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JAL Mileage Bank vs ANA Mileage Club — accrual, redemption, partner network, status tier, deferred-revenue accounting

Confidence: Likely Updated 2026-05-25 Review by 2026-11-25 Sources 10 Machine-translated Original (JA)
#loyalty#mileage#ffp#JAL#ANA#JMB
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This entry sits under loyalty index as the frequent-flyer-program (FFP) comparison page for the two anchor Japanese airline loyalty programs. Pair it with Japan points landscape for the cross-loyalty-ecosystem context, point liability accounting boundary for the IFRS-15 contract-liability treatment that materially differs from common-point programs, Ponta points deep dive for the JAL Mileage Bank ↔ Pontaポイント bilateral-exchange relationship, d Point detailed ecosystem and V Point case for the common-point peers that interconvert with airline miles, JAL Card and JAL Payment Port for the JAL-side card-issuance and payment-infrastructure stack, and Japan code-payment operator 2025 market share matrix for the wallet-adjacent context.

TL;DR

JAL Mileage Bank (JMB) and ANA Mileage Club (AMC) are the two dominant Japanese airline frequent-flyer programs. Both are mileage-based deferred-revenue loyalty programs under IFRS 15 / ASBJ Statement No.29 (contract liability under “material right” framework), and both are structurally distinct from common-point programs (dポイント, Pontaポイント, V Point, PayPay Points, Rakuten Points) in three respects: ① mile-denominated currency with redemption primarily against airline-seat inventory (not retail purchase value); ② status-tier dynamics based on flown-revenue-mile (FOP / PP) thresholds that determine lounge access, upgrade priority, and service tier; ③ alliance interoperability (JAL → oneworld, ANA → Star Alliance) that opens cross-airline mileage accrual and redemption. The accrual side of both programs has materially expanded into non-flight earning via co-branded credit cards (JAL Card, ANA Card series), partner-merchant scan campaigns, and bilateral exchange with common-point programs. The accounting treatment of mileage liability differs materially from cash-equivalent points — under IFRS 15, the airline allocates a portion of ticket revenue to the granted miles using standalone selling prices of the redemption seat / award, then releases revenue as miles are redeemed or recognised as breakage. This produces large, persistent contract-liability balances on airline balance sheets (typically multi-hundred-billion-yen scale for both JAL and ANA combined).

Program scale and identity layer

ItemJAL Mileage Bank (JMB)ANA Mileage Club (AMC)
Operator[[card-issuers/jal-card日本航空 (JAL) ]]
Allianceoneworld (founding member)Star Alliance (founding member)
Mileage validity36 months from accrual month (legacy default)36 months from accrual month
Status-tier metricFLY ON POINT (FOP) based on flown revenue milesPREMIUM POINT (PP) based on flown revenue miles
Member base (Japan + global)Tens of millions of accounts (combined JMB + JGC)Tens of millions of accounts (combined AMC + SFC)
Lifetime-status equivalentJAL Global Club (JGC) — perpetual recognition tier obtained by meeting FOP threshold once and holding a JGC-eligible JAL CardSuper Flyers Club (SFC) — same model, perpetual recognition by meeting PP threshold once and holding an SFC-eligible ANA Card
Premium status tierJMB Diamond (top-tier annual qualifier; FOP threshold)AMC Diamond (top-tier annual qualifier; PP threshold)
Anchor co-branded card issuer[[card-issuers/jal-cardJAL Card]] (株式会社JALカード, JAL 100% subsidiary)
Mileage program operatorJAL internal (no separate operating company)ANA internal (no separate operating company)

The JGC / SFC perpetual-status mechanism is a Japanese FFP-specific feature: once a member meets the FOP / PP threshold in a single calendar year, they can apply for a JAL Global Club or Super Flyers Club credit card (the “lifetime ticket” pattern), and as long as they continue to hold that card and pay the annual fee, they retain a service tier (Sapphire / Gold equivalent) regardless of subsequent-year flight activity. This creates a structurally large “former-flyer” status-holder base that does not exist in the same scale at non-Japanese FFPs.

Flight accrual

Cabin / fareJMB accrual rateAMC accrual rate
First / J-class / Business (paid premium fare)100-150% of distance flown100-150% of distance flown
Economy (paid published fare)70-100% of distance flown70-100% of distance flown
Discount economy30-70% of distance flown30-70% of distance flown
Award ticket0%0%
Partner-airline flight (oneworld / Star Alliance)Variable per partner, fare-bucket-dependentVariable per partner, fare-bucket-dependent

Both programs publish detailed fare-class-to-accrual-rate tables; the structural pattern is similar (higher fare bucket = higher accrual %), with bonuses for status holders.

Non-flight accrual

The materially larger volume of mile-issuance now comes from non-flight sources, primarily co-branded credit cards and partner exchanges:

Non-flight sourceJMBAMC
Co-branded card[[card-issuers/jal-cardJAL Card]] (JCB / VISA / Master / AmEx / Diners, all 5 international brands)
Card spend accrualStandard 0.5-1% mile/¥ depending on card tier; “ショッピングマイル・プレミアム” optional ¥3,300/yr add-on doubles to 1%Standard 0.5-1% mile/¥; “10マイルコース” optional fee structure doubles accrual
Premium card tierJAL Card CLUB-A ゴールド, JAL Card プラチナ, JAL アメリカン・エキスプレス・カード CLUB-A ゴールドANA ワイドゴールドカード, ANA カード プレミアム, ANA アメリカン・エキスプレス・プレミアム・カード
Common-point bilateral exchangePontaポイント ↔ JMB (2 Pontaポイント → 1 mile, conversion ratio for Pontaポイント-to-mile direction; see [[loyalty/ponta-points-deep-divePonta points deep dive]]); dポイント ↔ JMB (similar bilateral); historically other partners
Mall-shopping portal”JAL ショッピングマイル・プログラム” + “JAL Mall""ANA Mall” + “ANAマイレージモール”
Hotel partner accrualJAL ABC, JAL ホテル, partner global hotel chains (oneworld + non-alliance hotel partners)ANA インターコンチネンタル, ANA Crowne Plaza, partner global hotel chains
OtherCar rental, restaurant, leisure partner programsCar rental, restaurant, leisure partner programs

The deepest structural difference is on the common-point bilateral exchange side: JAL Mileage Bank has a particularly strong relationship with Pontaポイント (Loyalty Marketing-operated, Mitsubishi-affiliated), reinforced by JAL’s status as a Pontaポイント alliance member. ANA Mileage Club has a stronger relationship with Rakuten Points and historically Tポイント, reflecting different commercial partner negotiations. Under the 2024 Lawson + Mitsubishi take-private, the JAL ↔ Pontaポイント ↔ Lawson cross-ecosystem becomes a more coherent triangle.

Mileage redemption — seat inventory dominant

The dominant redemption mode for both programs is award airline tickets against carrier-controlled award-seat inventory:

Award typeJMB patternAMC pattern
Domestic round-trip award~12,000-20,000 miles depending on season / route~12,000-21,000 miles depending on season / route
International economy award (Asia)~30,000-50,000 miles depending on season / route~30,000-50,000 miles depending on season / route
International economy award (Trans-Pacific)~50,000-80,000 miles~50,000-90,000 miles
International business award (Trans-Pacific)~80,000-150,000 miles~85,000-165,000 miles
Upgrade awardAvailable; mile cost variesAvailable; mile cost varies
Partner-airline award (alliance)oneworld partners (BA, AA, QF, CX, JL, IB, etc.)Star Alliance partners (UA, LH, SQ, AC, NH, OZ, etc.)
Non-flight redemptionLimited (electronic money / partner products)Limited (electronic money / partner products)
Convert mile → e-moneyJAL ペイ (JAL Pay; conversion of miles into JAL Pay balance, paid back via ePay)ANA Pay (conversion of miles into ANA Pay balance)

The redemption-economics rule of thumb is 2-3¥ per mile equivalent value for international premium-cabin redemption (typical “sweet spot” for both programs), vs ~1¥/mile for low-season domestic economy. This is materially higher than common-point redemption value (~1¥/point), which is the economic justification for accumulating miles rather than converting to common points or cash.

The mile → e-money conversion route (JAL Pay, ANA Pay) provides a cash-like exit but typically at a less-favorable conversion ratio than premium-cabin award redemption — economically, it functions as a “soft floor” rather than a primary redemption target.

Status-tier dynamics — FOP / PP and JGC / SFC

Status tierJMB (FOP threshold)AMC (PP threshold)Service tier equivalent
Top (Diamond / Premier)JMB Diamond (~100,000 FOP)AMC Diamond (~100,000 PP)First-class lounge, top-priority everything
Premium (Sapphire)JMB Sapphire (~50,000 FOP)AMC Platinum (~50,000 PP)Business-class lounge, oneworld Sapphire / Star Gold
Crystal / BronzeJMB Crystal (~30,000 FOP)AMC Bronze (~30,000 PP)Ruby / Silver equivalent
Lifetime-perpetual via cardJGC (JAL Global Club) — card-anchored Sapphire-equivalent recognitionSFC (Super Flyers Club) — card-anchored Platinum-equivalent recognitionPerpetual once card-anchored

Both programs reset annually (calendar year basis), but the JGC / SFC perpetual-status mechanism is the most important Japan-specific feature. The economic implication is that JGC / SFC card-holders represent a long-tail of perpetual-loyalty members whose deferred-mileage liability persists even when they fly less, and whose card-spend produces a steady mile-issuance flow that the airline must accrue against contract liability.

Deferred-revenue accounting — IFRS 15 contract liability

Both JAL and ANA report under IFRS / J-GAAP-aligned standards, and treat unredeemed mileage as contract liability (deferred revenue) under the IFRS 15 “material right” framework:

EventAccounting treatment
Customer purchases ticket that earns milesAllocate transaction price between the ticket-service obligation and the mileage-grant obligation, using standalone selling prices (SSPs); recognise ticket-service portion as revenue at flight completion; recognise mileage portion as contract liability
Customer purchases ticket-related ancillary that earns miles (e.g., paid seat upgrade)Same treatment — split transaction price by SSP
Customer earns miles from co-branded card spend or partner-merchant accrualThe mile-issuer (JAL / ANA) receives cash from the card-issuer or partner for the miles purchased; recognise as contract liability at the cash-received amount
Customer redeems miles for award ticketRelease the corresponding contract liability into recognised revenue at the date of redemption (or flight, depending on the carrier’s recognition policy)
Mileage expires unredeemedRelease the contract liability based on the breakage assumption (typically estimated via historical redemption-pattern statistical model); breakage is recognised in proportion to actual redemption pattern under IFRS 15

The contract-liability balance for both JAL and ANA is in the multi-hundred-billion-yen scale based on public IR disclosures (the exact balance varies year-to-year and is disclosed in the consolidated balance sheet’s “other liabilities” / “contract liabilities” line). The breakage assumption is reviewed annually, and JAL’s COVID-period and post-COVID disclosures show how pandemic-era recognition policies (mile-validity extensions, special breakage assumptions) materially affected reported revenue.

The contrast with D Point Detailed Ecosystem is that NTT docomo’s contract-liability disclosure combines dポイント with telecom-revenue deferred amounts, while JAL and ANA disclose mileage liability in clearly identifiable contract-liability line items (because mileage is the dominant non-flight deferred-revenue obligation for an airline). The broader framework is documented in point liability accounting boundary.

Partner-network depth — beyond alliance

The oneworld vs Star Alliance allocation determines the cross-airline accrual / redemption surface, but both programs have built materially broader partner networks beyond their alliance:

Partner categoryJMB depthAMC depth
Alliance carriersoneworld (BA, AA, QF, CX, IB, MH, S7, etc.)Star Alliance (UA, LH, SQ, AC, OZ, EVA, TG, etc.)
Codeshare-only partner airlines (non-alliance)Emirates (codeshare), various regionalTUI, etc.
HotelJAL hotel chains + partner chains (Hilton, IHG, Marriott via mile conversion)InterContinental Hotels Group, Hilton, Marriott
Car rentalHertz, Avis, etc.Hertz, Avis, etc.
Common-point bilateral exchangePontaポイント (anchor), dポイント, othersRakuten Points (anchor), Tポイント (legacy), others
Co-branded card[[card-issuers/jal-cardJAL Card]] (5 international brands)
Department store / e-moneyJR-East ViewCard (limited), various retailau PAY (limited), various retail
Charity donationJMB charity programsAMC charity programs

Competitive positioning

FFPAnchor airlineAllianceMember scaleAnchor common-point partnerCo-branded card
JMBJALoneworldTens of millionsPontaポイント[[card-issuers/jal-card
AMCANAStar AllianceTens of millionsRakuten Points (anchor), historic TポイントANA Card
Skywards (Emirates)EmiratesNone (independent)GlobalNone JapanEK Emirates
MileagePlus (UA)UnitedStar AllianceGlobalNone JapanUA partner cards
AAdvantage (American)AAoneworldGlobalNone JapanAA partner cards
BAEC (BA)BAoneworldGlobalNone JapanBA partner cards

The structural strength of JMB and AMC vs non-Japanese FFPs is the Japanese common-point bilateral-exchange network that doesn’t exist in foreign markets at the same scale. Pontaポイント and Rakuten Points materially expand the non-flight earning footprint for Japanese-resident members.

Sources