinary income (rather than as capital gains) for tax purposes.

In order for you to receive the tax benefits extended to life insurance under the Internal Revenue Code, your policy must comply with certain requirements of the Code. We will monitor your policy for compliance with these requirements, but a policy might fail to qualify as life insurance in spite of our monitoring. If this were to occur, you would be subject to income tax on the income credited to your policy for the period of disqualification and all subsequent periods. The tax laws also contain a so-called “7 pay limit” that limits the amount of premium that can be paid in relation to the policy’s death benefit. If the limit is violated, the policy will be treated as a “modified endowment contract,” which can have adverse tax consequences. There are also certain Treasury Department rules referred to as the “investor control rules” that determine whether you would be treated as the “owner” of the assets underlying your policy. If that were determined to be the case, you would be taxed on

There is a tax risk associated with policy loans. Although no part of a loan is treated as income to you when the loan is made unless your policy is a “modified endowment contract,” surrender or lapse of the policy would result in the loan being treated as a distribution at the time of lapse or surrender. This could result in a considerable tax bill. Under certain circumstances involving large amounts of outstanding loans and an insured person of advanced age, you might find yourself having to choose between high premium requirements to keep your policy from lapsing and a significant tax burden if you allow the lapse to occur.

Tax consequences of ownership or receipt of policy proceeds under Federal, state and local estate, inheritance, gift and other tax laws can vary greatly depending upon the circumstances of each owner or beneficiary. There can also be unfavorable tax consequences on such things as the change of policy ownership or assignment of ownership interests. For these and all the other reasons mentioned above, we recommend you consult with a qualified tax adviser before buying the policy and before exercising certain rights under the policy.

FEE TABLES

This section contains tables that describe all of the fees and expenses that you will pay when buying, owning and surrendering the policy. In the first three tables, certain entries show the minimum charge, the maximum charge and the charge for a representative insured person. Other entries show only the maximum charge we can assess and are labeled as such. Except where necessary to show a rate greater than zero, all rates shown in the tables have been rounded to two decimal places as required by prospectus disclosure rules. Consequently, the actual rates charged may be slightly higher or lower than those shown in the tables.

The first table below describes the fees and expenses that you will pay at the time that you pay a premium, surrender the policy, lapse the policy or transfer policy value between investment accounts. A portion of the premium charge is used to cover premium taxes. Currently, the premium tax in New York is 0.7% of each premium payment.

The next two tables describe the charges and expenses that you will pay periodically during the time you own the policy . These tables do not include fees and expenses paid at the portfolio level. The second table is devoted only to optional supplementary rider benefits. For more information about the cost of insurance rates and other charges talk to your John Hancock NY representative.

(1)The charge for this rider is determined as a percentage of unloaned investment account value. The rates vary by the attained age of the insured person at the time of exercise. The rates also differ according to the tax qualification test elected at issue. The guaranteed minimum rate for the guideline premium test is 0.04% and the guaranteed maximum rate is 2.50%. The minimum rate shown in the table is for an insured person who has reached attained age 100 and the guideline premium test has been elected. The maximum rate shown is for an insured person who has reached attained age 75 and the guideline premium test has been elected.

(2)This charge is not currently imposed, but we reserve the right to do so in the policy.

The next table describes the minimum and maximum portfolio level fees and expenses charged by any of the portfolios underlying a variable investment option offered through this prospectus, expressed as a percentage of average net assets (rounded to two decimal places). These expenses are deducted from portfolio assets. For more information, please refer to the prospectus for the portfolio.

¹ Certain of the portfolios’ advisers or subadvisers have contractually agreed to reimburse or waive certain portfolio level expenses. The minimum and maximum expenses shown do not reflect these contractual expense reimbursements or waivers. If such reimbursements or waivers were reflected, the minimum and maximum expenses would be 0.25% and 1.52%, respectively.

The next table describes the fees and expenses for each portfolio underlying a variable investment option offered through this prospectus. None of the portfolios charge a sales load or surrender fee. The fees and expenses do not reflect the fees and expenses of any variable insurance contract or qualified plan that may use the portfolio as its underlying investment medium. Except for the American Asset Allocation, American Global Growth, American Growth, American Growth-Income, American International, American New World and PIMCO VIT All Asset portfolios, all of the portfolios shown in the table are NAV class shares that are not subject to Rule 12b-1 fees. Except as indicated in the footnotes appearing at the end of the table, the expense ratios are based upon the portfolio’s actual expenses for the year ended December 31, 2013.

Portfolio Annual Expenses
(as a percentage of portfolio average net assets, rounded to two decimal places)

¹ John Hancock Investment Management Services, LLC (“JHIMS”) has contractually agreed to waive its advisory fee (or, if necessary, reimburse expenses of the portfolio) in an amount so that the portfolio’s net Total Fund Operating Expenses do not exceed its “Total Fund

² “Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses” are based on indirect net expenses associated with the portfolio’s investments in underlying funds (each an “Acquired Fund”) and are included in the portfolio’s “Total Fund Operating Expenses.” The “Total Fund Operating Expenses” shown may not correlate to the portfolio’s ratio of expenses to average net assets shown in the Financial Highlights section of the prospectus for the portfolio, which does not include “Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses.” For more information, please refer to the prospectus for the portfolio.

³ The table reflects the combined fees of the feeder fund and the master fund.

⁴ John Hancock Investment Mangement Services, LLC (“JHIMS”) has contractually agreed to waive its advisory fee so that the amount retained by JHIMS after payment of the subadvisory fees for the portfolio does not exceed 0.45% of the portfolio’s average net assets. The current expense limitation agreement expires on April 30, 2015 unless renewed by mutual agreement of the portfolio and JHIMS based upon a determination that this is appropriate under the circumstances at that time. The fees shown in the table do not reflect this expense waiver. If this expense waiver had been reflected, the “Total Fund Operating Expenses” for the Global and Small Cap Opportunities portfolios would be 0.90% and 1.00%, respectively. For more information, please refer to the prospectus for the portfolio.

⁵ John Hancock Investment Management Services, LLC (“JHIMS”) has contractually agreed to reduce its management fee and/or make payment to the portfolio in an amount equal to the amount by which “Other Expenses” of the fund exceed 0.00% of the average annual net assets (on an annualized basis) of the portfolio. “Other Expenses” means all of the expenses of the portfolio, excluding certain expenses such as advisory fees, taxes, brokerage commissions, interest expense, litigation and indemnification expenses and other extraordinary expenses not incurred in the ordinary course of the portfolio’s business, distribution and service (Rule 12b-1) fees, printing and postage, underlying fund expenses (acquired fund fees), and short dividend expense. The current expense limitation agreement expires on April 30, 2017 unless renewed by mutual agreement of the portfolio and JHIMS based upon a determination that this is appropriate under the circumstances at that time. JHIMS may recapture operating expenses reimbursed or fees waived under previous expense limitation or waiver arrangements for a period of three years following the month in which the reimbursements or waivers occurred to the extent that the portfolio is below its expense limitation during this period. The fees shown in the table do not reflect this expense waiver or reimbursement. If this waiver or reimbursement had been reflected, the “Total Fund Operating Expenses” for the portfolios would be as indicated below. For more information, please refer to the prospectus for the portfolio.

⁶ John Hancock Investment Management Services, LLC (“JHIMS”) has contractually agreed to waive its management fee by 0.10% as a percentage of the portfolio’s average annual net assets. The current expense limitation agreement expires on April 30, 2015 unless renewed by mutual agreement of the portfolio and JHIMS based upon a determination that this is appropriate under the circumstances at that time. The fees shown in the table do not reflect this waiver. If this waiver had been reflected, the “Total Fund Operating Expenses” for the portfolio would be 0.41%. For more information, please refer to the prospectus for the portfolio.

⁷ Pacific Investment Management Company LLC (“PIMCO”) has contractually agreed through May 1, 2015, to reduce its management fee to the extent that the underlying fund expenses attributable to management, supervisory and administrative fees exceeds 0.64% of the total assets invested in the underlying funds. PIMCO may recoup these waivers in future periods, not exceeding three years, provided total expenses, including such recoupment, do not exceed the annual expense limit. The fee reduction is implemented based on a calculation of underlying fund expenses attributable to management, supervisory and administrative fees that is different from the calculation of “Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses” shown in the table. “Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses” include interest expense of 0.01%. Interest expense is based on the amount incurred during an underlying fund’s most recent fiscal year as a result of entering into certain investments, such as reverse repurchase agreements. Interest expense is required to be treated as an expense of the underlying fund for accounting purposes and is not payable to PIMCO. The amount of interest expense (if any) will vary based on the underlying fund’s use of such investments as an

⁸ “Other Expenses” reflect interest expense resulting from the portfolio’s use of certain investments such as reverse repurchase agreements or sale-buybacks. Such expense is required to be treated as a portfolio expense for accounting purposes. Any interest expense amount will vary based on the portfolio’s use of those investments as an investment strategy. Had these expenses been excluded, “Other Expenses” would be 0.11%. For more information, please refer to the prospectus for the portfolio.

⁹ John Hancock Investment Management Services, LLC (“JHIMS”) has contractually agreed to waive its management fee by 0.05% as a percentage of the portfolio’s average annual net assets. The current expense limitation agreement expires on April 30, 2015 unless renewed by mutual agreement of the fund and the advisor based upon a determination that this is appropriate under the circumstances at that time. The fees shown in the table do not reflect this waiver. If this waiver had been reflected, the “Total Fund Operating Expenses” for the portfolio would be 0.56%. For more information, please refer to the prospectus for the portfolio.

DETAILED INFORMATION

This section of the prospectus provides additional detailed information that is not contained in the Summary of Benefits and Risks section.

Table of Investment Options and Investment Subadvisers

When you select a Separate Account investment option, we invest your money in shares of a corresponding portfolio of the John Hancock Variable Insurance Trust (the “Trust” or “JHVIT”) (or the PIMCO Variable Insurance Trust (the “PIMCO Trust”) with respect to the PIMCO VIT All Asset portfolio) and hold the shares in a subaccount of the Separate Account. The Fee Tables show the investment management fees, Rule 12b-1 fees and other operating expenses for these portfolio shares as a percentage (rounded to two decimal places) of each portfolio’s average net assets for 2013, except as indicated in the footnotes appearing at the end of the table. Fees and expenses of the portfolios are not fixed or specified under the terms of the policies and may vary from year to year. These fees and expenses differ for each portfolio and reduce the investment return of each portfolio. Therefore, they also indirectly reduce the return you will earn on any Separate Account investment options you select.

The JHVIT and the PIMCO Trust are so-called “series” type mutual funds and each is registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940 (“1940 Act”) as an open-end management investment company. John Hancock Investment Management Services, LLC (“JHIMS”) provides investment advisory services to the Trust and receives investment management fees for doing so. JHIMS pays a portion of its investment management fees to other firms that manage the Trust’s portfolios. We are affiliated with JHIMS and may indirectly benefit from any investment management fees JHIMS retains. The PIMCO VIT All Asset portfolio of the PIMCO Trust receives investment advisory services from Pacific Investment Management Company LLC (“PIMCO”) and pays investment management fees to PIMCO.

Each of the American Asset Allocation, American Global Growth, American Growth, American Growth-Income, American International and American New World portfolios invests in Series 1 shares of the corresponding investment portfolio of the Trust. The American Asset Allocation, American Global Growth, American Growth, American Growth-Income, American International and American New World portfolios (“American Portfolios”) operate as “feeder funds,” which means that the portfolios do not buy investment securities directly. Instead, they invest in a “master fund” which in turn purchases investment securities. Each of the American feeder fund portfolios has the same investment objective and limitations as its master fund. The prospectus for the American Fund master fund is included with the prospectuses for the underlying funds. We pay American Funds Distributors, Inc., the principal underwriter for the American Funds Insurance Series, a percentage of some or all of the amounts allocated to the American Portfolios of the Trust for the marketing support services it provides.

The portfolios pay us or certain of our affiliates compensation for some of the distribution, administrative, shareholder support, marketing and other services we or our affiliates provide to the portfolios. The amount of this compensation is based on a percentage of the assets of the portfolios attributable to the variable insurance products that we and our affiliates issue. These percentages may differ from portfolio to portfolio and among classes of shares within a portfolio. In some cases, the compensation is derived from the Rule 12b-1 fees that are deducted from a portfolio’s assets for the services we or our affiliates provide to that portfolio. These compensation payments do not, however, result in any charge to you in addition to what is shown in the Fee Tables.

The following table provides a general description of the portfolios that underlie the variable investment options we make available under the policy. You bear the investment risk of any portfolio you choose as an investment option for your policy. You can find a full description of each portfolio, including the investment objectives, policies, restrictions, and risks, in the prospectus for that portfolio. You should read the portfolio’s prospectus carefully before investing in the corresponding variable investment option.

The investment options in the Separate Account are not publicly traded mutual funds. The investment options are only available to you as investment options in the policies, or in some cases through other variable annuity contracts or variable life insurance policies issued by us or by other life insurance companies. In some cases, the investment options also may be available through participation in certain qualified pension or retirement plans. The portfolios’ investment advisers and managers (i.e. subadvisers) may manage publicly traded mutual funds with similar names and investment objectives. However, the portfolios are not directly related to any publicly traded mutual fund. You should not compare the performance

The portfolios available under the policies, the portfolio managers (engaged by JHIMS or PIMCO) and the investment objective for the portfolio are as described in the following table:

*The U.S. Aggregate Bond Index is a broad-based benchmark that measures the investment grade, U.S. dollar-denominated, fixed-rate taxable bond market, including Treasuries, government-related and corporate securities, MBS (agency fixed-rate and hybrid ARM pass throughs), ABS, and CMBS.

If the shares of a portfolio are no longer available for investment or in our judgment investment in a portfolio becomes inappropriate, we may eliminate the shares of a portfolio and substitute shares of another portfolio of the Trust or another open-end registered investment company. Substitution may be made with respect to both existing investments and the investment of future purchase payments. However, we will make no such substitution without first notifying you and obtaining approval of the appropriate insurance regulatory authorities and the SEC (to the extent required by the 1940 Act).

Valuation

We will purchase and redeem series fund shares for the Separate Account at their net asset value without any sales or redemption charges. Shares of a series fund represent an interest in one of the funds of the series fund which corresponds to a subaccount of the Separate Account. Any dividend or capital gains distributions received by the Separate Account will be reinvested in shares of that same fund at their net asset value as of the dates paid.

On each business day, shares of each series fund are purchased or redeemed by us for each subaccount based on, among other things, the amount of net premiums allocated to the subaccount, distributions reinvested, and transfers to, from and among subaccounts, all to be effected as of that date. Such purchases and redemptions are effected at each series fund’s net asset value per share determined for that same date. A “business day” is any date on which the New York Stock Exchange is open for trading. We compute policy values for each business day as of the close of that day (usually 4:00 p.m. Eastern time).

Voting interest

We will vote shares of the portfolios held in the Separate Account at the shareholder meetings according to voting instructions timely received from persons having the voting interest under the policies. We will determine the number of portfolio shares for which voting instructions may be given not more than 90 days prior to the meeting. Proxy material will be distributed to each person having the voting interest under the policy together with appropriate forms for giving voting instructions. We will vote all portfolio shares that we hold in the Separate Account for policy owners in proportion to the instructions timely received by us from policy owners from all our Separate Accounts that are registered with the SEC under the 1940 Act. We will vote all portfolio shares that we otherwise are entitled to vote (including our own shares) on any matter in proportion to the instructions timely received by us and any affiliated insurance companies with respect to the matter from policy owners in Separate Accounts of these insurance companies that are registered with the SEC under the 1940 Act. The effect of this proportional voting is that a small number of policy owners can determine the outcome of a vote.

We determine the number of a series fund’s shares held in a subaccount attributable to each owner by dividing the amount of a policy’s investment account value held in the subaccount by the net asset value of one share in the series fund. Fractional votes will be counted. We determine the number of shares as to which the owner may give instructions as of the record date for a series fund’s meeting. Owners of policies may give instructions regarding the election of the Board of Trustees or Board of Directors of a series fund, ratification of the selection of independent auditors, approval of series fund investment advisory agreements and other matters requiring a shareholder vote. We will furnish owners with information and forms to enable owners to give voting instructions. However, we may, in certain limited circumstances permitted by the SEC’s rules, disregard voting instructions. If we do disregard voting instructions, you will receive a summary of that action and the reasons for it in the next semi-annual report to owners.

The voting privileges described above reflect our understanding of applicable Federal securities law requirements. To the extent that applicable law, regulations or interpretations change to eliminate or restrict the need for such voting privileges, we reserve the right to proceed in accordance with any such revised requirements. We also reserve the right, subject to compliance with applicable law, including approval of owners if so required, (1) to transfer assets determined by John Hancock NY to be associated with the class of policies to which your policy belongs from the Separate Account to another separate account or subaccount, (2) to deregister the Separate Account under the 1940 Act, (3) to substitute for the fund shares held by a subaccount any other investment permitted by law, and (4) to take any action necessary to comply with or obtain any exemptions from the 1940 Act. Any such change will be made only if, in our judgment, the change would best serve the interests of owners of policies in your policy class or would be appropriate in carrying out the purposes of such policies. We would notify owners of any of the foregoing changes and to the extent legally required, obtain approval of affected owners and any regulatory body prior thereto. Such notice and approval, however, may not be legally required in all cases.

Description of John Hancock NY

John Hancock NY is a stock life insurance company organized under the laws of New York on February 10, 1992. Our principal office is located at 100 Summit Lake Drive, Second Floor, Valhalla, New York 10595. We are a wholly-owned subsidiary of John Hancock Life Insurance Company (U.S.A.). Our ultimate parent is Manulife Financial Corporation (“MFC”), a publicly traded company based in Toronto, Canada. MFC is the holding company of The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company and its subsidiaries, collectively known as Manulife Financial. However, neither John Hancock NY nor any of its affiliated companies guarantees the investment performance of the Separate Account.

We are ranked and rated by independent financial rating services, which may include Moody’s, Standard & Poor’s, Fitch and A.M. Best. The purpose of these ratings is to reflect the financial strength or claims-paying ability of the company, but they do not specifically relate to its products, the performance (return) of these products, the value of any investment in these products upon withdrawal or to individual securities held in any portfolio. These ratings do not apply to the safety and performance of the Separate Account.

Description of Separate Account B

The investment accounts shown on page 1 are in fact subaccounts of John Hancock Life Insurance Company of New York Separate Account B, a separate account operated by us under New York law. The Separate Account meets the definition of “separate account” under the Federal securities laws and is registered as a unit investment trust under the 1940 Act. Such registration does not involve supervision by the SEC of the management of the Separate Account or of us.

The Separate Account’s assets are our property. Each policy provides that amounts we hold in the Separate Account pursuant to the policies cannot be reached by any other persons who may have claims against us and can’t be used to pay any indebtedness of John Hancock NY other than those arising out of policies that use the Separate Account. Income, gains and losses credited to, or charged against, the Separate Account reflect the Separate Account’s own investment experience and not the investment experience of John Hancock NY’s other assets. John Hancock NY is obligated to pay all amounts promised to policy owners under the policies.

New subaccounts may be added and made available to policy owners from time to time. Existing subaccounts may be modified or deleted at any time.

The death benefit

In your application for the policy, you will tell us how much life insurance coverage you want on the life of the insured person. This is called the “Face Amount.”

When the insured person dies, we will pay the death benefit minus any outstanding policy debt and unpaid fees and charges. There are two ways of calculating the death benefit, as described below.

• Option 1 - The death benefit will equal the greater of (1) the Face Amount plus any amount payable under a supplementary benefit rider, or (2) the minimum death benefit (as described below).

• Option 2 - The death benefit will equal the greater of (1) the Face Amount plus any amount payable under a supplementary benefit rider, plus the policy value on the date of death , or (2) the minimum death benefit.

For the same premium payments, the death benefit under Option 2 will tend to be higher than the death benefit under Option 1. On the other hand, the Face Amount charge and resulting cost of insurance charges (based on the higher net amount at risk) will be higher under Option 2. Because of that, the policy value will tend to be higher under Option 1 than under Option 2 for the same premium payments.

Your policy will be issued with death benefit Option 2. After the first policy year, you may request to change the death benefit from Option 2 to Option 1.

Limitations on payment of death benefit

If the insured person commits suicide within certain time periods (generally within two years from the Issue Date of the policy), the amount payable will be equal to the premiums paid, less the amount of any policy debt on the date of death, and less any withdrawals.

Also if an application misstated the age or sex of the insured person, we will adjust, if necessary, the Face Amount and every other benefit to that which would have been purchased at the correct age or sex by the most recent cost of insurance charge.

The minimum death benefit

In order for a policy to qualify as life insurance under Federal tax law, there has to be a minimum amount of insurance in relation to policy value. The Federal tax law test that will be applied to determine whether your policy qualifies for life insurance is the “guideline premium test.” (see “Tax considerations”)

Under the guideline premium test, we compute the minimum death benefit each business day by multiplying the policy value on that date by the death benefit factor applicable on that date. Factors for some ages are shown in the table below:

A table showing the factor for each age will appear in the policy.

To the extent that the calculation of the minimum death benefit under the guideline premium test causes the death benefit to exceed our limits, we reserve the right to return premiums or distribute a portion of the policy value so that the resulting amount of insurance is maintained within our limits. Alternatively, if we should decide to accept the additional amount of insurance, we may require additional evidence of insurability.

Coverage at and after age 121

Provided the policy is in force at and after the life insured’s age 121:

• We will stop accepting any premium payments.

• We will no longer take monthly deductions for the cost of insurance charge, the Face Amount charge, the administrative charge, and the asset-based risk charge.

• We will continue to charge loan interest on any outstanding loan.

• We will continue to accept loan repayments on existing loans.

• We will not allow any withdrawals.

• We will no longer apply the asset credit.

• Generally, we will not allow any new loans.

Requesting a decrease in coverage

After the first policy year, we may approve a reduction in the Face Amount, but only if:

• the remaining Face Amount will be at least $50,000, and

• the remaining Face Amount will at least equal the minimum required by the tax laws to maintain the policy’s life insurance status.

A pro-rata portion of the surrender charge will be payable upon any approved reduction in the Face Amount that reduces the Face Amount to an amount that is below the Face Amount at issue (see “Surrender charge”). For Face Amount reductions, an additional 10% of the Face Amount at issue is also exempt from the partial surrender charge. This 10% surrender charge

Change of death benefit option

Your policy will be issued with death benefit Option 2. Under our current administrative rules, we permit the death benefit option to be changed from 2 to Option 1 after the first policy year. If you request in writing, and we approve a change from Option 2 to Option 1, your Face Amount after the change will equal your Face Amount before the change plus the policy value as of the effective date of the change. If you change from Option 2 to Option 1, your death benefit at death may be lower than what it was if your policy had remained as death benefit option 2. This means, your death benefit will change from one that may increase over time due to the investment experience of the underlying investment accounts to one that is a level death benefit. Changing from Option 2 to Option 1 can also lower the monthly Cost of Insurance charge since this charge is lowered when the Net Amount At Risk is reduced; all other charges under the policy would remain the same. We reserve the right to limit a request for a change if the change would cause the policy to fail to qualify as life insurance for tax purposes.

A change in the death benefit option will result in a change in the policy’s Face Amount, in order to avoid any change in the amount of the death benefit. The new Face Amount will be equal to the Face Amount prior to the change plus the policy value as of the date of the change. The change will take effect on the monthly deduction date on or next following the date the written request for the change is received at our Service Office.

Tax consequences of coverage changes

If you change the death benefit option after the first policy year from Option 2 to Option 1, the “guideline premium test” will continue to apply. Please read “The minimum death benefit” for more information about these Federal tax law tests.

A change in the death benefit option or Face Amount will often change the policy’s limits under the “guideline premium test.” To avoid having the policy cease to qualify as life insurance for tax purposes, we reserve the right to (i) refuse or limit a change in the death benefit option or Face Amount and (ii) change the Guideline Single Premium or Guideline Level Premium, as applicable. Please read “Tax considerations” to learn about possible tax consequences of changing your insurance coverage under the policy.

Your beneficiary

You name your beneficiary when you apply for the policy. The beneficiary is entitled to the proceeds we pay following the insured person’s death. You may change the beneficiary during the insured person’s lifetime. Such a change requires the consent of any named irrevocable beneficiary. A new beneficiary designation will not affect any payments we make before we receive it. If no beneficiary is living when the insured person dies, we will pay the insurance proceeds to the owner or the owner’s estate.

Ways in which we pay out policy proceeds

You may choose to receive proceeds from the policy as a single sum. This includes proceeds that become payable because of death or surrender. As permitted by state law and our current administrative procedures, death claim proceeds may be placed into an interest-bearing John Hancock retained asset account in the beneficiary’s name. The interest earned in a John Hancock retained asset account is normally subject to income tax. You should consult with your tax advisor if you have any questions regarding taxation of the interest earned. We will provide the beneficiary with a checkbook, so checks may be written for all or a part of the proceeds. The retained asset account is part of our general account and is subject to the claims of our creditors. It is not a bank account and it is not insured by the FDIC. We may receive a benefit from managing proceeds held in a retained asset account. Alternatively, you can elect to have proceeds of $1,000 or more applied to any of the other payment options we may offer at the time. You cannot choose an option if the monthly payments under the option would be less than $50. We will issue a supplementary agreement when the proceeds are applied to any alternative payment option. That agreement will spell out the terms of the option in full. Please contact our Service Office for more information.

Changing a payment option

You can change the payment option at any time before the proceeds are payable. If you haven’t made a choice, the payee of the proceeds has a prescribed period in which he or she can make that choice.

Tax impact of payment option chosen

There may be tax consequences to you or your beneficiary depending upon which payment option is chosen. You should consult with a qualified tax adviser before making that choice.

Premiums

Planned premiums

The Policy Specifications page of your policy will show the “Planned Premium” for the policy. You choose this amount in the policy application. You will also choose how often to pay premiums — annually, semi-annually or quarterly. You may also choose to pay premiums by monthly electronic funds transfers. The premium reminder notice we send you is based on the amount and period you choose. However, payment of Planned Premiums is not necessarily required. You need only pay enough premium to keep the policy in force (see “Lapse and reinstatement”).

Minimum initial premium

The Minimum Initial Premium is set forth in the Policy Specifications page of your policy. After the payment of the initial premium, premiums may be paid at any time and in any amount until the insured person’s attained age 121, subject to the need to pay enough premium to keep the policy in force, and to the limitations on maximum premium amount described below.

Maximum premium payments

Federal tax law limits the amount of premium payments you can make relative to the amount of your policy’s insurance coverage. We will not knowingly accept any amount by which a premium payment exceeds this limit. If you exceed certain other limits, the law may impose a penalty on amounts you take out of your policy. More discussion of these tax law requirements is provided under “Tax considerations.”

Large premium payments may expose us to unanticipated investment risk. In addition, in order to limit our investment risk exposure under certain market conditions, we may refuse to accept additional premium payments. Excessive allocations may also interfere with the effective management of our variable investment account portfolios, if we are unable to make an orderly investment of the additional premium into the portfolios. Also, we may refuse to accept or limit an amount of premium if the amount of the premium would increase our insurance risk exposure, and the insured person doesn’t provide us with adequate evidence that he or she continues to meet our requirements for issuing insurance.

We will notify you in writing of our refusal to accept premium under these provisions within three days following the date that it is received by us, and will promptly thereafter take the necessary steps to return the premium to you. Notwithstanding the foregoing limits on the premium that we will accept, we will not refuse to accept any premium necessary to prevent the policy from terminating.

Processing premium payments

No premiums will be accepted prior to our receipt of a completed application at our Service Office. All premiums received prior to the Issue Date of the policy will be held in the general account and credited with interest from the date of receipt at the rate of return then being earned on amounts allocated to the Money Market B investment account. After the Issue Date but prior to the Allocation Date, premiums received are allocated to the Money Market B investment account. The “Allocation Date” of the policy is the tenth day after the Issue Date. The Issue Date is shown on the Policy Specifications page of the policy. On the Allocation Date, the Net Premiums paid plus interest credited, if any, will be allocated among the investment accounts in accordance with the policy owner’s instructions. The “Net Premium” is the premium paid less the applicable premium charges we deduct from it.

Any Net Premium received on or after the Allocation Date will be allocated among investment accounts as of the business day on or next following the date the premium is received at the Service Office. Monthly deductions are normally due on the Policy Date and at the beginning of each policy month thereafter. However, if the monthly deductions are due prior to the Contract Completion Date, they will be deducted from policy value on the Contract Completion Date instead of the dates they were due (see “Procedures for issuance of a policy” for the definition of “Contract Completion Date”).

Payment of premiums will not guarantee that the policy will stay in force. Conversely, failure to pay premiums will not necessarily cause the policy to lapse. However, in states where permitted, the policy will have a No-Lapse Guarantee which would prevent the policy from lapsing during the guarantee period, provided certain criteria are satisfied.

Ways to pay premiums

If you pay premiums by check or money order, they must be drawn on a U.S. bank in U.S. dollars and made payable to “John Hancock.” We will not accept credit card checks. We will not accept starter or third party checks if they fail to satisfy our administrative requirements. Premiums after the first must be sent to the John Hancock NY Service Office at the appropriate address shown on the back cover of this prospectus.

We will also accept premiums:

• by wire or by exchange from another insurance company, or

• via an electronic funds transfer program (any owner interested in making monthly premium payments must use this method).

Lapse and reinstatement

Lapse

Unless the No-Lapse Guarantee is in effect, a policy will go into default if at the beginning of any policy month the policy’s net cash surrender value would be zero or below after deducting the monthly deductions then due. Therefore, a policy could lapse eventually if increases in policy value (prior to deduction of policy charges) are not sufficient to cover policy charges. A lapse could have adverse tax consequences as described under “Tax considerations.” We will notify you of the default and will allow a 61 day grace period in which you may make a premium payment sufficient to bring the policy out of default. The required payment will be equal to the amount necessary to bring the net cash surrender value to zero, if it was less than zero on the date of default, plus an amount equal to three times the monthly deductions due on the date of default, plus any applicable premium charge. If the required payment is not received by the end of the grace period, the policy will terminate (i.e., “lapse”) with no value.

No-lapse guarantee

In those states where it is permitted, as long as the cumulative premium test is satisfied during the No-Lapse Guarantee Period, as described below, we will guarantee that the policy will not go into default, even if adverse investment experience or other factors should cause the policy’s surrender value to fall to zero or below during such period.

The monthly No-Lapse Guarantee Premium is one-twelfth of the No-Lapse Guarantee Premium. The No-Lapse Guarantee Premium is not a charge assessed against the policy value. It is an amount used in determining whether the cumulative premium test has been satisfied.

The No-Lapse Guarantee Premium is set at issue on the basis of the Face Amount of the policy, and reflects the age, sex and risk class of the proposed insured, the death benefit option, as well as any additional rating and supplementary benefits, if applicable. It is subject to change if (i) the Face Amount of the policy is changed, (ii) there is a death benefit option change, (iii) there is a decrease in the Face Amount of insurance, or (iv) there is any change in the supplementary benefits added to the policy or in the risk classification of the insured person.

The No-Lapse Guarantee Period is set at issue and is stated in the policy. Certain state limitations may apply, but generally the No-Lapse Guarantee Period for the Face Amount is five years.

While the No-Lapse Guarantee is in effect, we will determine at the beginning of the policy month that your policy would otherwise be in default whether the cumulative premium test, described below, has been met. If the test has not been satisfied, we will notify you of that fact and allow a 61-day grace period in which you may make a premium payment sufficient to keep the policy from going into default. This required payment, as described in the notification, will be equal to the lesser of:

If the required payment is not received by the end of the grace period, the No-Lapse Guarantee and the policy will terminate. If you make the required payment under (a) described above, only the Face Amount will remain in effect, and any supplementary benefit riders (unless otherwise stated therein) will terminate as of the end of the grace period.

Cumulative premium test

The cumulative premium test is satisfied if, as of the beginning of the policy month that your policy would otherwise be in default, the sum of all premiums paid to date less any withdrawals taken on or before the date of the test and less any policy debt is equal to or exceeds the sum of the monthly No-Lapse Guarantee Premium due from the Policy Date to the date of the test.

Death during grace period

If the insured person should die during the grace period, the policy value used in the calculation of the death benefit will be the policy value as of the date of default, and the death benefit will be reduced by any outstanding monthly deductions due at the time of death.

Reinstatement

By making a written request, you can reinstate a policy that has gone into default and terminated at any time within the three-year period following the date of termination subject to the following conditions:

If the reinstatement is approved, the date of reinstatement will be the later of the date we approve your request or the date the required payment is received at our Service Office. In addition, any surrender charges will be reinstated to the amount they were at the date of default. The policy value on the date of reinstatement, prior to the crediting of any Net Premium paid in connection with the reinstatement, will be equal to the policy value on the date the policy terminated. Any policy debt not paid upon termination of a policy will be reinstated if the policy is reinstated.

The incontestability provisions will apply from the effective date of reinstatement. A surrendered policy cannot be reinstated.

The policy value

From each premium payment you make, we deduct the applicable premium charges described under “Deduction from premium payments.” We invest the rest (known as the “Net Premium”) in the investment accounts you’ve elected. Special investment rules apply to premiums processed prior to the Allocation Date (see “Processing premium payments”).

Over time, the amount you’ve invested in any investment account will increase or decrease the same as if you had invested the same amount directly in the corresponding underlying portfolio and had reinvested all portfolios’ dividends and distributions in additional portfolio shares, except that we will deduct certain additional charges which will reduce your policy value. We describe these charges under “Description of charges at the policy level.” Starting in policy year eleven, we may also credit your policy value with an asset credit (see “Asset credit”).

We calculate the unit values for each investment account once every business day as of the close of trading on the New York Stock Exchange, usually 4:00 p.m. Eastern time. Sales and redemptions within any investment account will be transacted using the unit value next calculated after we receive your request either in writing or other form that we specify. If we receive your request before the close of our business day, we’ll use the unit value calculated as of the end of that business day. If we receive your request at or after the close of our business day, we’ll use the unit value calculated as of the end of the next business day. If a scheduled transaction falls on a day that is not a business day, we’ll process it as of the end of the next business day.

Asset credit

Starting in the eleventh policy year, we will credit your policy value monthly, on the date we calculate your monthly deductions, with an amount equal to the percentage credit listed below multiplied by the policy value in your investment accounts on this date. The asset credit does not apply to the loan account. The asset credit percentage is 0.0125% per month in policy year eleven and thereafter and ceasing at attainment of age 121. We add the credit to the same investment accounts from which we take your monthly deductions.

Allocation of future premium payments

At any time, you may change the investment accounts in which future premium payments will be invested. You make the original allocation in the application for the policy. The percentages you select must be in whole numbers and must total 100%.

Transfers of existing policy value

You may also transfer your existing policy value from one investment account to another, subject to the limitations discussed below. To do so, you must tell us how much to transfer, either as a whole number percentage or as a specific dollar amount. A confirmation of each transfer will be sent to you. Without our approval, the maximum amount you may transfer to or from any investment account in any policy year is $1,000,000.

The policies are not designed for professional market timing organizations or highly active traders, including persons or entities that engage in programmed, large or frequent transfers among investment accounts. As a consequence, we have reserved the right to impose certain restrictions on transfers as described in the “Market timing and disruptive trading risks” section of this prospectus. We also reserve the right to impose a fee of up to $25 for any transfer beyond an annual limit (which will not be less than twelve).

Limitations on transfers to or from an investment account . Our current practice is to restrict transfers into or out of investment accounts to two per calendar month (except with respect to those policies described in the following paragraphs). For purposes of this restriction, and in applying the limitation on the number of free transfers, any transfers made during the period from the opening of a business day (usually 9:00 a.m. Eastern time) to the close of that business day (usually 4:00 p.m. Eastern time) are considered one transfer. You may, however, transfer to the Money Market B investment account even if the two transfer per month limit has been reached, but only if 100% of the investment account value in all investment accounts is transferred to the Money Market B investment account. If such a transfer to the Money Market B investment account is made, then for the 30 calendar day period after such transfer no transfers from the Money Market B investment account to any other investment account may be made. If your policy offers a dollar cost averaging or automatic asset allocation rebalancing program, any transfers pursuant to such program are not considered transfers subject to these restrictions on frequent trading. The restrictions described in this paragraph will be applied uniformly to all policy owners subject to the restrictions.

Policies such as yours may be purchased by a corporation or other entity as a means to informally finance the liabilities created by an employee benefit plan, and to this end the entity may aggregately manage the policies purchased to match its liabilities under the plan. Policies sold under these circumstances are subject to special transfer restrictions. In lieu of the two transfers per month restriction, we will allow the policy owner under these circumstances to rebalance the investment options in its policies within the following limits: (i) during the 10 calendar day period after any policy values are transferred from one investment account into a second investment account, the values can only be transferred out of the second investment account if they are transferred into the Money Market B investment account; and (ii) any policy values that would otherwise not be transferable by application of the 10 day limit described above and that are transferred into the Money Market B investment account may not be transferred out of the Money Market B investment account into any other investment account for 30 calendar days. The restrictions described in this paragraph will be applied uniformly to all policy owners subject to the restrictions.

Subject to our approval, we may offer policies purchased by a corporation or other entity that has purchased policies to match its liabilities under an employee benefit plan, as described above, the ability to electronically rebalance the investment options in its policies. Under these circumstances, in lieu of imposing any specific limit upon the number and timing of transfers, we will monitor aggregate trades among the subaccounts for frequency, pattern and size for potentially harmful investment practices. If we detect trading activity that we believe may be harmful to the overall operation of any investment account or underlying portfolio, we may impose conditions on policies employing electronic rebalancing to submit trades, including setting limits upon the number and timing of transfers, and revoking privileges to make trades by any means other than written communication submitted via U.S. mail.

While we seek to identify and prevent disruptive frequent trading activity, it may not always be possible to do so. Therefore no assurance can be given that the restrictions we impose will be successful in preventing all disruptive frequent trading and avoiding harm to long-term investors. The restrictions described in these paragraphs will be applied uniformly to all policy holders subject to the restrictions.

Rule 22c-2 under the 1940 Act requires us to provide tax identification numbers and other policy owner transaction information to the Trust or to other investment companies in which the Separate Account invests, at their request. An investment company will use this information to identify any pattern or frequency of investment account transfers that may violate their frequent trading policy. An investment company may require us to impose trading restrictions in addition to those described above if violations of their frequent trading policy are discovered.

Dollar cost averaging . We may offer policy owners a dollar cost averaging (“DCA”) program. Under the DCA program, you will designate an amount that will be transferred monthly from one investment account into any other investment account(s). If insufficient funds exist to effect a DCA transfer, the transfer will not be effected and you will be so notified. No fee is charged for this program.

We reserve the right to cease to offer this program as of 90 days after written notice is sent to you.

Asset allocation balancer transfers . Under the asset allocation balancer program you will designate an allocation of policy value among investment accounts. We will move amounts among the investment accounts at specified intervals you select - annually, semi-annually, quarterly or monthly. A change to your premium allocation instructions will automatically result in a change in asset allocation balancer instructions so that the two are identical unless you either instruct us otherwise or have elected the dollar cost averaging program. No fee is charged for this program.

We reserve the right to cease to offer this program as of 90 days after written notice is sent to you.

Surrender and withdrawals

Surrender

You may surrender your policy in full at any time. If you do, we will pay you the policy value less any policy debt and surrender charge that then applies. This is called your “net cash surrender value.” You must return your policy when you request a surrender. We will process surrenders on the day we receive the surrender request (unless such day is not a business day, in which case we will process surrenders as of the business day next following the date of the receipt).

Withdrawals

After the first policy year, you may make a withdrawal of part of your net cash surrender value once in each policy month. Generally, each withdrawal must be at least $500. If the withdrawal reduces the Face Amount to an amount that is less than the Face Amount at issue (“Face Amount issued”), a charge equal to a pro-rata portion of any surrender charge will be applied during the surrender charge period to the amount surrendered that falls below the Face Amount issued. We will automatically reduce the policy value of your policy by the amount of the withdrawal. Unless otherwise specified by you, each investment account will be reduced in the same proportion as the policy value is then allocated among them. We will not permit a withdrawal if it would cause your surrender value to fall below three months’ worth of monthly deductions (see “Deductions from policy value”). We also reserve the right to refuse any withdrawal that would cause the policy’s Face Amount to fall below $50,000.

Because it reduces the policy value, any withdrawal will reduce your death benefit under either Option 1 or Option 2 (see “The death benefit”). If death benefit Option 1 is in effect at the time of the withdrawal, such withdrawal may reduce the Face Amount. If such a reduction in Face Amount would cause the policy to fail the Internal Revenue Code’s definition of life insurance, we will not permit the withdrawal. As noted above, if the withdrawal reduces the Face Amount to an amount that is less than the Face Amount issued, a charge equal to a pro-rata portion of any surrender charge will be applied during the surrender charge period to the amount surrendered that falls below the Face Amount issued (see “Surrender charge”).

For example, assume the owner of a policy issued with death benefit Option 2 requests a withdrawal of $25,000 on a policy with a Face Amount of $200,000 and a current surrender charge of $10,000. The policy value would be reduced by $25,000 but the Face Amount would remain unchanged, therefore no surrender charge would be applied. If the policy owner had changed the death benefit option from Option 2 to Option 1 after the first policy year, but prior to the withdrawal, and the Face Amount after the death benefit option change were $210,000, then the Face Amount would be reduced by the withdrawal

Policy loans

You may borrow from your policy at any time by completing a form satisfactory to us. The maximum amount you can borrow is the greater of (i) 90% of net cash surrender value and (ii) the amount determined as set out below.

• We first determine the net cash surrender value of your policy.

• We then subtract an amount equal to the monthly deductions then being deducted from policy value times the number of full policy months until the next policy anniversary.

• We then multiply the resulting amount by the difference between the effective annual rate then being charged on loans and the effective annual rate then being credited on the loan account.

• We then subtract the third item above from the second item above.

The minimum amount of each loan is $500. The interest charged on any loan is an effective annual rate of 3.25% in the first ten policy years, but we reserve the right to increase the annual rate to 3.50% during that time. After the tenth policy year, the effective annual rate is 2.00%, however, we reserve the right to increase the percentage to as much as 2.25%. Accrued interest will be added to the loan daily and will bear interest at the same rate as the original loan amount. Unless otherwise specified by you, the amount of the loan is deducted from the investment accounts in the same proportion as the policy value is then allocated among them. The amount of the loan is then placed in a special loan account. This special loan account will earn interest at an effective annual rate of 2.00%. The tax consequences of a loan interest credited differential of 0% are unclear. You should consult a tax adviser before effecting a loan to evaluate possible tax consequences. If we determine that a loan will be treated as a taxable distribution because of the differential between the loan interest rate and the rate being credited on the special loan account, we reserve the right to increase the rate charged on the loan to a rate that would, in our reasonable judgment, result in the transaction being treated as a loan under Federal tax law. The right to increase the rate charged on a loan is restricted in New York. We will not decrease the annual rate charged to less than 2.00%. Please see your John Hancock NY representative for details. We process policy loans as of the business day on or next following the day we receive the loan request.

Repayment of policy loans

You can repay all or part of a loan at any time. Each repayment will be allocated among the investment accounts in the same way a new premium payment would be allocated (unless specified by you). While you have a loan outstanding, we will treat any amounts you pay as premium, unless you submit a written request to us that they be treated as loan repayments.

Loan repayments received prior to the close of the New York Stock Exchange will be applied on the same day it was received. Loan repayments received after the close of the New York Stock Exchange will be applied as of the next business day.

Effects of policy loans

The policy value, the net cash surrender value, and any death benefit are permanently affected by any loan, whether or not it is repaid in whole or in part. This is because the amount of the loan is deducted from the accounts and placed in a special loan account. The investment accounts and the special loan account will generally have different rates of investment return.

The amount of the outstanding loan (which includes accrued and unpaid interest) is subtracted from the amount otherwise payable when the policy proceeds become payable.

Taking out a loan on the policy increases the risk that the policy may lapse because of the difference between the interest rate charged on the loan and the interest rate credited to the special loan account. Also, when a loan is outstanding, the amount in the loan account is not available to help pay for any policy charges. If, after deducting your policy loan, there is not enough policy value to cover the policy charges, your policy could lapse. Whenever the outstanding loan equals or exceeds your policy value after the insured person reaches age 121, the policy will terminate 31 days after we have mailed notice of

Description of charges at the policy level

Deduction from premium payments

• Premium charge - A charge to help defray our sales costs and related taxes. The current charge is 8% is deducted from all premiums paid in the first policy year. A premium charge of 6% is deducted from all premiums paid in policy years 2-10. A premium charge of 2% is deducted from all premiums paid in policy years 11 and thereafter. We will stop accepting premium payments at and after the life insured’s age 121 (see “Coverage at and after age 121”).

Deductions from policy value

• Administrative charge - A monthly charge to help cover our administrative costs. This is a flat dollar charge of $20 per month that will cease at and after the insured person reaches age 121.

• Face Amount charge - A monthly charge for the first ten policy years, to primarily help cover sales costs. To determine the charge we multiply the amount of Face Amount at issue by a rate that varies by the insured person’s sex, age, death benefit option and risk classification at issue.

• Cost of insurance charge - A monthly charge for the cost of insurance. To determine the charge, we multiply the net amount of insurance for which we are then at risk by a cost of insurance rate. The rate is derived from an actuarial table. The table in your policy will show the maximum cost of insurance rates. The cost of insurance rates that we currently apply are generally less than the maximum rates, and the current rates will never be more than the maximum rates shown in the policy. Cost of insurance charges will cease at and after the insured person reaches age 121. The cost of insurance rates we use will depend on the age at issue, the insurance risk characteristics and (usually) sex of the insured person, and the length of time the policy has been in effect. Regardless of the table used, cost of insurance rates generally increase each year that you own your policy, as the insured person’s age increases. (The insured person’s “age” on any date is his or her age on the birthday nearest that date.) For death benefit Option 1, the net amount at risk is equal to the greater of zero, or the result of (a) minus (b) where:

  (a) is the death benefit as of the first day of the Policy Month, divided by 1.0016516; and

  (b) is the policy value as of the first day of the Policy Month after the deduction of all other monthly deductions.

Since the net amount at risk for death benefit Option 1 is based on a formula that includes as factors the death benefit and the policy value, the net amount at risk is affected by the investment performance of the investment accounts chosen, payment of premiums and charges assessed.

If the minimum death benefit is greater than the Face Amount, the cost of insurance charge will reflect the amount of that additional benefit.

For death benefit Option 2, the net amount at risk is equal to the Face Amount of insurance divided by 1.0016516.

• Asset-based risk charge - A monthly charge to help cover sales, administrative and other costs. The charge is a percentage of that portion of your policy value allocated to investment accounts. This charge is not currently imposed but we reserve the right to do so. Any charge would cease at and after the insured person reaches age 121.

• Supplementary benefits charges - A charge for any supplementary insurance benefits added to the policy by means of a rider.

• Loan interest rate - We will charge interest on any amount you borrow from your policy. The interest charged on any loan is an effective annual rate of 3.25% in the first ten policy years, although we reserve the right to increase the annual rate to 3.50%. After the tenth policy year, the effective annual rate is 2.00%, although we reserve the right to increase the percentage to 2.25% (see “Policy loans”).

• Transfer fee - We currently do not impose a fee upon transfers of policy value among the investment options, but reserve the right to impose a fee of up to $25 for any transfer beyond an annual limit (which will not be less than 12) to compensate us for the costs of processing these transfers (see “Transfers of existing policy value”).

• Surrender charge - A charge we deduct if the policy lapses or is surrendered, or if the Face Amount is reduced within the first ten policy years. We deduct this charge to compensate us for sales expenses that we would otherwise not
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  recover in the event of early lapse, a surrender or a reduction in Face Amount. The surrender charge amount is determined by a formula that is set out in your policy, and is impacted by your age, sex, risk classification, Face Amount and the amount of premiums paid in policy year 1. The surrender charge decreases each month and becomes zero at the end of the tenth policy year.

The surrender charge is equal to the lesser of (a) and (b), multiplied by the Surrender Charge Grading Factor in your policy, where

  (a) is a surrender charge for the Face Amount at issue, indicated in the Policy Specifications page of the policy, less the result of 4.11% multiplied by the sum of premiums paid in the first policy year, and

  (b) is an alternate surrender charge for the Face Amount at issue, also indicated in the Policy Specifications page of the policy

Both calculations (a) and (b) are intended to enable us to recoup acquisition expenses incurred in relation to the sale of your policy. The calculation in (a) limits the surrender charge amount in some cases to make sure that your policy conforms to applicable state non-forfeiture laws.

For an example showing how the surrender charge is determined, assume a policy on a male age 45 nonsmoker, providing a $1,000,000 death benefit Option 2 with no riders, paying a Target Premium of $19,790 as of policy year 1, and subject to an applicable Surrender Charge Grading Factor of 100% in policy year 1.

To determine the surrender charge in (a), we subtract from $27,720 the product of 4.11% multiplied by the sum of premiums paid in policy year 1 ($19,790). The result is $26,906.63 – i.e., $27,720 – 4.11% x $19,790 = $26,906.63. We then compare this to the surrender charge amount in (b) indicated in the Policy Specifications page. In our example above, the surrender charge amount in (b) is $34,820.

The lesser of the amounts in (a) and (b) is the $26,906.63, which is the amount derived from the calculation in (a), and thus, that is the amount of the surrender charge that would be applied. In this example, where the surrender occurs in the first policy year, the Surrender Charge Grading Factor that would be applied to the surrender charge is 100%, and therefore the surrender charge for this example is $26,906.63– i.e., $26,906.63 x 100% = $26,906.63. The surrender charge is dependent upon the policy year during which a reduction in Face Amount, lapse or surrender occurs, and the Surrender Charge Grading Factor percentage is graded down over the policy duration until the tenth policy year.

The above table applies only if the insured person is age 45 at issue. A pro-rata portion of the surrender charge will be payable upon any approved reduction in the Face Amount that reduces the Face Amount to an amount that is below the Face Amount at issue (see “Surrender charge”). For Face Amount reductions, an additional 10% of the Face Amount at issue is also exempt from the partial surrender charge. This 10% surrender charge exemption does not apply to full surrenders or net cash surrender withdrawals (see “Surrenders and withdrawals – Withdrawals” and “Requesting a decrease in coverage”). The pro-rata charge is calculated by dividing the reduction in Face Amount by the Face Amount immediately prior to the reduction and then multiplying the applicable surrender charge by that ratio.

Additional information about how certain policy charges work

Sales expenses and related charges

The premium and Face Amount charges help to compensate us for the cost of selling our policies (see “Description of charges at the policy level”). The amount of the charges in any policy year does not specifically correspond to sales expenses

Method of deduction

We deduct the monthly deductions described in the Fee Tables section from your policy’s investment accounts in proportion to the amount of policy value you have in each, unless otherwise specified by you.

Special purchase programs for eligible classes

With respect to policies issued to a class of associated individuals or to a trustee, employer or similar entity where we anticipate that the sales to the members of the class will result in lower than normal sales or administrative expenses, lower taxes or lower risks to us, we may offer the policies with reduced charges or with additional or enhanced features or benefits. We will make these programs available in accordance with our established administrative procedures in effect at the time of the application for a policy. The factors we consider in determining the eligibility of a particular group for such a program are: (i) the nature of the association and its organizational framework; (ii) the method by which sales will be made to the members of the class; (iii) the facility with which premiums will be collected from the associated individuals and the association’s capabilities with respect to administrative tasks; (iv) the anticipated lapse and surrender rates of the policies; (v) the size of the class of associated individuals and the number of years it has been in existence; (vi) the aggregate amount of premiums paid; and (vii) any other such circumstances which result in a reduction in sales or administrative expenses, lower taxes or lower risks. Any reduction in charges or feature or benefit enhancement will be reasonable and will apply uniformly to all prospective policy purchasers in the class and will not unfairly discriminate against any owner.

The Statement of Additional Information (the “SAI”) contains additional information about any special purchase program we currently make available. For information as to how you may obtain a copy of the SAI, please see the last page of this prospectus.

Other charges we could impose in the future

Except for a portion of the premium charge, we currently make no charge for our Federal income taxes. However, if we incur, or expect to incur, income taxes attributable to any subaccount of the Separate Account or this class of policies in future years, we reserve the right to make a charge for such taxes. Any such charge would reduce what you earn on any affected fixed or investment accounts. However, we expect that no such charge will be necessary.

A portion of the premium charge is used to cover premium taxes. Currently, the premium tax in New York is 0.7% of each premium payment.

Under current laws, we may incur state and local taxes (in addition to premium taxes) in several states. At present, these taxes are not significant. If there is a material change in New York state or local tax laws, we may make charges for such taxes.

Description of charges at the portfolio level

The portfolios must pay investment management fees and other operating expenses. These fees and expenses (shown in the tables of portfolio annual expenses under “Fee Tables”) are different for each portfolio and reduce the investment return of each portfolio. Therefore, they also indirectly reduce the return you will earn on any investment accounts you select. Expenses of the portfolios are not fixed or specified under the terms of the policy, and those expenses may vary from year to year.

Other policy benefits, rights and limitations

Optional supplementary benefit riders you can add

When you apply for a policy, you can request any of the optional supplementary benefit riders that we then make available. Our rules and procedures will govern eligibility for any rider and, in some cases, the configuration of the actual rider benefits. Each rider contains specific details that you should review before you decide to choose the rider. Charges for the riders will be deducted from the policy value. We may change these charges (or the rates that determine them), but not

• Overloan Protection Rider - This rider will prevent your policy from lapsing on any date if policy debt exceeds the death benefit. The benefit is subject to a number of eligibility requirements relating to, among other things, the number of years the policy has been in force, the attained age of the life insured, the death benefit option elected and the tax status of the policy.

When the Overloan Protection Benefit in this rider is invoked, all values in the investment accounts are immediately transferred to the fixed account, described below, and will continue to grow at the current fixed account interest rate. Transfer fees do not apply to these transfers. Thereafter, policy changes and transactions are limited as set forth in the rider; for example, death benefit increases or decreases, additional premium payments, policy loans, withdrawals, surrender and transfers are no longer allowed. Any outstanding policy debt will remain. Interest will continue to be charged at the policy’s specified loan interest rate, and the policy’s loan account will continue to be credited with the policy’s loan interest credited rate. Any applicable No-Lapse Guarantee under the policy no longer applies, and any supplementary benefit rider requiring a monthly deduction will automatically be terminated.

When the Overloan Protection Rider causes the policy to be converted into a fixed policy, there is risk that the Internal Revenue Service could assert that the policy has been effectively terminated and that the outstanding loan balance should be treated as a distribution. Depending on the circumstances, all or part of such deemed distribution may be taxable as income. You should consult a tax adviser as to the risks associated with the Overloan Protection Rider.

Our obligations under the fixed account are backed by our general account assets. Our general account consists of assets owned by us other than those in the Separate Account and in other separate accounts that we may establish. Subject to applicable law, we have sole discretion over the investment of assets of the general account and policy owners do not share in the investment experience of, or have any preferential claim on, those assets. Instead we guarantee that the policy value allocated to any fixed account will accrue interest daily at an effective annual rate that we determine without regard to the actual investment experience of the general account. The effective annual rate we declare for the fixed account will never be less than 2%. Because of exemptive and exclusionary provisions, interests in our fixed account have not been and will not be registered under the Securities Act of 1933 (“1933 Act”) and our general account has not been registered as an investment company under the 1940 Act.

• Accelerated Benefit Rider - This rider provides for acceleration of payment of a portion of the death benefit should the insured person become terminally ill and have a life expectancy of one year or less. You must meet the following conditions before we pay the benefit.

• You must provide written evidence satisfactory to us that the life insured is terminally ill and has a life expectancy of one year or less.

• We must have a signed consent of any irrevocable beneficiary and any assignee.

• You must claim the benefit voluntarily. We will not pay the benefit if you are claiming it to satisfy creditors or for government benefits.

If you satisfy the above conditions, we will pay you 50% of the eligible death benefit, up to a maximum of $1,000,000. We will not make a payment if it would be less than $10,000. Payment of the benefit will reduce your death benefit and any cash value or loan value under your policy. You should consult your tax adviser and social service agencies before you decide to receive the benefit under this rider. This rider is only available with policies that are individually owned.

Variations in policy terms

We may vary the charges and other terms of our policies where special circumstances result in sales or administrative expenses, mortality risks or other risks that are different from those normally associated with the policies. These include the type of variations discussed under “Special purchase programs for eligible classes.” No variation in any charge will exceed any maximum stated in this prospectus with respect to that charge.

Any variation discussed above will be made only in accordance with uniform rules that we adopt and that we apply fairly to our customers.

Procedures for issuance of a policy

Generally, the policy is available with a minimum Face Amount at issue of $50,000. At the time of issue, the insured person must have an attained age of no more than 90. The insured person must meet certain health and other insurance risk criteria called “underwriting standards.” Our underwriting standards for the issuance of the policy do not require the proposed insured to undergo a medical examination. Although these standards are more convenient, the policy charges are set to reflect a higher risk assumed by us under a policy underwritten in this way, and you may find that a policy subject to a more rigorous (“full”) underwriting is more appropriate for you. Please discuss these considerations with your registered representative.

Commencement of insurance coverage

After you apply for a policy, it can take up to several weeks for us to gather and evaluate all the information we need to decide whether to issue a policy to you and, if so, what the insured person’s risk classification should be. After we approve an application for a policy and assign an appropriate insurance risk classification, we will prepare the policy for delivery. We will not pay a death benefit under a policy unless the policy is in effect when the insured person dies (except for the circumstances described under “Temporary coverage prior to policy delivery” below).

The policy will take effect only if all of the following conditions are satisfied:

• The policy is delivered to and received by the applicant.

• The Minimum Initial Premium is received by us.

• The insured person is living and there has been no deterioration in the insurability of the insured person since the date of the application.

The date all of the above conditions are satisfied is referred to in this prospectus as the “Contract Completion Date.” If all of the above conditions are satisfied, the policy will take effect on the date shown in the policy as the “Policy Date.” That is the date on which we begin to deduct monthly charges. Policy months, policy years and policy anniversaries are all measured from the Policy Date.

Backdating

Under limited circumstances, we may backdate a policy, upon request, by assigning a Policy Date earlier than the date the application is signed. However, in no event will a policy be backdated earlier than six months from the date of application for the policy, the earliest date allowed by New York state law. The most common reasons for backdating are to preserve a younger age at issue for the insured person or to retain a common monthly deduction date in certain corporate-owned life insurance cases involving multiple policies issued over time. If used to preserve age, backdating will result in lower insurance charges. However, monthly deductions will begin earlier than would otherwise be the case. Monthly deductions for the period the Policy Date is backdated will actually be deducted from policy value on the Contract Completion Date.

Temporary coverage prior to policy delivery

If a specified amount of premium is paid with the application for a policy and other conditions are met, we will provide temporary term life insurance coverage on the insured person for a period prior to the time coverage under the policy takes effect. Such temporary term coverage will be subject to the terms and conditions described in the Temporary Life Insurance Agreement and Receipt attached to the application for the policy, including conditions to coverage and limits on amount and duration of coverage.

Monthly deduction dates

Each charge that we deduct monthly is assessed against your policy value at the close of business on the Policy Date and at the close of the first day in each subsequent policy month.

Changes that we can make as to your policy

We reserve the right to make any changes in the policy necessary to ensure the policy is within the definition of life insurance under the Federal tax laws and is in compliance with any changes in Federal or state tax laws.

In our policies, we reserve the right to make certain changes if they would serve the best interests of policy owners or would be appropriate in carrying out the purposes of the policies. These changes include the following:

• Changes necessary to comply with or obtain or continue exemptions under the Federal securities laws.

• Combining or removing investment accounts.

• Changes in the form of organization of any separate account.

Any such changes will be made only to the extent permitted by applicable laws and only in the manner permitted by such laws. When required by law, we will obtain your approval of the changes and the approval of any appropriate regulatory authority.

The owner of the policy

Who owns the policy? That’s up to the person who applies for the policy. The owner of the policy is the person who can exercise most of the rights under the policy, such as the right to choose the investment accounts in which to invest or the right to surrender the policy. In many cases, the person buying the policy is also the person who will be the owner. However, the application for a policy can name another person or entity (such as a trust) as owner. Whenever we’ve used the term “you” in this prospectus, we’ve assumed that the reader is the person who has whatever right or privilege is being discussed. There may be tax consequences if the owner and the insured person are different, so you should discuss this issue with your tax adviser.

While the insured person is alive, you will have a number of options under the policy. These options include those listed below:

• Determine when and how much you invest in the various investment accounts.

• Borrow or withdraw amounts you have in the investment accounts.

• Change the beneficiary who will receive the death benefit.

• Change the amount of insurance.

• Turn in (i.e., “surrender”) the policy for the full amount of its net cash surrender value.

• Choose the form in which we will pay out the death benefit or other proceeds.

It is possible to name so-called “joint owners” of the policy. If more than one person owns a policy, all owners must join in most requests to exercise rights under the policy.

Policy cancellation right

You have the right to cancel your policy within ten days after you receive it (the period may be longer in some states). This is often referred to as the “free look” period. During this period, your premiums will be allocated as described under “Processing premium payments” in this prospectus. To cancel your policy, simply deliver or mail the policy to:

• John Hancock NY at either of the addresses shown on the back cover of this prospectus, or

• the John Hancock NY representative who delivered the policy to you.

The date of cancellation will be the date of such mailing or delivery. You will receive a refund of any premiums you’ve paid.

Reports that you will receive

At least annually, we will send you a statement setting forth at least the following information as of the end of the most recent reporting period: the amount of the death benefit, the portion of the policy value in each investment account, premiums received and charges deducted from premiums since the last report, any outstanding policy loan (and interest charged for the preceding policy year), and any further information required by law. Moreover, you also will receive confirmations of premium payments, transfers among investment accounts, policy loans, partial withdrawals and certain other policy transactions.

Semi-annually we will send you a report containing the financial statements of the portfolios, including a list of securities held in each portfolio.

Assigning your policy

You may assign your rights in the policy to someone else as collateral for a loan or for some other reason. Assignments do not require the consent of any revocable beneficiary. A copy of the assignment must be forwarded to us. We are not responsible for any payment we make or any action we take before we receive a copy of the assignment at our Service Office.

When we pay policy proceeds

General

We will ordinarily pay any death benefit, withdrawal, surrender value or loan within seven days after we receive the last required form or request (and, with respect to the death benefit, any other documentation that may be required). If we don’t have information about the desired manner of payment within seven days after the date we receive documentation of the insured person’s death, we will pay the proceeds as a single sum.

Delay to challenge coverage

We may challenge the validity of your insurance policy based on any material misstatements made to us in the application for the policy. We cannot make such a challenge, however, beyond the time limit that is specified in your policy, which is generally two years from the Issue Date.

Delay for check clearance

We reserve the right to defer payment of that portion of your policy value that is attributable to a premium payment made by check for a reasonable period of time (not to exceed fifteen days) to allow the check to clear the banking system. We will not delay payment longer than necessary for us to verify a check has cleared the banking system.

Delay of separate account proceeds

We reserve the right to defer payment of any death benefit, loan or other distribution that is derived from an investment account if (1) the New York Stock Exchange is closed (other than customary weekend and holiday closings) or trading on the New York Stock Exchange is restricted; (2) an emergency exists, as determined by the SEC, as a result of which disposal of securities is not reasonably practicable or it is not reasonably practicable to fairly determine the policy value; or (3) the SEC by order permits the delay for the protection of owners. Transfers and allocations of policy value among the investment accounts may also be postponed under these circumstances. If we need to defer calculation of separate account values for any of the foregoing reasons, all delayed transactions will be processed at the next values that we do compute.

How you communicate with us

General rules

You should mail or express all checks and money orders for premium payments and loan repayments to the John Hancock NY Service Office at the appropriate address shown on the back cover.

Under our current rules, certain requests must be made in writing and be signed and dated by you. Those requests include the following.

• loans

• surrenders or withdrawals

• change of death benefit option

• increase or decrease in Face Amount

• change of beneficiary

• election of payment option for policy proceeds

• tax withholding elections

• election of telephone/internet transaction privilege

The following requests may be made either in writing (signed and dated by you) or by telephone or fax or through the Company’s secured website, if a special form is completed (see “Telephone, facsimile and internet transactions” below).

• transfers of policy value among investment accounts

• change of allocation among investment accounts for new premium payments

You should mail or express all written requests to our Service Office at the appropriate address shown on the back cover. You should also send notice of the insured person’s death and related documentation to our Service Office. We do not consider that we’ve “received” any communication until such time as it has arrived at the proper place and in the proper and complete form.

We have special forms that should be used for a number of the requests mentioned above. You can obtain these forms from our Service Office or your John Hancock NY representative. Each communication to us must include your name, your policy number and the name of the insured person. We cannot process any request that doesn’t include this required information. Any communication that arrives after the close of our business day, or on a day that is not a business day, will be considered “received” by us on the next following business day. Our business day currently closes at 4:00 p.m. Eastern time, but special circumstances (such as suspension of trading on a major exchange) may dictate an earlier closing time.

Telephone, facsimile and internet transactions

If you complete a special authorization form, you can request transfers among accounts and changes of allocation among investment accounts simply by telephoning us at 1-877-391-3748, Option 4, or by faxing us at 1-416-926-5809 or through the Company’s secured website. Any fax or internet request should include your name, daytime telephone number, policy number and, in the case of transfers and changes of allocation, the names of the investment accounts involved. We will honor telephone and internet instructions from anyone who provides the correct identifying information, so there is a risk of loss to you if this service is used by an unauthorized person. However, you will receive written confirmation of all telephone/internet transactions. There is also a risk that you will be unable to place your request due to equipment malfunction or heavy phone line or internet usage. If this occurs, you should submit your request in writing.

If you authorize telephone or internet transactions, you will be liable for any loss, expense or cost arising out of any unauthorized or fraudulent telephone or internet instructions which we reasonably believe to be genuine, unless such loss, expense or cost is the result of our mistake or negligence. We employ procedures which provide safeguards against the execution of unauthorized transactions which are reasonably designed to confirm that instructions received by telephone or internet are genuine. These procedures include requiring personal identification, the use of a unique password for internet authorization, recording of telephone calls, and providing written confirmation to the owner. If we do not employ reasonable procedures to confirm that instructions communicated by telephone or internet are genuine, we may be liable for any loss due to unauthorized or fraudulent instructions.

As stated earlier in this prospectus, the policies are not designed for professional market timing organizations or other persons or entities that use programmed, large or frequent transfers among investment options. To discourage disruptive trading, we have imposed certain transfer restrictions (see “Transfers of existing policy value”). In addition, we also reserve the right to change our telephone, facsimile and internet transaction privileges outlined in this section at any time, and to suspend or terminate any or all of those privileges with respect to any owners who we feel are abusing the privileges to the detriment of other owners.

Distribution of policies

John Hancock Distributors LLC (“JH Distributors”), a Delaware limited liability company affiliated with us, is the principal distributor and underwriter of the securities offered through this prospectus and of other annuity and life insurance products we and our affiliates offer. JH Distributors also acts as the principal underwriter of the Trust, whose securities are used to fund certain investment accounts under the policies and under other annuity and life insurance products we offer.

JH Distributors’ principal address is 601 Congress Street, Boston, MA 02210 and it also maintains offices with us at 197 Clarendon Street, Boston, Massachusetts 02116. JH Distributors is a broker-dealer registered under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the “1934 Act”) and a member of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”).

We offer the policies for sale through individuals who are licensed as insurance agents and who are registered representatives of broker-dealers that have entered into selling agreements with JH Distributors. Our affiliate, Signator Investors, Inc., is one such broker-dealer. In addition, we, either directly or through JH Distributors, have entered into agreements with other financial intermediaries that provide marketing, sales support and certain administrative services to help promote the policies (“financial intermediaries”). In a limited number of cases, we have entered into loans, leases or other financial agreements with these broker-dealers or financial intermediaries or their affiliates.

Compensation

The broker-dealers and other financial intermediaries that distribute or support the marketing of our policies may be compensated by means of various compensation and revenue sharing arrangements. A general description of these arrangements is set out below under “Standard compensation” and “Additional compensation and revenue sharing.” These arrangements may differ between firms, and not all broker-dealers or financial intermediaries will receive the same compensation and revenue sharing benefits for distributing our policies. Also, a broker-dealer may receive more or less compensation or other benefits for the promotion and sale of our policy than it would expect to receive from another issuer.

Under their own arrangements, broker-dealers determine how much of any amounts received from us is to be paid to their registered representatives. Our affiliated broker-dealer, Signator Investors, Inc., may pay its registered representatives additional compensation and benefits, such as bonus payments, expense payments, health and retirement benefits or the waiver of overhead costs or expenses in connection with the sale of the policies that they would not receive in connection with the sale of policies issued by unaffiliated companies.

Policy owners do not pay any compensation or revenue sharing benefits directly. These payments are made from JH Distributors’ and our own revenues, profits or retained earnings, which may be derived from a number of sources, such as fees received from an underlying fund’s distribution plan (“12b-1 fees”), the fees and charges imposed under the policy and other sources.

You should contact your registered representative for more information on compensation arrangements in connection with your purchase of a policy. We provide additional information on special compensation or reimbursement arrangements involving broker-dealers and other financial intermediaries in the Statement of Additional Information, which is available upon request.

Standard compensation. JH Distributors pays compensation to broker-dealers for the promotion and sale of the policies, and for providing ongoing service in relation to policies that have already been purchased. We may also pay a limited number of broker-dealers commissions or overrides to “wholesale” the policies; that is, to provide marketing support and training services to the broker-dealer firms that do the actual selling.

The compensation JH Distributors pays to broker-dealers may vary depending on the selling agreement. The compensation paid is not expected to exceed 137% of target premium paid in the first policy year, 30% of target premium paid in year 2 and 8% of target premium paid in years 3-10. Compensation paid on any premium in excess of target will not exceed 10% in any year. This compensation schedule is exclusive of additional compensation and revenue sharing and inclusive of overrides and expense allowances paid to broker-dealers for sale of the policies (not including riders).

Additional compensation and revenue sharing. To the extent permitted by SEC and FINRA rules and other applicable laws and regulations, we may enter into special compensation or reimbursement arrangements (“revenue sharing”), either directly or through JH Distributors, with selected broker-dealers and other financial intermediaries. In consideration of these arrangements, a firm may feature our policy in its sales system, give us preferential access to sales staff, or allow JH Distributors or its affiliates to participate in conferences, seminars or other programs attended by the firm’s sales force. We hope to benefit from these revenue sharing and other arrangements through increased sales of our policies.

Selling broker-dealers and other financial intermediaries may receive, directly or indirectly, additional payments in the form of cash, other compensation or reimbursement. These additional compensation or reimbursement arrangements may include, for example, payments in connection with the firm’s “due diligence” examination of the policies, payments for providing conferences or seminars, sales or training programs for invited registered representatives and other employees, payment for travel expenses, including lodging, incurred by registered representatives and other employees for such seminars or training programs, seminars for the public or client seminars, advertising and sales campaigns regarding the policies, payments to assist a firm in connection with its systems, operations and marketing expenses and/or other events or activities sponsored by the firms. We may contribute to, as well as sponsor, various educational programs, sales promotions, and/or other contests in which participating firms and their sales persons may receive gifts and prizes such as merchandise, cash or other rewards as may be permitted under FINRA rules and other applicable laws and regulations.

Tax considerations

This description of Federal income tax consequences is only a brief summary and is neither exhaustive nor authoritative. It was written to support the promotion of our products. It does not constitute legal or tax advice, and it is not intended to be used and cannot be used to avoid any penalties that may be imposed on you. Tax consequences will vary based on your own

General

We are taxed as a life insurance company. Under current tax law rules, we include the investment income (exclusive of capital gains) of the Separate Account in our taxable income and take deductions for investment income credited to our policy holder reserves. We are also required to capitalize and amortize certain costs instead of deducting those costs when they are incurred. We do not currently charge the Separate Account for any resulting income tax costs, other than a charge we may impose against the Separate Account to compensate us for the cost of a delay in the deductibility of deferred acquisition costs (the “DAC tax” adjustment) pursuant to section 848 of the Internal Revenue Code. We also claim certain tax credits or deductions relating to foreign taxes paid and dividends received by the series funds. These benefits can be material. We do not pass these benefits through to the Separate Account, principally because: (i) the deductions and credits are allowed to us and not the policy owners under applicable tax law; and (ii) the deductions and credits do not represent investment return on the Separate Account assets that is passed through to policy owners.

The policies permit us to deduct a charge for any taxes we incur that are attributable to the operation or existence of the policies or the Separate Account. Currently, we do not anticipate making any specific charge for such taxes other than any DAC tax charge and premium taxes where applicable. If the level of the current taxes increases, however, or is expected to increase in the future, we reserve the right to make a charge in the future.

Death benefit proceeds and other policy distributions

Generally, death benefits paid under policies such as yours are not subject to income tax unless policy ownership has been transferred in exchange for payment. Earnings on your policy value are ordinarily not subject to income tax as long as we don’t pay them out to you. If we do pay out any amount of your policy value upon surrender or partial withdrawal, all or part of that distribution would generally be treated as a return of the premiums you’ve paid and not subjected to income tax. Any portion not treated as a return of your premiums would be includible in your income.

Please note that certain distributions associated with a reduction in death benefit or other policy benefits within the first fifteen years after issuance of the policy are ordinarily taxable in whole or in part. Amounts you borrow are generally not taxable to you. However, some of the tax rules change if your policy becomes a modified endowment contract. This can happen if you’ve paid premiums in excess of limits prescribed by the tax laws. In that case additional taxes and penalties may be payable for policy distributions of any kind, including loans. (See “7-pay premium limit and modified endowment contract status” below.)

We expect the policy to receive the same Federal income and estate tax treatment as fixed benefit life insurance policies. Section 7702 of the Internal Revenue Code defines a life insurance contract for Federal tax purposes. For a policy to be treated as a life insurance contract, it must satisfy the guideline premium test. This test limits the amount of premium that you may pay into the policy. We will monitor compliance with this standard. If we determine that a policy does not satisfy section 7702, we may take whatever steps are appropriate and reasonable to bring it into compliance with section 7702.

If the policy complies with section 7702, the death benefit proceeds under the policy ordinarily should be excludable from the beneficiary’s gross income under section 101 of the Internal Revenue Code. (As noted above, a transfer of the policy for valuable consideration may limit the exclusion of death benefits from the beneficiary’s income.)

Increases in policy value as a result of interest or investment experience will not be subject to Federal income tax unless and until values are received through actual or deemed distributions. In general, unless the policy is a modified endowment contract, the owner will be taxed only on the amount of distributions that exceed the premiums paid under the policy. An exception to this general rule occurs in the case of a decrease in the policy’s death benefit or any other change that reduces benefits under the policy in the first fifteen years after the policy is issued and that results in a cash distribution to the policy owner. Changes that reduce benefits include partial withdrawals, death benefit option changes, and distributions required to

Distributions for tax purposes include amounts received upon surrender or partial withdrawals. You may also be deemed to have received a distribution for tax purposes if you assign all or part of your policy rights or change your policy’s ownership.

It is possible that, despite our monitoring, a policy might fail to qualify as a life insurance contract under section 7702 of the Internal Revenue Code. This could happen, for example, if we inadvertently failed to return to you any premium payments that were in excess of permitted amounts, or if any of the funds failed to meet certain investment diversification or other requirements of the Internal Revenue Code. If this were to occur, you would be subject to income tax on the income credited to the policy from the date of issue to the date of the disqualification and for subsequent periods.

Tax consequences of ownership or receipt of policy proceeds under Federal, state and local estate, inheritance, gift and other tax laws will depend on the circumstances of each owner or beneficiary. If the person insured by the policy is also its owner, either directly or indirectly through an entity such as a revocable trust, the death benefit will be includible in his or her estate for purposes of the Federal estate tax. If the owner is not the person insured, the value of the policy will be includible in the owner’s estate upon his or her death. Even if ownership has been transferred, the death proceeds or the policy value may be includible in the former owner’s estate if the transfer occurred less than three years before the former owner’s death or if the former owner retained certain kinds of control over the policy. You should consult your tax adviser regarding these possible tax consequences.

Because there may be unfavorable tax consequences (including recognition of taxable income and the loss of income tax-free treatment for any death benefit payable to the beneficiary), you should consult a qualified tax adviser prior to changing the policy’s ownership or making any assignment of ownership interests.

Policy loans

We expect that, except as noted below (see “7-pay premium limit and modified endowment contract status”), loans received under the policy will be treated as indebtedness of an owner and that no part of any loan will constitute income to the owner. However, if the policy terminates for any reason other than the payment of the death benefit, an amount equal to any outstanding loan that was not previously considered income will be treated as if it had been distributed to the owner upon such termination. This could result in a considerable tax bill. Under certain circumstances involving large amounts of outstanding loans, you might find yourself having to choose between high premiums required to keep your policy from lapsing and a significant tax burden if you allow the lapse to occur.

Diversification rules and ownership of the Separate Account

Your policy will not qualify for the tax benefits of a life insurance contract unless the Separate Account follows certain rules requiring diversification of investments underlying the policy. In addition, the rules require that the policy owner not have “investor control” over the underlying assets.

In certain circumstances, the owner of a variable life insurance policy may be considered the owner, for Federal income tax purposes, of the assets of the Separate Account used to support the policy. In those circumstances, income and gains from the Separate Account assets would be includible in the policy owner’s gross income. The Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) has stated in published rulings that a variable policy owner will be considered the owner of Separate Account assets if the policy owner possesses incidents of ownership in those assets, such as the ability to exercise investment control over the assets. A Treasury Decision issued in 1986 stated that guidance would be issued in the form of regulations or rulings on the “extent to which Policyholders may direct their investments to particular sub-accounts of a Separate Account without being treated as owners of the underlying assets.” As of the date of this prospectus, no comprehensive guidance on this point has been issued. In Rev. Rul. 2003-91, however, the IRS ruled that a contract holder would not be treated as the owner of assets underlying a variable life insurance or annuity contract despite the owner’s ability to allocate funds among as many as twenty subaccounts.

The ownership rights under your policy are similar to, but different in certain respects from, those described in IRS rulings in which it was determined that policyholders were not owners of Separate Account assets. Since you have greater

We do not know what future Treasury Department regulations or other guidance may require. We cannot guarantee that the funds will be able to operate as currently described in the series funds’ prospectuses, or that a series fund will not have to change any fund’s investment objectives or policies. We have reserved the right to modify your policy if we believe doing so will prevent you from being considered the owner of your policy’s proportionate share of the assets of the Separate Account, but we are under no obligation to do so.

7-pay premium limit and modified endowment contract status

At the time of policy issuance, we will determine whether the Planned Premium schedule will exceed the 7-pay limit discussed below. If so, our standard procedures prohibit issuance of the policy unless you sign a form acknowledging that fact.

The 7-pay limit at any time during the first seven contract years is the total of net level premiums that would have been payable at or before that time under a comparable fixed policy that would be fully “paid-up” after the payment of seven equal annual premiums. “Paid-up” means that no further premiums would be required to continue the coverage in force until maturity, based on certain prescribed assumptions. If the total premiums paid at any time during the first seven policy years exceed the 7-pay limit, the policy will be treated as a modified endowment contract, which can have adverse tax consequences.

Policies classified as modified endowment contracts are subject to the following tax rules:

• First, all withdrawals from such a policy are treated as ordinary income subject to tax up to the amount equal to the excess (if any) of the policy value immediately before the withdrawal over the investment in the policy at such time. If you own any other modified endowment contracts issued to you in the same calendar year by the same insurance company or its affiliates, their values will be combined with the value of the policy from which you take the withdrawal for purposes of determining how much of the withdrawal is taxable as ordinary income.

• Second, loans taken from or secured by such a policy and assignments or pledges of any part of its value are treated as partial withdrawals from the policy and taxed accordingly. Past-due loan interest that is added to the loan amount is treated as an additional loan.

• Third, a 10% additional penalty tax is imposed on the portion of any distribution (including distributions on surrender) from, or loan taken from or secured by, such a policy that is included in income except where the distribution or loan:

• is made on or after the date on which the policy owner attains age 59½;

• is attributable to the policy owner becoming disabled; or

• is part of a series of substantially equal periodic payments for the life (or life expectancy) of the policy owner or the joint lives (or joint life expectancies) of the policy owner and the policy owner’s beneficiary.

These exceptions to the 10% additional tax do not apply in situations where the policy is not owned by an individual.

Furthermore, any time there is a “material change” in a policy, the policy will begin a new 7-pay testing period as if it were a newly-issued policy. The material change rules for determining whether a policy is a modified endowment contract are complex. In general, however, the determination of whether a policy will be a modified endowment contract after a material change depends upon the relationship among the death benefit of the policy at the time of such change, the policy value at the time of the change, and the additional premiums paid into the policy during the seven years starting with the date on which the material change occurs.

Moreover, under a policy insuring a single life, if there is a reduction in benefits (such as a reduction in the death benefit or the reduction or cancellation of certain rider benefits) during a 7-pay testing period, the 7-pay limit will generally be recalculated based on the reduced benefits and the policy will be re-tested, from the beginning of the 7-pay testing period using the lower limit. If the premiums paid to date at any point during the 7-pay testing period are greater than the recalculated 7-pay limit, the policy will become a modified endowment contract. If your policy is a survivorship policy, a reduction in benefits under the policy at any time will require re-testing. For such a policy the 7-pay limit will generally be recalculated based on the reduced benefits and the policy will be re-tested, using the lower limit, from the date it was issued.

If your policy is issued as a result of an exchange subject to section 1035 of the Internal Revenue Code, it may be considered to be a modified endowment contract if the death benefit under the new policy is smaller than the death benefit

All modified endowment contracts issued by the same insurer (or its affiliates) to the same owner during any calendar year generally are required to be treated as one contract for the purpose of applying the rules on taxation of withdrawals from modified endowment contracts. You should consult your tax adviser if you have questions regarding the possible impact of the 7-pay limit on your policy.

Corporate and H.R. 10 retirement plans

The policy may be acquired in connection with the funding of retirement plans satisfying the qualification requirements of section 401 of the Internal Revenue Code. If so, the Internal Revenue Code provisions relating to such plans and life insurance benefits thereunder should be carefully scrutinized. We are not responsible for compliance with the terms of any such plan or with the requirements of applicable provisions of the Internal Revenue Code.

Withholding

To the extent that policy distributions to you are taxable, they are generally subject to withholding for your Federal income tax liability. However if you reside in the United States, you can generally choose not to have tax withheld from distributions. Electing to have no withholding will not reduce your tax liability and may expose you to penalties under the rules governing payment of estimated taxes.

Life insurance purchases by residents of Puerto Rico

In Rev. Rul. 2004-75, 2004-31 I.R.B. 109, the Internal Revenue Service ruled that income received by residents of Puerto Rico under a life insurance policy issued by a United States company is U.S.-source income that is subject to United States Federal income tax.

Life insurance purchases by non-resident aliens

If you are not a U.S. citizen or resident, you will generally be subject to U.S. Federal withholding tax on taxable distributions from life insurance policies at a 30% rate, unless a lower treaty rate applies. In addition, you may be subject to state and/or municipal taxes and taxes imposed by your country of citizenship or residence. You should consult with a qualified tax adviser before purchasing a policy.

Life insurance owned by citizens or residents living abroad

If you are a U.S. citizen or permanent resident living outside the United States, you are still subject to income taxation by the United States. Since many countries tax on the basis of domicile, you may also be subject to tax in the country or territory in which you are living. The tax-deferred accumulation of gain that a life insurance policy provides under United States tax law may not be available under the tax laws of the country in which you are living. If you are living outside the United States or planning to do so, you should consult with a qualified tax adviser before purchasing or retaining ownership of a policy.

Financial statements reference

The financial statements of John Hancock NY and the Separate Account can be found in the Statement of Additional Information. The financial statements of John Hancock NY should be distinguished from the financial statements of the Separate Account and should be considered only as bearing upon the ability of John Hancock USA to meet its obligations under the policies. Our general account is comprised of securities and other investments, the value of which may decline during periods of adverse market conditions.

Registration statement filed with the SEC

This prospectus omits certain information contained in the Registration Statement which has been filed with the SEC. More details may be obtained from the SEC upon payment of the prescribed fee.

Independent registered public accounting firm

The financial statements of John Hancock Life Insurance Company of New York at December 31, 2013 and 2012, and for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2013, and the financial statements of John Hancock Life Insurance Company of New York Separate Account B at December 31, 2013, and for each of the two years in the period ended December 31, 2013, appearing in the Statement of Additional Information of the Registration Statement have been audited by Ernst &Young LLP, independent registered public accounting firm, as set forth in their reports thereon appearing elsewhere herein, and are included in reliance upon such reports given on the authority of such firm as experts in accounting and auditing.

In addition to this prospectus, John Hancock NY has filed with the SEC a Statement of Additional Information (the “SAI”) which contains additional information about John Hancock NY and the Separate Account, including information on our history, services provided to the Separate Account, legal and regulatory matters and the audited financial statements for John Hancock NY and the Separate Account. The SAI and personalized illustrations of death benefits, policy values and surrender values are available, without charge, upon request. You may obtain the personalized illustrations from your John Hancock NY representative. The SAI may be obtained by contacting the John Hancock NY Service Office. You should also contact the John Hancock NY Service Office to request any other information about your policy or to make any inquiries about its operation.

Information about the Separate Account (including the SAI) can be reviewed and copied at the SEC’s Public Reference Branch, 100 F Street, NE, Room 1580, Washington, DC, 20549. Information on the operation of the Public Reference Room may be obtained by calling the SEC at 202-551-8090. Reports and other information about the Account are available on the SEC’s Internet website at http://www.sec.gov. Copies of such information may be obtained, upon payment of a duplicating fee, by writing the Public Reference Section of the SEC at 100 F Street, NE, Washington, DC 20549-0102.

1940 Act File No. 811-8329  —  1933 Act File No. 333-194819

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Description of the Depositor

Under the Federal securities laws, the entity responsible for organization of the registered separate account underlying the variable life insurance policy is known as the “Depositor.” The Depositor is John Hancock NY, a stock life insurance company organized under the laws of New York in 1992. We are a licensed life insurance company in the state of New York. Until 2004, John Hancock NY had been known as The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company of New York.

John Hancock NY is a wholly-owned subsidiary of John Hancock Life Insurance Company (U.S.A.), a life insurance company domiciled in Michigan. Our ultimate parent is Manulife Financial Corporation (“MFC”), a publicly traded company based in Toronto, Canada. MFC is the holding company of The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company and its subsidiaries, collectively known as Manulife Financial.

Description of the Registrant

Under the Federal securities laws, the registered separate account underlying the variable life insurance policy is known as the “Registrant.” John Hancock Life Insurance Company of New York Separate Account B (the “Registrant” or “Separate Account”), is a separate account established by the Depositor under NY law. The variable investment options shown on page 1 of the prospectus are subaccounts of the Separate Account. The Separate Account meets the definition of “separate account” under the Federal securities laws and is registered as a unit investment trust under the Investment Company Act of 1940 (“1940 Act”). Such registration does not involve supervision by the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) of the management of the Separate Account or of the Depositor.

New subaccounts may be added and made available to policy owners from time to time. Existing subaccounts may be modified or deleted at any time.

Services

Administration of policies issued by the Depositor and of registered separate accounts organized by the Depositor may be provided by other affiliates. Neither the Depositor nor the separate accounts are assessed any charges for such services.

The Depositor, located at 197 Clarendon St., Boston, MA 02116, is the custodian of the assets of the Separate Account. The Depositor has custody of all cash of the Separate Account and handles the collection of proceeds of shares of the underlying funds bought and sold by the Separate Account.

Independent registered public accounting firm

The financial statements of John Hancock Life Insurance Company of New York at December 31, 2013 and 2012, and for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2013, and the financial statements of John Hancock Life Insurance Company of New York Separate Account B at December 31, 2013, and for each of the two years in the period ended December 31, 2013, appearing in the Statement of Additional Information of the Registration Statement have been audited by Ernst &Young LLP, independent registered public accounting firm, as set forth in their reports thereon appearing elsewhere herein, and are included in reliance upon such reports given on the authority of such firm as experts in accounting and auditing.

Legal and Regulatory Matters

There are no legal proceedings to which the Depositor, the Separate Account or the principal underwriter is a party or to which the assets of the Separate Account are subject that are likely to have a material adverse effect on the Separate Account or the ability of the principal underwriter to perform its contract with the Separate Account or of the Depositor to meet its obligations under the policies.

Principal Underwriter/Distributor

John Hancock Distributors LLC (“JH Distributors”), a Delaware limited liability company affiliated with the Depositor, is the principal distributor and underwriter of the securities offered through the prospectus. JH Distributors acts as the principal distributor of a number of other life insurance and annuity products we and our affiliates offer or maintain. JH

JH Distributors’ principal address is 601 Congress Street, Boston, MA 02210, and it also maintains offices with us at 197 Clarendon Street, Boston, MA 02116. JH Distributors is a broker-dealer registered under the Securities Act of 1934 (the “1934 Act”) and is a member of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”).

We offer the policies for sale through individuals who are licensed as insurance agents and who are registered representatives of broker-dealers that have entered into selling agreements with JH Distributors. Our affiliate Signator Investors, Inc. is one such broker-dealer.

The aggregate dollar amount of underwriting commissions paid to JH Distributors by the Depositor and its affiliates in connection with the sale of variable life products in 2013, 2012 and 2011 was $119,574,297, $156,801,522, and $158,741,294 respectively. JH Distributors did not retain any of these amounts during such periods.

The registered representative through whom your policy is sold will be compensated pursuant to the registered representative’s own arrangement with his or her broker-dealer. Compensation to broker-dealers for the promotion and sale of the policies is not paid directly by policy owners but will be recouped through the fees and charges imposed under the policy.

Additional compensation and revenue sharing arrangements may be offered to certain broker-dealer firms and other financial intermediaries. The terms of such arrangements may differ among firms we select based on various factors. In general, the arrangements involve three types of payments or any combination thereof:

• Fixed dollar payments: The amount of these payments varies widely. JH Distributors may, for example, make one or more payments in connection with a firm’s conferences, seminars or training programs, seminars for the public, advertising and sales campaigns regarding the policies, to assist a firm in connection with its systems, operations and marketing expenses, or for other activities of a selling firm or wholesaler. JH Distributors may make these payments upon the initiation of a relationship with a firm, and at any time thereafter.

• Payments based upon sales: These payments are based upon a percentage of the total amount of money received, or anticipated to be received, for sales through a firm of some or all of the insurance products that we and/or our affiliates offer. JH Distributors makes these payments on a periodic basis.

• Payments based upon “assets under management”: These payments are based upon a percentage of the policy value of some or all of our (and/or our affiliates’) insurance products that were sold through the firm. JH Distributors makes these payments on a periodic basis.

Our affiliated broker-dealer, Signator Investors, Inc., may pay its respective registered representatives additional cash incentives, such as bonus payments, expense payments, health and retirement benefits or the waiver of overhead costs or expenses in connection with the sale of the policies that they would not receive in connection with the sale of policies issued by unaffiliated companies.

Additional Information About Charges

A policy will not be issued until the underwriting process has been completed to our satisfaction. The underwriting process generally includes the obtaining of information concerning your age, medical history, occupation and other personal information. This information is then used to determine the cost of insurance charge.

Reduction in Charges

The policy may be available for purchase by corporations and other groups or sponsoring organizations. Group or sponsored arrangements may include reduction or elimination of withdrawal charges and deductions for employees, officers, directors, agents and immediate family members of the foregoing. We reserve the right to reduce any of the policy’s charges on certain cases where it is expected that the amount or nature of such cases will result in savings of sales, underwriting, administrative, commissions or other costs. Eligibility for these reductions and the amount of reductions will be determined by a number of factors, including the number of lives to be insured, the total premiums expected to be paid, total assets under management for the policyowner, the nature of the relationship among the insured individuals, the purpose for which the policies are being purchased, expected persistency of the individual policies, and any other circumstances which we believe to be relevant to the expected reduction of its expenses. Some of these reductions may be guaranteed and others may be subject to withdrawal or modifications, on a uniform case basis. Reductions in charges will not be unfairly discriminatory to any policyowners. We may modify from time to time, on a uniform basis, both the amounts of reductions and the criteria for qualification.

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AUDITED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

John Hancock Life Insurance Company of New York

For the Years Ended December 31, 2013, 2012 and 2011

With Report of Independent Auditors

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JOHN HANCOCK LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY OF NEW YORK

INDEX TO AUDITED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

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Report of Independent Auditors

The Board of Directors

John Hancock Life Insurance Company of New York

We have audited the accompanying financial statements of John Hancock Life Insurance Company of New York, which comprise the balance sheets as of December 31, 2013 and 2012, and the related statements of operations, comprehensive income (loss), changes in shareholder’s equity and cash flows for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2013, and the related notes to the financial statements.

Management’s Responsibility for the Financial Statements

Management is responsible for the preparation and fair presentation of these financial statements in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles; this includes the design, implementation, and maintenance of internal control relevant to the preparation and fair presentation of financial statements that are free of material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error.

Auditor’s Responsibility

Our responsibility is to express an opinion on these financial statements based on our audits. We conducted our audits in accordance with auditing standards generally accepted in the United States. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement.

An audit involves performing procedures to obtain audit evidence about the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. The procedures selected depend on the auditor’s judgment, including the assessment of the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements, whether due to fraud or error. In making those risk assessments, the auditor considers internal control relevant to the entity’s preparation and fair presentation of the financial statements in order to design audit procedures that are appropriate in the circumstances, but not for the purpose of expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of the entity’s internal control. Accordingly, we express no such opinion. An audit also includes evaluating the appropriateness of accounting policies used and the reasonableness of significant accounting estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the financial statements.

We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our audit opinion.

Opinion

In our opinion, the financial statements referred to above present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of John Hancock Life Insurance Company of New York at December 31, 2013 and 2012, and the results of its operations and its cash flows for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2013, in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles.

/s/ Ernst & Young LLP

Boston, Massachusetts

March 27, 2014

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JOHN HANCOCK LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY OF NEW YORK

BALANCE SHEETS

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.

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JOHN HANCOCK LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY OF NEW YORK

BALANCE SHEETS – (CONTINUED)

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.

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JOHN HANCOCK LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY OF NEW YORK

STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.

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JOHN HANCOCK LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY OF NEW YORK

STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME (LOSS)

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.

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JOHN HANCOCK LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY OF NEW YORK

STATEMENTS OF CHANGES IN SHAREHOLDER’S EQUITY