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Qualifications for Membership

The qualifications for Knights of Columbus membership, as contained in Section 101 of the Laws of the Order, are:

• Only practical Catholics in union with the Holy See shall be eligible and entitled to continue membership in the Order.
• An applicant for membership shall not be less than 18 years of age on his last birthday.

Practical Catholic Guidelines

Guidelines have been established to assist in determining the practical Catholicity of an applicant or member. These guidelines will assist the grand knight in performing his duties when serving on the council’s admission committee. These guidelines include:

• A practical Catholic accepts the teaching authority of the Catholic Church on matters of faith and morals, aspires to live in accordance with the precepts of the Catholic Church, and is in good standing with the Catholic Church.
• A practical Catholic strives to have a greater knowledge of the teaching of Christ and his Church, and to accept, respect and defend the Church’s authority (vested in the Supreme Pontiff, the hierarchy and clergy united with him) to teach, govern and sanctify the faithful.
• A practical Catholic gives material and moral support to the Church and her works on all levels, promoting the programs of the parish and diocese and coming to the aid of the missions, the needy and the underprivileged; supports and advances the just causes of minority groups; endeavors to eliminate unjust discrimination, prejudice, etc.; and supports the Church in her defense of marriage and family life.

Membership Procedures

The financial secretary should use the Member Management application (the preferred method, when applicable) or process a Membership Document (#100) for each of the following transactions:

1. New Member — The Exemplification of Charity, Unity, and Fraternity establishes membership, and the recording of that exemplification is required to activate fraternal benefits. Immediately (within 24 hours) following the Exemplification of Charity, Unity, and Fraternity, the financial secretary will process the Membership Document (#100) by mail or email. Whether you mail or send an email of the Membership Document (#100) to the Supreme Council Office, always copy the general agent. This will ensure that the new member is recorded on the council roster and that the general agent receives a copy of the Membership Document (#100). (Note: If the field agent is present at the ceremony, he may pick up this document for delivery to the general agent.) The council should always retain a copy of the Membership Document (#100) for its records. When sending the Membership Document (#100) via email, there is no need to send a hard copy.
2. Juvenile to Adult — Juvenile to Adult constitutes a specific category for an applicant for membership who holds an in-force insurance policy that was issued while he was under 18 years of age. His application is to be processed as a Juvenile to Adult transaction. The juvenile policy number should be included on the Membership Document (#100), if available. If the prospect applies for membership prior to his 19th birthday, the maximum initiation fee that can be charged is $5.
3. Reinstatement — This transaction can be used if membership termination has been for a period of three months or less. Reinstatements can only take place in the council from which the member was suspended or took a withdrawal. A reinstatement will not reflect a break in membership. No council vote is required.
4. Readmission — This transaction is appropriate if membership termination has been for a period of more than three months and up to seven years. The applicant may be readmitted into the council of his choice. Council vote on his membership is required, but action by the admission committee is normally not needed.
5. Reactivation — The proper transaction for reentry of an inactive insurance member is reactivation. An inactive insurance member has been suspended for nonpayment of dues but maintains an in-force Knights of Columbus insurance certificate.
6. Reapplication — When an applicant has been out of the Order for more than seven years, reapplication is the proper transaction to be used. He may reapply to the council of his choice, and the re-applicant need not be exemplified again if he satisfies the admission committee that he’s already done so. He pays no initiation fee.
7. Transfer — A member in possession of a current membership card may transfer to any council of his choice by applying through a Membership Document (#100). The receiving council accepts the application for transfer under the elective procedures. Please note that a transfer is initiated only by the receiving council. Members cannot be transferred out of a council.
8. Withdrawal — The withdrawal transaction cannot be reported by using the Membership Document (#100). Rather, a personal, signed communication from the member requesting withdrawal (resignation) is required to be sent to the council and forwarded to the Supreme Council Office. A member can resign whether he is current in dues or in arrears. The only stipulation is that he must be eligible for re-entry as of the date he files his letter of withdrawal with the council or assembly. Withdrawal is not an option for a felon, non-practical Catholic, or someone who has been suspended or expelled under Section 162 of the Order’s Laws. Those members who apply for and are granted a withdrawal do not maintain continuous membership. The membership record will reflect a break in service. If the applicant for withdrawal is an insurance member, he will be recorded as an inactive member and will remain in that status on the council roster as long as his insurance is in force.The council continues to be responsible for Supreme and state council assessments on inactive members. However, a $9 credit is applied to the council’s account the month following the anniversary date of the member’s insurance policy to offset such assessments.Upon receipt of a valid withdrawal request, the Membership Records Department will process the request and a letter from the Supreme Knight will be sent out to the former member acknowledging that their withdrawal was processed and providing information on how they can once again become a Knight in the future should they wish to join a council or join online as an Online Member. The State Retention Chairman is copied on each of these letters so that the state council can follow up and attempt to retain each of these withdrawals.
9. Suspension — NonPayment — A member must be in arrears for at least three months before he can be suspended for nonpayment. Any member in that status, however, is to be advised that a current membership card is required for attendance and participation at all Knights of Columbus business meetings and ceremonial exemplifications. A “current” membership card is defined as one bearing a “DUES PAID TO” date equal to or greater than the current date. Because this category of suspension represents the largest group of losses to our Order each year, it is of vital importance that proper billing procedures be followed before active membership is terminated by suspension.
   As in the case of a withdrawal, a suspended insurance member goes to an inactive status and remains on the council rolls. Because of this fact, the council is responsible for Supreme and state levied assessments and also receives the annual $9 credit, as explained in the preceding section.
10. Death — As soon as possible after the death of a council member, a Membership Document (#100) should be submitted to the Supreme Council Office for processing with the complete date of death and survivor information included. If Member Management is used to report this transaction, there is no need to submit additional documentation. Deceased members are remembered in daily Mass at St. Mary’s Church, New Haven, CT — the birthplace of our Order.
11. Disability — Relief from Payment — Those brother Knights who are unable to engage in any occupation for a period of at least six months are eligible for a waiver of dues under Section 118(e) of the Order’s laws. The Application for Per Capita Disability Exemption (#1831) must be submitted to the Supreme Council with the signatures of the grand knight and financial secretary. If the application is approved, dues and per capita shall be waived until the financial secretary notifies the Supreme Council that the exemption should be rescinded. Council members who are exempt from dues payment under Section 118(e) are to be issued a Membership Card on a calendar year basis. In the case of a member qualified for exemption under both Sections 118(e) and 118(d) — honorary life — the honorary life designation takes precedent.
12. Suspension — Lack of Practical Catholicity — One of the requirements for membership in the Knights of Columbus is “…practical Catholic in union with the Holy See.” In order to remain on the active rolls of your council, a current member must maintain his practical Catholicity. On occasion, however, members leave the faith, marry outside of the Church or otherwise lose that status. In such cases, they forfeit their membership “ipso facto” — by virtue of the fact. Before a suspension for this infraction can be processed, tangible evidence to support a suspension under Section 168.1 of the Laws of the Order is required. A statement must be on file in the Supreme Council office from the council chaplain or the member’s parish priest to the effect that the man in question is no longer a practical or practicing Catholic. A statement signed by the member admitting to the infraction giving rise to the attempted suspension is also acceptable. One of these statements, along with a completed Membership Document (#100), must submitted in order for suspension processing can be initiated.This transaction is NOT counted against Supreme Council award quotas.
13. Suspension — Felony Conviction — Section 168.6 of the Laws of the Order stipulates forfeiture of membership for a felony conviction. A felony is generally one where the potential penalty is greater than one year incarceration. To substantiate conviction, the financial secretary must submit: a newspaper account of the conviction, written confirmation from the prosecutor or a certified copy of the court documentation. Proof of conviction should include a description of the crime as a felony. Any ONE of the aforementioned proofs of conviction, certification that the individual convicted is known by the financial secretary to be the member to have his membership forfeited and a completed Membership Document (#100) are sufficient for suspension under Section 168.6. This transaction is NOT counted against Supreme Council award quotas.
14. Suspension — Misconduct — Detailed instructions on filing complaints against a member, his rights to plead and trial are found in the Laws of the Order, Chapter XIX, Sections 170-181. A completed Membership Document (#100) and all paperwork resulting from compliance with Chapter XIX of the Laws of the Order must be submitted to the Department of Membership Records before the suspension processing can be initiated. This transaction is NOT counted against Supreme Council award quotas.

Membership Procedures — Transferring Online Members

Transferring Online Members — Online Members “assigned” as prospects to councils will appear in the council’s Prospect tab in Officers Online. This tab will only be seen by grand knights and financial secretaries. Councils will not have an “Unassigned” tab.

Candidate Tab — Entering Member Information Online

The Candidate Tab, which is accessible through Officers Online, allows grand knights and financial secretaries in the United States and Canada to provide the membership information for new, reactivated and transferring members directly to the Supreme Council online. While this tool helps streamline the processing of member information, it does not fully replace the Form #100 and each prospective member should still complete a Form #100 for state and council records. Information submitted using this tool can be expected to be processed within 2-3 days.

Once the council has gone through the admissions process, and the member has taken his Exemplification of Charity, Unity, and Fraternity, they can transfer him by simply adding the date read in the “Grand Knight Approval (Date Read)” section, and the exemplification date in the “Financial Secretary (Ceremonial Date)” section, and clicking the update button. These two dates can be added separately, but once the ceremonial date is added, the transfer will be processed.

Once the update is submitted, the member will be automatically transferred into his new council. The council will not need to submit a Form 100.

Rejecting Transfers — If, for some reason, the Online Member is not going to transfer into the assigned council, the council may “reject” the member by clicking “reject” and selecting a reason from the drop-down menu. Rejecting an Online Member for transfer will result in the member reappearing in the “Unassigned” section of the state’s “Prospect” tab. A rejection will not trigger an email to state officers.