Résumé en anglais

In April 2000, a new public long-term care insurance (LTCI) system was launched in Japan. By replacing a social welfare-nature program by a mandatory public insurance, the Japanese governe- ment aimed to provide \equal services for equal needs". Now that LTCI has been in place for more than 10 years, it is legitimate to examine whether its access is garanteed to all. Using the third wave of Japanese Study of Aging and Retirement (JSTAR) conducted in 2011, this article analyses potential reasons of non-use of LTCI. The study highlights two reasons of non-use : cultural norms and low income. The results show that i) the presence of coliving daughters-in-law and daughters living in the same town reduces the probability of applying for LTCI certi cation and ii) elderly who have low income are less likely to take the steps in order to bene ts from LTCI.