What is Long-Term Care Insurance
“Long-term care” means helping people who are old or sick and have difficulty eating, going to the toilet, or taking a bath.
Long-term care insurance is a system to help people who need long-term care.
[Long-Term Care Insurance enrollment]
Those who are the age of 40 or older are enrolled in the long-term care insurance.
Those foreigners who are the age of 40 or older and have been in Japan for more than 3 months enroll in the long-term care insurance, too.
Those who are enrolled in the long-term care insurance pay insurance premiums and can receive long-term care services when they need it.
There is no enrollment procedure. Those who turn 40 years old automatically enroll in the long-term care insurance.
The leaflet explaining the long-term care insurance in Japan in foreign languages (10 languages) are available at the following website:
Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare: Long-term Care Insurance in Japan (Japanese)
[How to pay for Long-term Care Insurance premiums]
- Those who are the age of 40 to 64 and enrolled in a health insurance:
The long-term care insurance premiums are paid together with the health insurance premiums.
- Those who are the age of 65 or older:
The long-term care insurance premiums will be subtracted from his/her pension benefits.
[Long-term care services]
The following individuals are eligible for long-term care services:
- Those who are the age of 65 or older and need help with daily living.
- Those who are the age of 40 to 64 and need help with daily life due to illnesses caused by aging.
If you think you need a long-term care, apply for a “certification of need for long-term care” at your local municipal office and have them check whether your condition is required a long-term care.
If your long-term care need is recognized, ask a specialist to prepare a “care plan” (a document that describes what kind of long-term care services you will use) and use the necessary long-term care services.
You will pay 10% of the service fee. Those who receive high pension benefit, etc. may pay 20% or 30%.
