I applied for JCB Marukai Preferred card about five weeks ago and received my card today. Here are my experiences so far.
The Marukai Premium card web page at
http://www.jcbusa.com/card_marukaica_prem.html lists "Call 1-800-366-4522 [...]" as one of the bullet items under the heading "APPLY NOW!!", but, according the phone representative, there actually is no way to apply either over the phone or by filling out a web form. I would have to print a PDF file and mail it in. OK. I'm willing to work a little for 3%.
About a week and a half later, I recieve a letter saying "Thank you for your application for credit. After careful consideration, we regret to inform you that we are unable to grant your request for the following reasons: *Unable to verify self-employment/income. We can, however, offer you credit on the following terms: Proof of Self-employment/income (i.e., tax forms)." OK, they may have stated their request a bit undiplomatically, but, I had listed a substantial income and described myself as self-employed. No other credit card company has ever asked for such proof as far as I recall, but I think their position is reasonable. So, I respond with three years (just to be sure) of back tax forms showing consistent income at the level I had stated.
A week or so later, I get a call from JCB asking me if I have an office separate from my home. I don't, but I mention that I have a business credit card and business bank account. Do I have a business license? Yes. Can I fax that to them? I don't have a fax, but they let me email it, which was a welcome bit of moderninty.
A few days later, they call back again and want to know why business license has two addresses (mailbox and business location).
Finally, a week or so after that, I get a letter saying that I have been approved and that my credit card should arrive shortly. The credit card arrives the next day, with a $3,000 credit limit. It's a puny limit, but, still, I appreciate them approving me, and I'm looking forward to using it. Hopefully, they'll increase the limit after we have some business history.
The credit card envelope also included two pages containing a total of twenty identical printed coupons, each offering a $1 off of $20 spending a Marukai. The pages were not perforated, but they did use thick glossy paper. There actually is a Marukai store near me. Maybe I'll take a look and see what they sell.
Here are my few experiences trying to see who accepts this card.
"Which credit cards can I accept with PayPal Merchant Services? PayPal supports a large number of credit cards, including Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover,
JCB, Diner's Club and EnRoute. Depending on your processor, Payflow Pro also supports level 2 and level 3 Purchasing Cards (P-Cards). Check cards or debit cards with either a Visa or MasterCard logo are supported and treated just like a credit card." --
https://www.paypal.com/us/webapps/he...Id=59378&m=SRE
However, when I try to add a credit card to my paypal account, I am only offered Visa, MasterCard, American Express and Discover. Attempting to describe the JCB card as "Discover" (since Discover now processes JCB cards on their network) results in paypal claiming the card number is invalid.
I have not yet tried paying with paypal without using my paypal account. I did, however, try calling Paypal tech support, and I got one made up reason after another (your address is wrong, your JCB card was issued in Japan, you need get JCB to issue you a new card number, and, possibly correct, JCB is only accepted for Japense paypal accounts). I just wanted them to open two request tickets to clarify their web page and suggest that they start accepting JCB in the US via their existing Disover Network relationship. They support person refused to open trouble tickets. When I told him I though they were misleading their merchant customers into thinking they were able to accept JCB, the ebay representative put me on hold for a very long time until I eventually hung up.
I also looked at a few places that charge convenience fees for making some bigger payments that aren't normally done with credit cards. At a 3% rebate, these could make one a few tens of dollars a month.
The WilliamPaid rent payment service claims to accept Discover but doesn't mention JCB, and they don't currently accept my JCB card number. I emailed their tech support to suggest that they see if they can accept JCB via their existing Discover relationship.
PayUSATax advertises that it accepts Discover, but rejects my JCB card number. Their sister site, valuetaxpayment, which accepts American Express credit cards for tax payments, did not immediately reject my JCB card number, but I did not press the final button to authorize the payment.
Official Payments looks slightly more promising for paying taxes, since it lists "Discover Network" as one of its credit card payment options, and let me get all the way to the point of authorizing a payment, but I didn't try actually doing it.
Update 2012.12.28: Official Payments
accepted my JCB Marukai Premium card for paying my California estimated income tax online. I have not yet tried the same for Federal estimated income tax, for which Official Payments charges slightly different rates and has different policies.
If I recall correctly, this card currently has no web site and offers electronic payment only on an "emergency" basis and for a ~$15 fee, and requires me to talk to a live representative or write a letter to redeem my rebate points. On the other hand, the phone representative I spoke to say that many of their customers like to pay using their bank's online bill payment service.
So, at this point, it looks like I'm going to have to work for my 3%, but I'm still somehow enthused about it. Maybe it's just because I expect the credit card to be a conversation starter. Anyhow, I hope my efforts will make things a bit easier for anyone else considering trying this card.