Apply for the EPOS Card with a referral and get 500 extra points
If you apply online and have the card mailed to you, the September 2026 offer is 2,000 welcome points + 500 referral points = 2,500 points. Start from the referral page and you don’t even have to type a number.
Last checked: (EPOS Card’s official referral campaign, welcome bonus and FAQ pages)
What this guide covers
- A referral adds 500 points on top of the regular welcome bonus
- Apply from the referral page and there is nothing to type; if you enter the number by hand, it goes in the 「ご紹介番号」 field
- Anyone who has ever held an EPOS Card, and anyone applying at a Marui store counter, is not eligible
- The card’s real strengths: 10% off at Marui four times a year, perks at about 10,000 shops, and strong travel medical cover
- How it fits alongside the SMBC Card (NL) and JCB Card W
Contents
- What the referral number changes
- How to apply
- Six cases where you don’t get the referral bonus
- How long until the card arrives
- The EPOS Card at a glance
- Why it’s a popular first card
- How to use your EPOS points
- Weak spots to know first
- Spend ¥500,000 a year and the Gold card is free
- EPOS vs SMBC Card (NL) vs JCB Card W
- Who it suits, and who it doesn’t
- FAQ
- Bottom line
What the referral number changes
EPOS Card lets existing cardholders refer friends and family. When a referred person opens a new card, they receive 500 EPOS points in addition to the normal welcome bonus. EPOS points are worth ¥1 each when you pay at Marui, so think of it as roughly ¥500.
| How you apply (card mailed to you) | Welcome bonus | Referral bonus | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Directly on the official site | 2,000 pts | — | 2,000 pts |
| From the referral page | 2,000 pts | 500 pts | 2,500 pts |
The person who referred you also earns 1,000 points per referral, but that does not reduce what you receive.
One more thing: referral bonuses run in six-month periods, and referral numbers are reissued when a new period starts. The official referral page says the program “is planned to continue from October 2026,” and we swap in the new number and button each period.
Only needed if you type it in yourself. If you apply through the button below, you don’t need it.
How to apply
The one condition for the referral bonus is that you apply from the referral page. The official page states that applications made from any other page do not receive the bonus points. It takes five steps.
- Open the referral page from the button in this guideYou’ll land on a page headed 「エポスカード新規ご入会で」 showing the bonus. Continue with the apply button on that page.
- Choose a card design and how to receive itPick delivery by mail if you want the bonus as points. Store pickup at Marui is faster, but then the welcome bonus is a ¥2,000 coupon.
- Fill in the applicationComing from the referral page, you don’t need to enter the referral number. If you type it in, use the 「ご紹介番号」 field and enter the 11 digits above exactly; one wrong digit and the bonus won’t apply.
- Wait for screeningApproval is not guaranteed. You can apply if you live in Japan and are 18 or older (high school students excluded).
- Check that the points arrivedAbout one week after the card is issued, the points are added. You can see them under point history in EPOS Net or the EPOS app.
Six cases where you don’t get the referral bonus
According to the official terms, the bonus is not paid in these cases. Worth a quick look before you apply.
- You have held an EPOS Card before, in any design, including cards you have since cancelled
- You applied at a Marui or Modi store counter; the referral campaign is online-only
- You forgot or mistyped the referral number; applying from the referral page avoids this entirely
- You cancelled or closed the card right after joining
- The card was not issued
- You chose a design that isn’t part of the referral campaign; EPOS’s FAQ notes that some card designs are excluded, so check on the application screen
How long until the card arrives
If you apply online and have it mailed, EPOS’s FAQ says the card usually arrives in about a week. It can take longer around Golden Week and the New Year holidays.
In a hurry? You can apply online and collect the card at a Marui store, as soon as the same day. The trade-off is that the welcome bonus then comes as a ¥2,000 Marui coupon rather than points. Unless you’re about to fly somewhere, mail delivery with the bonus in points gives you more ways to use it.
The EPOS Card at a glance
The EPOS Card is a Visa card issued by EPOS Card Co., Ltd., part of the Marui Group. The basics:
| Annual fee | Free for life (no joining fee either) |
|---|---|
| Network | Visa |
| Points rate | 0.5% (1 point per ¥200 per transaction) |
| Point expiry | 2 years (can be extended; no expiry on Gold and above) |
| Issuance | Same day at the earliest (Marui store pickup) |
| Overseas travel insurance | Applies when you pay travel costs with the card |
| Mobile payments | Apple Pay, Google Pay |
| ETC card | No annual fee (request it once you have the card) |
| Eligibility | Living in Japan, aged 18+ (not high school students) |
The official eligibility rule says nothing about nationality: if you live in Japan, you can apply. To be frank, the points rate is ordinary. The reasons people recommend this card lie elsewhere.
Why it’s a popular first card
1. 10% off at Marui and Modi, four times a year
During the 「マルコとマルオ」 member sale, held four times a year, paying with EPOS at Marui and Modi stores and on Marui’s online shop gets you 10% off. The length of each sale varies. If you’re planning a bigger purchase such as clothes or appliances, timing it for these windows pays off.
2. Member perks at about 10,000 shops
Discounts on izakaya and café bills, karaoke rooms, amusement park and aquarium tickets, hair salons, day-trip hot springs and more, at roughly 10,000 partners nationwide. Many only require showing the card or mentioning it when you book, and you can search them on the member site 「エポトクプラザ」. If you use them regularly, the modest points rate matters much less.
3. Unusually strong medical cover when traveling abroad
If you paid for the trip with the EPOS Card, treatment for illness is covered up to ¥2.7 million and treatment for injury up to ¥2 million. Many no-fee cards cover only ¥500,000 to ¥1 million for treatment, so this stands out. Medical bills abroad can easily run into hundreds of thousands of yen, and this is cover you get without paying a fee, whether you’re heading home for a visit or traveling elsewhere.
4. Points from online shopping and investing
Going through the member-only 「エポスポイントUPサイト」 before shopping online earns 2 to 30 times the usual points. You can also fund monthly investment-trust purchases at tsumiki Securities with the EPOS Card and earn points based on your yearly contributions and how many years you’ve kept going. It works with the NISA 「つみたて投資枠」, which makes it a gentle way into investing.
How to use your EPOS points
Points from the welcome and referral bonuses are best used within their two-year life. These are the main options EPOS lists:
| Spend at Marui and Modi | ¥1 per point in stores and on Marui’s online shop. At the till, show your card and say 「エポスポイントで」 (with EPOS points) |
|---|---|
| Reduce your card bill | The 「ポイントで割引サービス」 lets you knock points, from 1 point up, off online shopping, phone and utility charges (you need paperless statements) |
| Swap for gift cards | VJA gift cards (in units of 1,000 points), Amazon gift cards and more |
| Move to a prepaid card | Transfer points 1:1 to the EPOS Visa prepaid card, which gives 0.5% cash back on spending |
| Miles and investing | Convert to airline miles or other points, or put them toward investing with tsumiki Securities |
If you rarely shop at Marui, the bill discount is the easiest: just apply the points to next month’s phone or online shopping charges.
Weak spots to know first
Base rate is just 0.5%
Ordinary for everyday spending. A higher-earning card is the better choice for daily purchases.
Visa only
No JCB or Mastercard option. Make your second card a different network and you’re covered when a shop doesn’t take Visa.
Points expire in 2 years
Left alone, they lapse. Spend them at Marui or swap them for gift cards regularly.
Travel cover needs a purchase
Holding the card isn’t enough. Remember to pay the tour or transport fare with EPOS.
Spend ¥500,000 a year and the Gold card is free
Keep using EPOS and there is a path to holding the EPOS Gold Card at no annual fee. The normal fee is ¥5,000, waived in either of these ways:
- Apply via an invitation, which EPOS sends based on how you use the card; the criteria are not published
- Spend ¥500,000 or more a year on Gold, and the fee is waived for life from the following year
Gold comes with free airport lounges in Japan and abroad, points that never expire, and annual bonus points based on spending (worth ¥10,000 if you spend ¥1 million a year). You can also register three favorite shops for extra points, which goes a long way toward fixing the low base rate.
EPOS vs SMBC Card (NL) vs JCB Card W
When people in Japan pick a first no-fee credit card, these three come up again and again. Their strengths barely overlap, so holding two or three of them doesn’t waste anything.
| Item | EPOS Card | SMBC Card (NL) | JCB Card W |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual fee | Free for life | Free for life | Free for life |
| Base points rate | 0.5% | 0.5% | 1.0% |
| Best for | 10% off at Marui perks at ~10,000 shops | Selected convenience stores and restaurants via smartphone tap (up to 7%) | Amazon, 7-Eleven and other partner shops |
| Travel insurance (death/disability) | Up to ¥30M | Up to ¥20M | Up to ¥20M |
| Network | Visa | Visa / Mastercard | JCB |
| Who can apply | 18+ (not high school) | 18+ (not high school) | Ages 18–39 |
Checked on each issuer’s official site in September 2026. All three cards’ travel insurance applies only when you pay travel costs with the card. The SMBC Card (NL) covers ¥500,000 each for illness and injury treatment, the biggest gap against EPOS (¥2.7 million for illness, ¥2 million for injury).
A simple way to choose:
- You often pay at convenience stores or fast-food chains: the SMBC Card (NL), where a smartphone tap lifts the rate
- You’re 39 or under and shop online a lot: the JCB Card W, with a 1.0% base rate
- You travel, shop at Marui or like member perks: the EPOS Card
If you combine them, the easiest split is to use the SMBC Card (NL) or JCB Card W day to day and put overseas flights and tour costs on EPOS. When several cards meet their insurance conditions, cover such as medical treatment is combined in proportion to each card’s limit (death and disability cover is not combined; the highest limit is the cap).
Who it suits, and who it doesn’t
Good fit
- You shop at Marui or Modi now and then
- You often use karaoke and restaurant discounts
- You want overseas medical cover without paying a fee
- You’re new to Japan and don’t have a credit card yet
Not the best fit
- You want one card that maximizes your points rate
- You specifically want JCB or Mastercard
- You’ve had an EPOS Card before (no referral bonus)
If points matter most, a sensible setup is to use the SMBC Card (NL) or JCB Card W compared above for everyday spending and keep EPOS for travel and member perks.
FAQ
- Where do I enter the EPOS Card referral code (referral number)?
- In the 「ご紹介番号」 field of the application form. If you open the referral page from the button in this guide and apply from there, you don’t need to enter it.
- Can I add the referral number after applying?
- The official terms say a forgotten or mistyped referral number is not eligible, and no way to add one afterwards is offered. Make sure you start from the referral page before applying.
- When do I get the 500 referral points?
- About one week after the card issuance process is complete, the points are added to your EPOS account. You can check them in EPOS Net or the EPOS app.
- I had an EPOS Card before. Can I still get the referral bonus?
- No. Anyone who has previously joined EPOS Card, in any design, is not eligible.
- Can I get the referral bonus if I apply at a Marui store?
- No. The referral campaign requires an online application; applications at Marui or Modi store counters are excluded.
- Will the person who referred me see my screening result?
- The official terms state that EPOS does not answer any inquiries about a referred person’s application or screening status.
- Can I get both a points-site reward and the referral bonus?
- No. The referral bonus only applies to applications made from the referral page, and a points site sends you to a different application page.
- Are any card designs excluded from the referral bonus?
- Yes. EPOS’s FAQ says some designs are not eligible, so check the application screen before you choose.
- How long does the EPOS Card take to arrive?
- Usually about a week when you apply online and have it mailed. Picking it up at a Marui store can be as quick as the same day, but the welcome bonus then becomes a ¥2,000 Marui coupon.
- Can I get an ETC card?
- Yes. EPOS cardholders can request one with no annual fee through EPOS Net or the EPOS app, and it arrives in about two weeks.
- What can I use EPOS points on?
- Paying at Marui and Modi at ¥1 per point, reducing online shopping or phone bills through the 「ポイントで割引サービス」, gift cards, transfers to the EPOS Visa prepaid card, and airline miles or other points.
- Does the referral number expire?
- Yes. Referral bonuses run in six-month periods, and a new number is needed each period. The number and button in this guide are updated every period.
- Can foreign residents apply for the EPOS Card?
- The official eligibility is “living in Japan and aged 18 or over (excluding high school students),” with no mention of nationality. Whether a card is issued depends on screening.
- Should I apply for the EPOS Gold Card straight away?
- Applying for Gold directly costs ¥5,000 a year. The usual route is to start with the no-fee EPOS Card and either wait for an invitation or spend ¥500,000 a year on Gold so the fee is waived from the next year.
Bottom line
The EPOS Card doesn’t compete on points. It earns its place through 10% off at Marui, perks at around 10,000 shops and travel medical cover you wouldn’t expect from a no-fee card. If you’ll use any of those, it’s worth having.
And if you apply, starting from the referral page adds 500 points to the welcome bonus with no extra effort. Choose delivery by mail if you want the bonus as points, then use them before they expire, for example against your card bill.
Sources: EPOS Card friend & family referral campaign / Welcome bonus / FAQ: referral points / FAQ: who can apply / FAQ: delivery time / FAQ: ETC card / Using EPOS points / Overseas travel insurance / EPOS Gold / SMBC Card travel insurance / JCB Card W