Hi! I feel like I’ve seen this somewhere before, and it got me wondering, so I wanted to ask.

Maezawa from the Corporate Planning Office here as well. > At the first meeting, do I only receive transportation expenses? > Or do we discuss the allowance that day and receive it separately from transportation expenses? When the club arranges the date and it becomes your first date: During the meal, the man will give you ¥5,000–¥10,000 as transportation expenses (essentially a token of appreciation). I’ve heard from women that receiving ¥10,000 is standard. Some men apparently give ¥20,000 or ¥30,000 even for dinner only. (I originally wrote the following, but someone pointed out that this couldn’t happen if the money were handed over in advance as required by the rules. I agreed, so I’ve corrected it, while leaving the original text here for reference: “If it’s ¥5,000, there’s a high chance he wasn’t particularly interested. Some men become extremely interested and give ¥20,000 or ¥30,000.”) After the meal, if he invites you to an adult relationship (intimate), you will receive an allowance. However, since this is a matter of free choice between the two of you, you’ll regret it if you enter into an adult relationship without first clearly discussing how much you’ll receive. That is the usual process, so you receive an allowance separately from the transportation expenses (essentially a token of appreciation). However, apparently some men don’t follow the club’s requests. Instead of paying the transportation expenses during the meal, they pay an allowance during the adult relationship that includes the transportation expenses. Then, if you say you haven’t received the transportation expenses, he may respond, “But I already gave you your allowance, didn’t I?” For example, you may think you agreed on an allowance of ¥50,000, only to be told that ¥10,000 of it was the transportation expenses required by the club rules. In reality, your allowance would then be ¥40,000. Some men might say that’s still enough, but what if the total were ¥30,000? You might think the allowance was ¥30,000, only to find out that it included the ¥10,000 transportation expenses (essentially a token of appreciation) that must be paid under the club rules. That means the actual allowance is only ¥20,000. In reality, I think the amount for dates after the second one is also usually ¥30,000, which would mean he isn’t actually paying the club-required transportation expenses. But since he can simply insist that’s not the case, I don’t think you can really argue against him. Since there’s no point in saying anything if you can’t challenge it, if you intend to continue seeing him, I think it’s best to accept it as just the way things are and carry on without saying anything. That way, you’ll probably be able to spend more enjoyable time together.

A confused woman in her 60s. Dear Mac, I’m not particularly generous in that regard. Haha. I simply stick to what’s been agreed upon. At the first meeting, it’s just a first meeting, so I only pay the transportation expenses specified by the club. From the second meeting onward, it’s called an allowance, so I pay accordingly. However, if the second meeting is dinner only, the amount remains the same. Is there a problem with that? Sweat, haha.

I’m a column writer known as Flag Maker. 【First meeting】 ・5,000–10,000 yen for transportation ・If you have an adult relationship (intimate) from the first meeting, an additional allowance (an amount you both agree on) 【From the second meeting onward】 ・An allowance based on the terms of the arrangement (an amount you both agree on) I believe this is the standard arrangement. Whether you can receive an additional allowance for dinner only (no intimacy) from the first meeting depends on the man. I think it’s more common not to receive one. Sorry if I’m mistaken.

I’m Rin, a female member. According to the club’s rules, on the first meeting, we receive a set amount under the name of “transportation expenses.” If the relationship develops on the first day or during the next date, we then receive what’s called an allowance. Normally—or rather, once the allowance amount has been agreed on, I consider it to cover that day’s date. Extra transportation expenses…? Unless the man offers something additional on his own, without me having to ask, I don’t think of requesting it myself. If she’s truly an amazing woman, I feel her allowance would probably be generous without asking for anything extra. And if she becomes endlessly greedy, it might take away from her charm.

I’m だて◎ゆめ, a male member. Transportation costs and the allowance are separate. I believe transportation costs are meant as a token of appreciation for coming to meet us, and are given to the woman when you first meet. The allowance, on the other hand, starts when the relationship begins. So there are cases where an allowance is paid even at the first meeting, but from the second meeting onward, it’s usually just the allowance. That said, if someone is coming from far away, I always pay transportation costs as well. Even when they live nearby, some women will say things like, “Would it be okay to get transportation money too?” If the man is a pushover, he may end up saying, “Sure!” There are even women who, despite receiving transportation money every time, casually ask for taxi fare when saying goodbye. And when the man says, “But I give you transportation money every time…,” they respond with something like, “That transportation money gets used up on my train fare when I go to my part-time job…” At that point, if there are male members who continue dating under such utterly incoherent circumstances, it’s practically a comedy sketch. I hope you won’t end up in that situation. Whether you’re confident in yourself or not, you might want to bring up transportation costs after considering the man’s allowance and appearance（笑）. As for me, regardless of how things were in the past, I’d prefer to simply include transportation costs in the allowance（笑）.

I’m a male member, “Paper Airplane.” Regardless of the woman’s class, it seems they’re generally divided into two groups: those who receive only transportation expenses on the day, and those who receive an allowance from the very first meeting. Even some women in the top class receive nothing beyond transportation costs. It really depends on the woman. You mean Type A or Type B, right…? I don’t think the woman would bring it up herself on the first day. The man may bring it up, and many men will give an allowance without being asked. (If you don’t receive one, you just have to assume he wasn’t interested in you…) If the woman is going to bring it up, it would probably be better to wait until after you’ve met a few times. With Type B as well, if you’re going to a hotel that day, it’s better to discuss the allowance.