Transfer of Membership

Definition and Meaning

Imyeong (移名), literally "moving the name," refers to the transfer of a member's church membership record (the church's roll of members) to a new church when a person registered at one church begins attending another because of relocation or for some other reason. The document the original church issues on such an occasion, stating in effect that "this person has been a member of our church and is without reproach in faith and conduct," is called a certificate of transfer (or letter of transfer). The new church receives this certificate and admits the person as a member, and the original church removes the name from its roll.

Biblical and Historical Background

The New Testament records instances in which letters of commendation were written for believers traveling to churches in other regions. The brethren at Ephesus wrote a letter on behalf of Apollos, who was going to Achaia, "exhorting the disciples to receive him" (Acts 18:27), and Paul commended Phoebe, a servant of the church at Cenchrea, to the church in Rome (Romans 16:1-2). Second Corinthians 3:1 also mentions "epistles of commendation." After the early church period, churches are known to have continued the practice of giving letters of introduction to believers who traveled or relocated, and the system of membership transfer formalized this tradition as a procedure of church administration.

Practice in Korean Churches

In Presbyterian churches, the transfer of members is handled by the session. The session of the original church issues the certificate of transfer, and the session of the receiving church accepts it and registers the person as a member. The baptismal record of a baptized member is transferred at the same time. When officers such as elders, deacons, or kwonsa (exhorters) move to another church, their office reportedly does not automatically carry over into active service; they must go through the new church's procedures before serving again. Because a pastor's membership is held not by a local church but by the presbytery, a pastor who moves to another presbytery undergoes a transfer procedure between presbyteries.

Other denominations, such as the Methodist and Holiness churches, also provide procedures for transferring membership in their church constitutions (in the Methodist case, the Doctrine and Discipline), with details varying by denomination. In denominations with congregational polity that emphasize the autonomy of the local church, such as the Baptists, the method of recommendation or verification between churches differs from church to church.

In practice, many members move to another church without a certificate of transfer, and it is common for them to register anew at the new church after completing a newcomers' class. Some churches, however, require a certificate of transfer in order to verify a member's history of faith, offices held, and baptismal status.