JAL Mileage Bank – The Ultimate Guide for Indians

Introduction

Founded in 1951, Japan Airlines (JAL), is the national carrier of Japan, and a part of the Oneworld alliance. As of March 2023, JAL had a fleet strength of 224 aircraft, which it flies to a total of 33 domestic routes and 66 international routes. JAL has a presence in 64 countries and operates out of 376 airports. Like all major airlines, JAL also has an FFP to reward its loyal customers, JAL Mileage Bank (JMB).

However, until a few months ago, many of us wouldn’t have even cared about JMB. The non-popularity of JMB among Indian credit card (CC) enthusiasts is understandable given that there were no direct transfer partner/earning opportunities other than transferring from Marriott Bonvoy (albeit at a poor ratio) or by flying JAL (or a Oneworld alliance partner).

However, since Axis has onboarded JMB as a transfer partner in April 2023, the excitement among everyone is palpable, and rightly so. What if I told you that you can travel to Japan in business class for just 40,000 miles per person one way (which can easily be earned via Axis Magnus credit card in a span of 2 months) or a round-trip economy ticket per person on the same route for just 35,000 miles. Sounds too good to be true? Thankfully, it’s not. Continue reading our article as we cover all the details on how one can extract maximum value out of this FFP.

Status and Eligibility

JMB has a total of 4 status levels for its frequent fliers: Crystal, Sapphire, JGC Premier, and Diamond, of which Crystal is the lowest and Diamond the highest.

Qualifying Criteria

Here are the qualifying criteria for each of the membership status levels:

Status	Crystal	Sapphire	JGC Premier	Diamond
Qualifying criteria*	Accrued at least 30,000 FLY ON Points (including 15,000 FLY ON Points on JAL Group flights) OR has taken a min. of 30 flights (including at least 15 JAL Group flights) and 10,000 FLY ON Points	Accrued at least 50,000 FLY ON Points (including 25,000 FLY ON Points on JAL Group flights) OR has taken at least 50 flights (including at least 25 JAL Group flights) and 15,000 FLY ON Points	Accrued at least 80,000 FLY ON Points (including 40,000 FLY ON Points on JAL Group flights) OR has taken at least 80 flights (including at least 40 JAL Group flights) and 25,000 FLY ON Points	Accrued at least 100,000 FLY ON Points (including 50,000 FLY ON Points on JAL Group flights) OR has taken at least 120 flights (including at least 60 JAL Group flights) and 35,000 FLY ON Points

Tier Benefits

Here is the list of benefits for different status levels:

Benefits	Crystal	Sapphire	JGC Premier	Diamond
Corresponding Oneworld Alliance status	Oneworld Ruby	Oneworld Sapphire	Oneworld Emerald	Oneworld Emerald
Dedicated reservation desk	For Japan region members only	Check-in through JAL first-class counters	Dedicated Diamond/Premier reservation desk	Dedicated Diamond/Premier reservation desk
Priority waitlist	✓	✓	✓	✓
Advance Front Seat Assignment	Only available on JAL international flights	Available on JAL group flights	Available on JAL group flights	Available on JAL group flights
Bonus miles accumulation rate based on FLY ON membership level	JAL Group flights: 55%; AA* flights: 55%; BA** flights: 25%; Iberia flights: 25%; Malaysia Airlines^: 25%	JAL Group flights: 105%; AA* flights: 105%; BA** flights: 100%; Iberia flights: 50%; Malaysia Airlines^: 35%	JAL Group flights: 105%; AA* flights: 105%; BA** flights: 100%; Iberia flights: 50%; Malaysia Airlines^: 35%	JAL Group flights: 130%; AA* flights: 130%; BA** flights: 100%; Iberia flights: 100%; Malaysia Airlines^: 50%
Priority check-in	Only on JAL International flights through JAL business class check-in counters OR JAL domestic flights when flying business class	Check-in through JAL business class counters	Check-in through JAL first-class counters	Check-in through JAL first class counters
Priority baggage	Only on JAL International flights OR JAL domestic flights when flying business class	✓	Highest priority tag	Highest priority tag
Extra baggage	JAL domestic flight: +10kg; JAL international flight: 1 extra checked bag	JAL domestic flight: +20kg; JAL international flight: 1 extra checked bag	JAL domestic flight: +20kg; JAL international flight: 1 extra checked bag	JAL domestic flight: +20kg; JAL international flight: 1 extra checked bag
Priority standby	✓	✓	✓	✓
Special security gate	❌	❌	At select airports in Japan	At select airports in Japan
Priority security line	❌	❌	At select domestic and international airports	At select domestic and international airports
Priority boarding	✓	✓	✓	✓
Lounge access	Only status holder	Status holder + 1	Status holder + 3	Status holder + 3

Redemption Eligibility

As per JAL’s definition, apart from the JMB member, the JMB member’s spouse (including domestic partner), the JMB member’s relatives within the second degree of kinship, and the spouses of the JMB member’s brothers/sisters-in-law can be issued an award ticket through JMB member account.

All award tickets for relatives can be booked online or via the India reservation desk through this number (1800-102-4135) between 06:30-15:00 hrs. Customer care would be closed on Saturday, Sunday, and during the Chinese New Year holidays.

Award Ticket Cancellation

Below mentioned is the table containing charges for the cancellation of award tickets.

Type of award ticket	Cancellation charges	Deadline for cancellation
Domestic	JPY1,000	20 minutes prior to the departure of the first flight sector on your booked itinerary
International	JPY 3,100	Should be cancelled until 23:59 hrs (departure city time) on the day prior to the commencement of travel.
Upgrade awards	NA	Cannot be cancelled

Expiry and Cool-off Period

JMB Miles are valid until the last day of the 36th month from the day they were earned/transferred. For ex., any miles earned/transferred on 1st July 2023, will remain valid until 31st July 2026 i.e., 3 years later. There’s no provision in JMB to extend miles validity by way of earning/transferring points.

A JMB member account should be at least 60 days old to redeem an award ticket.

Earning Miles

As a JMB member, you can earn miles from flights, hotel stays, etc., with the main activity being flying with JAL or with Oneworld alliance partners.

Flying within JAL Group

Flight mileage will be automatically credited to your JMB account when you travel on eligible flights based on the sector mileage specified for the sector(s) traveled and on the accumulation rate for the fare of the purchased ticket.

Sector mileage = mileage based on IATA (International Air Transport Association) Ticketed Point Mileage. One can find sector mileage for JAL group domestic and international flights here.

Accumulation rates = vary on the type of class flown. Below mentioned are different accumulation rates for a number of scenarios:

International flights on JAL:

Domestic flights with JAL group:

For example, if you’re flying from Delhi to Tokyo on JAL in economy class (wherein, the fare type is classified as either Y or B), then one will be eligible to earn a total of 3,656 miles (wherein, 3,656 – is the sector mileage as shown in the image below *100% – which is the accumulation rate for this specific fare type). You can calculate your mileage through the calculator provided by JAL here.

FLY ON Points and How to Earn Them

You must’ve noticed that for earning status with JMB, one has to earn FLY ON points. For every eligible flight you take, you’ll be awarded FLY ON Points in addition to flight miles. Based on the FLY ON Points collected or the number of qualifying flights taken during the previous calendar year, you will receive FLY ON membership status and the corresponding services and benefits for your tier of membership.

The number of FLY ON points is calculated below:

Here, Flight mileage = as per the same calculation shown for earning flight miles

FLY ON point conversion rate = For domestic flights within Japan × 2; JAL flights connecting Japan with Asia, Oceania or Vladivostok × 1.5; and all other international flights: × 1

Bonus FLY ON points as per the table below:

JAL group domestic flights:

JAL international flights:

Continuing with the above example where one had earned 3,656 miles while flying from Delhi to Tokyo on JAL in economy class, one will be eligible to earn 5,884 FLY ON points (3,656 – flight mileage * 1.5 – for JAL flights that connect Asia to Japan + 400 bonus points for applicable booking class i.e. Y or B).

Please note: FLY ON points can only be earned when flying with JAL group or Oneworld alliance partners.

Flying with Partner Airlines

As JAL is a part of the Oneworld alliance, one can earn miles on all eligible fares for flights taken with partner airlines. JAL has also partnered with airlines outside of the Oneworld alliance such as Vistara, China Eastern Airlines, Korean Air, etc. The number of miles earned on these flights would be calculated in the same way as that of JAL group flights, with the major difference being the accumulation rate, which is different for each partner airline. You can find the accumulation rate for each partner airline according to the fare class here.

Hotel Stays

One can also earn JMB miles by staying at partner/participating hotels or booking through Kalingo.com. You can find a list of all the eligible hotels here

Transfer Partners

Flying with JAL or partner airlines is an effective way to earn miles, however, a majority of us end up flying either only 1 to 2 times a year for a holiday trip, and accumulating miles just by flying for such a short span is certainly not enough for that dream redemption. Now here’s where credit card and transfer partners come into play. Many credit cards and hotel programs allow the transfer of points into air miles at a pre-determined ratio. Let’s look at all the credit cards in India and the various hotel programs which allow transfer of points to JMB:

Transfer partner	Ratio
Axis HNI cards (Reserve, Burgundy Private, and Magnus)	5 Edge reward points: 4 JMB miles
Axis Atlas	1 Edge Mile: 2 JMB miles
Axis Select & Privilege credit card	10 Edge reward points: 2 JMB miles
All other Axis Edge Reward points eligible cards	20 Edge reward points: 1 JMB miles
HDFC Diners Black and Infinia*	1 point: 0.5 JMB mile
ALL Accor points	1 point: 0.5 JMB mile
Marriot Bonvoy (MB)	3 points: 1 JMB mile**
IHG One Rewards	10000 points: 2,000 JMB miles
Hyatt	5,000 points: 2,000 JMB miles

To find the review of all the best credit cards in India to earn air miles, you can refer to our article here.

Redeeming Miles and Award Bookings

Now that we’ve looked at the different status levels, how to earn miles, etc. let’s move to the fun part i.e. scoring that dream redemption. Unlike United MileagePlus, Flying Blue, etc. which have now moved towards a dynamic award chart, JMB still employs a fixed mileage award chart for traveling on its own metal and a distance-based award chart for partner airlines.

JMB categorizes its awards into 4 categories:

JAL Domestic Award Tickets

The fixed mileage award chart is divided into seven zones, from A (short-haul) to G (long-haul), depending on the distance between the departure and arrival locations. The mileage varies from 4,000 miles (per person one way) for the shortest route (zone A) to 10,000 miles (zone G) for the longest route.

Zone	Routes	Mileage
A	Sapporo – Hakodate, Okushiri; Hakodate-Okushiri; Osaka-Tajima, Kochi; Izumo-Oki; Fukuoka-Matsuyama, Tsushima, Goto Fukue, Amakusa, Miyazaki, Kagoshima; Nagasaki-Tsushima, Iki, Goto Fukue; Kumamoto-Amakusa; Kagoshima-Tanegashima, Yakushima; Amamioshima-Kikaijima, Tokunoshima, Yoron; Tokunoshima-Okinoerabu; Okinawa (Naha)-Okinoerabu, Yoron, Kumejima; Ishigaki-Miyako, Yonaguni; Miyako-Tarama; Minamidaito-Kitadaito	4,000 (Economy); 5,000 (Business)
B	Sapporo-Rishiri, Memanbetsu, Kushiro, Aomori, Misawa; Tokyo-Sendai, Yamagata, Niigata, Nagoya; Osaka-Matsumoto, Oki, Izumo, Matsuyama; Matsuyama-Kagoshima; Fukuoka-Izumo, Kochi; Okinawa (Naha)-Amamioshima, Miyako	5,000 (Economy); 6,000 (Business)
C	Sapporo-Akita, Hanamaki; Tokyo-Akita, Hanamaki, Komatsu, Osaka; Nagoya-Niigata, Izumo, Kochi; Osaka-Fukuoka, Oita, Kumamoto, Miyazaki; Fukuoka-Tokushima, Yakushima; Kagoshima-Kikaijima, Amamioshima, Tokunoshima; Okinawa (Naha)- Ishigaki, Kitadaito, Minamidaito	6,000 (Economy); 7,000 (Business); 12,500 (First; only on Tokyo-Osaka route)
D	Sapporo-Akita, Hanamaki; Tokyo-Akita, Hanamaki, Komatsu, Osaka; Nagoya-Niigata, Izumo, Kochi; Osaka-Fukuoka, Oita, Kumamoto, Miyazaki; Fukuoka-Tokushima, Yakushima; Kagoshima-Kikaijima, Amamioshima, Tokunoshima; Okinawa (Naha)- Ishigaki, Kitadaito, Minamidaito	7,000 (Economy); 8,500 (Business); 15,000 (First; only on Tokyo-Hiroshima route)
E	Sapporo-Akita, Hanamaki; Tokyo-Akita, Hanamaki, Komatsu, Osaka; Nagoya-Niigata, Izumo, Kochi; Osaka-Fukuoka, Oita, Kumamoto, Miyazaki; Fukuoka-Tokushima, Yakushima; Kagoshima-Kikaijima, Amamioshima, Tokunoshima; Okinawa (Naha)- Ishigaki, Kitadaito, Minamidaito	8,000 (Economy); 9,500 (Business); 16,000 (First; only on Tokyo-Sapporo, Fukuoka, Kagoshima; and Osaka-Okinawa (Naha) routes)
F	Sapporo-Akita, Hanamaki; Tokyo-Akita, Hanamaki, Komatsu, Osaka; Nagoya-Niigata, Izumo, Kochi; Osaka-Fukuoka, Oita, Kumamoto, Miyazaki; Fukuoka-Tokushima, Yakushima; Kagoshima-Kikaijima, Amamioshima, Tokunoshima; Okinawa (Naha)- Ishigaki, Kitadaito, Minamidaito	9,000 (Economy); 11,000 (Business); 18,000 (First; only on Tokyo-Okinawa (Naha) route)
G	Sapporo- Hiroshima; Tokyo- Amamioshima, Okinawa (Naha); Nagoya- Okinawa (Naha); Osaka- Memanbetsu, Miyako, Ishigaki; Fukuoka- Sapporo; Okinawa (Naha)- Komatsu	10,000 (Economy); 13,000 (Business); 20,000 (First; only on the Tokyo-Ishigaki route)

JAL International Award Tickets

JAL International Award Tickets allow you to redeem your miles for travel on JAL international flights. Awards can be redeemed starting at 7,500 miles for one-way travel and 15,000 miles for round-trip travel. JAL has divided mileage based on regions for its award chart which is summarized in various tables below:

East Asia: To/from Japan (one way per person)

Route / Mileage	Economy	Premium Economy	Business	First
Seoul	7,500	NA	18,000	30,000
Bejing, Dalian, Guangzhou, Hongkong, Shanghai, Tianjin, Taipei	10,000*	15,000**	24,000	36,000

Southeast Asia/ South Asia: To/from Japan (one way per person)

Route / Mileage	Economy	Premium Economy	Business	First
Bangkok (to/from Tokyo)	13,500*	25,000	40,000	50,000
Bangkok (to/from Osaka)	12,500	25,000	40,000	50,000
Bengaluru, Delhi	17,500	25,000	40,000	NA
Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh	13,000	25,000	40,000	50,000
Jakarta	15,500	25,000	40,000	50,000
Kuala Lumpur	14,500	25,000	40,000	50,000
Manila	10,000	15,000	24,000	36,000
Singapore	12,000	25,000	40,000	50,000

Oceania: To/from Japan (one way per person)

Route / Mileage	Economy	Premium Economy	Business	First
Melbourne	20,000	25,000	40,000	50,000
Sydney	18,000	25,000	40,000	50,000

Europe/Russia: To/from Japan (one way per person)

Route / Mileage	Economy	Premium Economy	Business	First
Frankfurt	23,000	35,000	55,000	80,000
Helsinki	23,500	35,000	55,000	80,000
London	22,500*	35,000	55,000	80,000
Moscow	17,500	25,000	40,000	50,000
Vladivostok	9,000	15,000	20,000	NA
Paris	26,000	35,000	55,000	80,000

Hawaii: To/from Japan (one way per person)

Route / Mileage	Economy	Premium Economy	Business	First
Honolulu/ Kona	20,000	30,000	40,000	50,000

North America: To/from Japan (one way per person)

Route / Mileage	Economy	Premium Economy	Business	First
Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, New York, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, Vancouver	25,000	32,500	50,000	70,000

JMB Partner Award Chart

JMB is a part of Oneworld alliance and has partnership with other airlines, which include Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Finnair, Iberia, Malaysian Airlines, Qantas, Qatar Airways, Royal Air Maroc, Royal Jordanian, S7 Airlines, SriLankan Airlines, Air France, Bangkok Airways, China Eastern Airlines, Emirates, Hawaiian Airlines, Korean Air, LATAM Airlines, and Vistara.

JMB has 4 distance-based award chart which has different mileage requirements depending on the region to which the member belongs. For ex. if the person is residing in India, in which case, we would need to select the “Asia & Oceania Region”. The different regions specified by JMB are in the image below.

Hence, for our specific purpose, we’ve used the award chart for Asia region, which is summarized below:

Total Distance (in miles)	Economy	Premium Economy	Business	First
1 -1,000	12,000	17,000	24,000	36,000
1,001 – 2,000	15,000	21,000	30,000	45,000
2,001 – 4,000	23,000	30,000	42,000	65,000
4,001 – 6,000	37,000	46,000	60,000	90,000
6,001 – 8,000	45,000	59,000	80,000	120,000
8,001 – 10,000	47,000	62,000	85,000	135,000
10,001 – 12,000	50,000	70,000	100,000	145,000
12,001 – 14,000	55,000	77,000	110,000	165,000
14,001 – 20,000	70,000	94,000	130,000	190,000
20,001 – 25,000	90,000	112,000	145,000	220,000
25,001 – 29,000	110,000	135,000	160,000	250,000
29,001 – 34,000	130,000	160,000	190,000	290,000
34,001 – 50,000	150,000	180,000	210,000	330,000

Oneworld Award Chart

While the above partner chart is used for calculating mileage for a single partner, however, if someone is planning that elusive world trip or a multi-city itinerary, JMB has a Oneworld distance-based mileage chart, which allows us to book a multi-city multi-carrier award ticket involving 2 or more Oneworld partners.

Total Distance (in miles)	Economy	Business	First
1 – 4,000	25,000	48,000	72,000
4,001 – 8,000	40,000	80,000	100,000
8,001 – 10,000	50,000	85,000	110,000
10,001 – 12,000	60,000	110,000	160,000
12,001 – 14,000	70,000	115,000	165,000
14,001 – 20,000	90,000	120,000	170,000
20,001 – 25,000	120,000	150,000	230,000
25,001 – 29,000	140,000	190,000	280,000
29,001 – 34,000	150,000	200,000	300,000
34,001 – 50,000	160,000	220,000	330,000

Best use cases

Now that we know the mileage requirement across various sectors and partner airlines, let’s take the JMB award chart for a spin and see the best use cases. Please note that all the fares mentioned in the below itineraries are for one person one-way trip unless mentioned otherwise.

India (Bengaluru/Delhi) to Japan (any international airports) for 17.5k miles (plus ~Rs.15k in taxes) for an economy ticket

This is one of the best use cases of JMB, in our view. JAL has the lowest requirement in miles for the India-Japan route. The next best alternative is to book a JAL flight with Alaska (25k miles) or American Advantage (AA) (22.5k miles). However, both of these programs don’t have any direct credit card transfer partners in India.

A special mention here to Alaska FFP, wherein, one can book a one-stop Cathay Pacific flight to Japan for just 12.5k miles in economy. However, the availability is few and far between.

We were able to see as many as 6 seats available on a particular date and wide open throughout all of the months. One can use the seat availability calendar provided by JAL to see availability across the entire year.

For those who think the tax component is high for an economy ticket, the 2nd sweet spot is just for you!

India (Bengaluru/Delhi) to Japan for 40k miles (plus ~Rs.16k in taxes) for a business-class ticket

This is the cheapest mileage requirement across any of the FFPs for a ticket between India and Japan. Although taxes might look a bit high, in comparison to the revenue rate of ~Rs. 1.3 lacs for either an ANA or JAL for a direct flight from Delhi/Bangalore, the tax amount looks reasonable. Plus, there is wide open availability across the entire year.

The next best alternative is to book ANA via United MileagePlus at 60.5k miles per person one way or JAL via Alaska at 50k miles.

Notable mention of Alaska here as well, where one can get a business class ticket for 22.5k miles on Cathay Pacific. However, finding availability will be like a needle in a haystack.

Domestic flights within Japan (4,000-10,000 miles + ~Rs.500 in taxes) for a economy ticket

Domestic flights within Japan vary between 4,000-10,000 miles per person one way. Popular routes such as Tokyo-Osaka (6,000 miles), Tokyo-Hiroshima (7,000 miles), etc. have wide open availability across the entire year. We even saw the availability of 6 seats in economy on certain dates.

Now that the prices of JR Pass have increased by up to ~77%, the option of flying between cities becomes a no-brainer. One can even choose a business class seat which costs ~1,000-3,000 miles more depending on the route. However, don’t expect a Vistara-level business class seat or service. One will only get drinks service in JAL domestic business class.

The other excellent option is to use United MileagePlus to book ANA flights. All domestic routes within Japan will cost 5.5k miles + ~$3 in taxes. However, before booking on United, we request users to check on either ANA/ Singapore Airlines/ LifeMiles for phantom availability before transferring their hard-earned miles.

Fly cheap on some of Vistara’s International Routes:

Some popular routes such as Delhi to Frankfurt will cost 23k miles in economy, 30k miles in premium economy, and 42k miles in business vs m iggt30k, 55k, and 1.2lac miles respectively on Vistara’s own award chart. Taxes are also low as Vistara doesn’t pass on fuel surcharges.

Other routes include Delhi to Paris, which will cost 46k and 60k miles in premium economy and business class respectively on JAL vis a vis 55k and 1.2Lac miles on Vistara’s own award chart.

One easy and straightforward way to find availability is to call the Vistara helpline number. Singapore Air and United also show Vistara award availability, however, some of them may be phantom award space.

• India to Kenya via Qatar Airways:

Enjoy your Masai Mara safari adventure in style by flying Qatar Airlines for 23k miles in economy and 42k miles in business class (plus ~Rs.5k in taxes). One can book the same itinerary using American AAdvantage miles or Alaska, however, the requirement is higher, as well as there is no direct transfer partner.

Round the world trip through Oneworld partners

Just like everyone used to rave about Cathay Pacific’s award chart for multi-carrier multi-city itineraries, JMB’s Oneworld chart is equally impressive, if not better.

One can plan that elusive world trip on some of the excellent business class/ first class products offered by Cathay Pacific, Japan Airlines, Alaska, and Qatar Airways.

Here’s an example of a round-trip that one can do using JMB. Here we take Cathay Pacific from Mumbai to Hong Kong and then Hong Kong to Tokyo, JAL from Tokyo to New York, Alaska from New York to San Francisco, Qatar from San Francisco to Doha, and Doha to Mumbai. The total trip distance is ~24,000 miles, which means one will need only 150,000 JMB miles to book this itinerary, which is an absolute steal.

However, there are a few rules which one must comply with for building such kind of an itinerary:

• For each award, a maximum of 8 flight sectors excluding surface sectors will be permitted in the whole itinerary. In the above example, we would be flying 7 sectors. A surface sector is when you travel independently between two flight points en route to your final destination. For example. If one flies from Mumbai to Bangkok (as a part of his round-the-world trip), and his next flight is from Singapore, the sector from Bangkok-Singapore will be called as a surface sector.
• For each award, a maximum of 7 stopovers (a stay more than 24 hours or surface sector) are permitted in the whole itinerary.
• “One city” can be included 3 times at maximum for the whole itinerary. Stopovers at “one city” are permitted once in the whole itinerary.
• A surface sector is counted to be “one stopover” regardless of the sojourn time.
• The distance of a surface sector will not be included in the total trip distance (miles).
• One-way trips are permitted.
• “Point of origin” and “Final returning point” may be different and those cities may be located in different countries.
• Itineraries cannot back-track to the point of origin in order to continue onwards to a final destination. For ex., one cannot come back from Hong Kong to Mumbai and then fly to Tokyo as a part of the round-trip. The same example can be used for the next condition.
• Itineraries cannot backtrack to the country of origin in order to continue onwards to a third country.

Tips and final thoughts

• One needs to go to https://www.jal.co.jp/jp/en/jmb/ to login into their JMB account and redeem rewards. This might seem silly, however, once you go to JAL’s website, you will find yourself lost rather easily.
• American Airlines and Alaska would be a great starting point to search award availability for Oneworld partners given that they have an option to see calendar view. One can then search on JAL for specific dates.
• Note down your JMB number as you’ll need it every time to login on JAL’s website. JAL doesn’t send you an email stating the membership number in your registration email, hence, if you don’t remember your registration number, the only way to retrieve is to call the customer care.
• Transfer time to JMB from Axis (which is a direct transfer partner) takes at least 7-14 days, in our experience. Hence, one needs to plan well in advance to book award tickets since there’s a chance that the space disappears by the time miles hit your account.
• Use JMB’s calendar view option to search award tickets on JAL’s own metal. This makes it easier to search award space across the entire year.
• Taxes and surcharges are low for airlines which don’t pass them to partners. For ex., Vistara, Qatar, Sri Lankan, etc.

All in all, JAL Mileage Bank is a great addition to the various FFPs which serve as a transfer partner to Indian credit card holders. The program can be peculiar, difficult to navigate, and irritating at times, however, the rewards can be magnificent.