Bilt Adds Japan Airlines As Transfer Partner

The news that kind of leaked a few weeks back, when a landing page went live early, is finally here. The news that Bilt adds Japan Airlines as a transfer partner! This is what we thought was coming when Bilt announced Southwest as its newest transfer partner last month. An announcement that included an up to 100% transfer bonus by the way. Japan Airlines is the bigger news though. Because JAL is a very unique transfer partner, as it is the first time Japan Airlines has joined any program in North America. It does come with some quirks though, so let's take a look.

Bilt Press Release

Another very exciting day here at Bilt as we launch our 16th airline transfer partner (21st transfer partner including hotels): Japan Airlines Mileage Bank. Bilt Points will transfer at a 1:1 ratio and most transfers will be completed within 10 minutes. Transfers to JAL Mileage Bank will be available to Bilt members beginning at 9AM ET on Tuesday, May 13th. 

Bilt is the first 1:1 transfer partner of JAL Mileage Bank in the North America market and we are thrilled for our members to have the ability to book an amazing onboard experience to Tokyo and beyond. This has been a specific “points nerd” program that has flown under the radar here in the US for far too long because of the difficulty in accessing the currency. We are beyond excited to introduce millions of Bilt members to JAL Mileage Bank.

Some Quirks About The Japan Airlines Program

Since most people reading this have never messed with the Japan Airlines program (I mean why would you) there are some quirks you need to be aware of.

• JAL Mileage Bank typically requires accounts to be 60 days old in order to be able to redeem miles.
• Bilt has secured the ability for Bilt members to be able to redeem their miles within 7 days after transferring if the JMB account is not 60 days old.
  • All Bilt members should still immediately enroll in JAL Mileage Bank whether they have impending plans to transfer to JMB or not in order to start their 60 day account aging and not have to wait up to 7 days after transferring for redemption eligibility.

It should be noted that miles will still be deposited within 10 minutes to Japan Airlines Mileage Bank accounts whether they are eligible for immediate redemption or not.

Bilt Adds Japan Airlines As Transfer Partner: ToP Thoughts

This is big news on the transfer partner front. Bilt continues to blaze a path in the industry and continues to make their points the most valuable in the space. To be fair, they are also the most difficult to earn too. Those two things likely go hand in hand some though.

While Japan Airlines has a devaluation to their program upcoming, they still offer some good value. It seems like the first class cabin was hit hardest by the impending changes, and business class is still a great option. It should make it easier to book their awards, since they release the space internally earlier than partners get access. I do wonder if this will make getting award seats with partner airline programs all the more difficult.

Let me know what your thoughts on Bilt adding Japan Airlines as a transfer partner over in the ToP Facebook Group.