In their October 15 announcement, Japan Airlines and Japan Transocean Air said they had requested government approval for revised international fuel surcharges at Zone S. The proposal covers tickets purchased in Japan and issued from November 1 through December 31, 2026. The rates remain subject to government approval. Those are ticket-issuance dates; the announcement does not establish a travel window.

There are two boundaries to keep straight. The announcement concerns tickets purchased in Japan, while JAL’s published surcharge policy table covers travel originating in Japan. For a journey that meets both conditions, the proposed Japan–North America/Europe/Middle East/Oceania surcharge is ¥62,000 per person, per segment to or from Japan, subject to approval. That is the fuel surcharge alone.

JAL’s fuel surcharge also applies to JAL Mileage Bank award tickets, according to the airline’s published policy. Using miles does not remove that cash charge. If approved, the proposed schedule would therefore affect the cash component of awards within the Japan-purchase and Japan-origin scope described above.

Existing tickets have an important distinction. JAL’s policy does not retrospectively adjust the fuel surcharge on an unchanged ticket. A change to an unused ticket, however, can trigger reassessment of the whole itinerary’s surcharge. An issued award and an unchanged award are not always the same thing.

Effective date: Nov 1, 2026

Who is affected: JAL Mileage Bank members considering Japan-origin international awards purchased in Japan during the proposed November–December ticket-issuance period.