Sakamoto, Junichi2023-05-232023-05-232010-09-012019-08-06https://repository.upenn.edu/handle/20.500.14332/43622In Japan, annuities are not currently very popular as a means to finance retirement, since many people rely on government social security benefits in old age. When annuities are sold, they tend not to be life payouts but rather term-certain products. In this sense, the annuity puzzle also applies to Japan. We discuss possible reasons for the unpopularity of annuity products, including costs and inequitable taxation that hinders people from buying them.Opinions and conclusions are solely those of the author(s) and do not reflect views of the institutions supporting the research, with whom the authors are affiliated, or the Pension Research Council. Copyright 2010 © Pension Research Council of the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. All rights reserved.EconomicsWorking Paper