The following is information related to full-time missionaries. Full-time missionaries usually serve 32 hours or more a week, usually away from home. Church service missionaries serve 8–38 hours a week, usually as home missionaries.
Basic things
Preparation
You have prepared to serve the Lord and his children throughout your life. Because of the love and desire for service for the people, '[you] are called to the work.'
Study the scriptures and “Preach My Gospels' as a spiritual preparation for serving the Lord all the time. Doing so will help you understand your missionary purpose and strengthen your faith in the Lord's help in serving the Lord.
As a health and material preparation, review your financial situation and determine how much you can spend on your mission. Arrange your home and work to accommodate your absence. Exercise every day.
Many assignments require computer skills. If necessary, you may want to acquire or develop skills in web browsers and Microsoft software (especially Word, Excel, Outlook).
Senior missionaries are not required to learn a foreign language, but if you wish to serve in a missionary department in a different language, learn or relearn that language. However, language proficiency does not guarantee assignments to use that language.
What is expected
Basic
As a basic senior missionary, I encourage you to devote all your time and attention to your service to the Lord. Allocations vary but keep in mind that your calling is full-time and you need to spend your time efficiently. For missionaries assigned to offices and temples, nights and weekends are a great opportunity to visit new members, inactive members, and members whose families are not members of the Church. In addition to the main assignment, mission leaders may ask you to help with other tasks.
Sharing the gospel as a senior missionary
You are not expected to do exactly the same missionary work as a young missionary. Some assignments include sharing the gospel, reactivating and rescuing less active members, helping new members retain, strengthening young single adults, and local guidance in stakes, wards, branches, and rural areas. Includes opportunities to help others.
But whatever the assignment, there is an opportunity to interact with members and those who are not. The Spirit will encourage you to know the best way to share the testimony of Jesus Christ with others. Perhaps the most memorable experience of evangelism is the experience of witnessing the restored gospel of Jesus Christ to others.
Routine
Like young missionaries, you are not expected to work at a high pace on a hard schedule. You can flexibly set your daily goals and schedule, and you can take time off.
Assignments such as mission headquarters, visitor centers, and temples should be scheduled daily. There are also assignments, such as member/leader support, military affairs, and permanent education funding, where you can make different schedules on a daily basis.
We recommend that you include time for exercise, personal study, and study with colleagues in your daily routine.
Most assignments, like young missionaries, have days of preparation.
Skills
You have acquired the necessary skills through your daily life, work, family, and church experience. In addition, MTC and field experience will provide additional training opportunities. You will also receive the training specifically required for the assignment.
Conditions / Qualifications
Age
if there are no children of dependents to are under the age of 18 live at home, you can receive a recommendation to serve as full-time missionaries from the 40-year-old. There is no age limit as long as you have the physical strength required to fulfill your senior missionary assignment.
Work
service as full-time missionaries is required to devote all to the Lord and of the church. If you also need to work during your service period, consider becoming a Senior Church Service Missionary.
Health
To serve as a full-time health missionary, you must be physically, mentally, and emotionally healthy. More stringent health conditions may be required depending on your assignment and location. If you have questions about your specific situation, talk to your local priesthood leader. See Medical Care for Information on Special Situations.
Worthy
As a full-time missionary, you must have been endowed in the temple and have a valid temple recommendation.
Service time
You must be able to work at least 32 hours a week. In most cases, full-time assignments require working 40 hours or more per week.
Colleague
Senior missionaries are usually expected to be with colleagues all day long. Some senior sister assignments do not require a colleague.
Some missionary work (depending on your assignment) allows you to leave your colleagues for a short period of the day. Never leave at night. Remember that you have a responsibility to protect your colleagues from physical and spiritual dangers.
Period of service
Marital missionaries: You can apply for service for a period of 6, 12, 18, or 23 months.
Senior Sister Missionaries: You can serve for a period of 12, 18, or 23 months.
If you choose to serve for less than 18 months and your place of residence is abroad, you will be responsible for your travel expenses to and from your mission.
Extension of mission, You can extend your mission up to 23 months with the approval of your home church leaders (President of the mission, temple president, regional president).
Clothes and grooming
The dressing and grooming guidelines for seniors are the same as for young missionaries. See the Missionary Clothing and Grooming page for more information.
Due to differences in culture and climate, clothing guidelines vary from mission to mission. Depending on your assignment, you may also wear approved work clothes. The clothing list for a particular assignment is in a calling envelope.
Missionaries must shave cleanly. If you are applying for an exception for medical reasons, please discuss it with the stake president.
Application procedure
Basic things
When to fill out the application form
When you interview Bishop and tell them that you want to serve as a full-time missionary, Bishop will start preparing an online missionary recommendation. After filling out all the fields on the recommendation form, we will send it to the bishop with the results of the medical and dental examinations (not required for home missionaries). The bishop confirms it and sends it to the stake president.
The stake will contact you and set the date and time for your interview. After the bishop's interview and the stake president's interview, the stake president will electronically send an online missionary nomination to Church Headquarters for you to proceed. In countries other than the United States and Canada, the stake president sends a nomination letter to regional administration for confirmation before submitting it to church headquarters.
Calls are usually issued approximately three weeks after the missionary endorsement arrives at headquarters.
Evangelism Start
Date You can send a letter of recommendation 9 months before the date you can start evangelism. We recommend that you submit your nomination as soon as possible 9 months in advance. If you are assigned to evangelize abroad, it may take more than five months to obtain a visa. Therefore, if you apply early, you will be able to depart near the date when you can start evangelism.
Hope for Assignment
Your wishes are carefully considered by the executive brothers. You may actually get the assignment you want, but be willing to serve wherever you are assigned. Your calling comes from the President of the Church. And your assignment is inspired by the members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.
There is no stipulation that there must be a gap between multiple missions and the next mission. You can send a letter of recommendation 9 months before your next mission start date. It doesn't matter if you are on a mission at that point.
If you serve a number of missions, it is advisable to consult with your tax accountant to determine the tax implications of leaving home for more than 23 months.
Factors Affecting Assignments
All full-time missionary assignments are made by revelation by members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles under the direction of the President. The following factors are considered so that they can determine the best assignment for the person:
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Demand on the church side
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Hope of the person
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The period during which the person can serve
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Evangelism start date
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Matters necessary for the person's health
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Financial resources during evangelism
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Career and experience (work and church)
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Language ability
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Computers and technology/office skills
Medical considerations
Specific Health
Concerns Limitations and guidelines for common symptoms are as follows:
Diabetes: Approved diabetes value (A1C) is 9.0 or less.
Prostate: If your PSA level is 5.0 or higher, you may not be assigned until you have a retest.
Blood pressure: If controlled by drugs, you can approve up to 140 systolic blood pressure and 90 diastolic blood pressure.
For conditions not listed here, ask the stake president to discuss the medical treatment you need with your senior missionary medical coordinator (1-801-240-0322).
Depending on your insurance and your doctor's recommendations, you may want to have the following tests:
Colonoscopy: Senior missionaries do not need to undergo a colonoscopy before going on a mission. However, you should have this test if your doctor recommends it.
Mammography: Recommended for sisters, but mammography is not required.
Cardiac stress test: You do not need to take a cardiac stress test. However, we recommend that you take it if you meet three or more of the following risk factors.
- Over 50 years old High blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, obesity, or metabolic syndrome
- Family history of heart disease
- Chest pain history
- Tuberculin reaction test
A tuberculosis infection test must be taken.
Vaccination
It is highly recommended that you be vaccinated to prevent yourself or others from becoming infected or becoming a carrier. If you decline vaccination, you will be assigned a domestic quota.
The following vaccinations are usually required:
Hepatitis A and B — It takes 6 months to complete a series of vaccinations, so start taking them as soon as you decide to serve.
Tetanus
MMR—People born after 1956 must be vaccinated.
Other vaccinations may be required depending on the country of the mission. These include typhoid fever, yellow fever, and Japanese encephalitis.
Planned Procedures
All major surgical procedures must be completed before the stake president submits a missionary endorsement. Ask your doctor to create a healing certificate that proves you are ready to serve. This document will allow the doctor at headquarters to determine if there are any restrictions or other concerns that may affect the way or location of your service. If you have any doubts about this, ask the stake president to contact the Senior Missionary Medical Coordinator (801-240-0322).
Other information to send
If there are records, letters or other documents that describe a particular medical condition or treatment that are not listed in the 'Personal Health History' section or the Physician's Diagnosis section of the missionary testimonial, To the stake president. The stake president scans the document, attaches it to an online missionary endorsement, and submits it to Church headquarters.
The following are typical examples:
Doctor's certificate of cure after undergoing surgery or other major medical procedure
Observation / Explanation of abnormal findings during
treatment Unusually requiring special treatment Rare symptoms or conditions
Prescription drugs
if there is a need to take prescription drugs in the mission field, in Kakea' to doctors and insurers, asked to prescribe 90 days worth of medicine, please come out on a mission to bring it. Please contact the Missionary Medical Division (801-578-5650) for medical treatment arrangements at your location.
Please note that if you wish to receive your medicine by mail, you can only mail it to an authorized pharmacy. Family and friends should not mail prescription medications. [Translation: It depends on the country, so confirmation is required.]
The service of mental health missionaries can be stressful and can lead to situations that have never been experienced before. If you have any concerns about your mental state, whether or not you have been diagnosed, please disclose it. Also, if you have any medications you are taking for mental health, write them down on your recommendation letter.
Specific Questions
If you have any symptoms or concerns not mentioned here, ask the stake president to discuss the necessary medical procedures with the Senior Missionary Coordinator (1-801-240-0322). Please get it.
Legal considerations
Proceedings in dispute
All proceedings in dispute should be resolved before submitting a nomination letter.
Past Litigation Issues
If you have been involved in a serious proceeding in the past, the Church will review the process before deciding whether to issue a calling.
Non-residents
Non-citizens of a country of residence must present a document certifying their citizenship and a document explaining your status of residence in the country of residence. Please attach a copy of the document to your nomination. Depending on your status of residence, the place where you can receive the assignment may change.
Financial problems
Evangelism costs
You will be responsible for your own evangelism costs. If you serve for more than 18 months in or outside your home country, the Church will pay for the round-trip travel to your mission. Other expenses, such as housing expenses, food expenses, personal belongings, transportation expenses in the mission department, medical expenses, internet services, telephone charges, insurance premiums, etc., will be borne by the person.
Costs vary depending on mission assignments, location, and personal lifestyle. If the actual rent exceeds $ 1,400, the couple will not incur any further housing costs. See Housing Expenses for more information.
The costs listed on this website are in US dollars.
Financial Assistance
If you need financial assistance, you should first seek help from your family. If the sum of your funding and family support is not sufficient, discuss it with your bishop or branch president. Bishops and stake presidents may recommend home-based missions if they do not have the funds to serve away from home.
Tax Deductions
Housing and vehicle costs may be tax deductible. Ask your tax accountant for advice. You don't have to pay off your debt before you can start
Debt
service. If you have debt, you should be prepared to cover your missionary costs while fulfilling your repayment obligations while you are away.
If you have a reverse mortgage, check with your lender for how long you can be away. We recommend that you obtain a written statement from the lender before the stake president submits the missionary endorsement.
Tithings and donations
should be paid to your ward or branch. Fasting donations are made to the ward or branch you are serving.
Health insurance
You must have proper health insurance. A person without proper insurance cannot serve a mission as a full-time missionary.
Most insurance is adequately covered domestically, but not well overseas. If you are not sure if your insurance is appropriate, please call the Missionary Medical Department (801-578-5650).
In countries with a National Health Insurance system (including Medicare in the United States), it is considered appropriate insurance for serving in a country of residence or permanent residence.
Appropriate insurance is required when serving abroad. This insurance can be the insurance company of your choice, or you can enroll in the Senior Service Medical Plan (SSMP). It is against Church policy to have insurance expired during a mission. Missionaries who are not properly insured will either be reassigned and transferred to permanent residence or will be dismissed from the missionary's responsibilities.
The Senior Services Medical Plan (SSMP)
Church has negotiated with Dezeret Mutual to have Etna International provide medical insurance for senior missionaries. This is known as the Senior Service Medical Plan (SSMP).
SSMP provides the minimum required coverage and meets the requirements of insurance obligations imposed on Americans. The coverage is set to meet the insurance requirements of all other countries.
Your medical history and existing medical conditions do not limit your coverage. Compensation generally applies from the day the mission begins and expires on the last day of the month of dismissal. The mission start date is stated in the calling letter.
SSMP can also provide post-evangelism transitional compensation for up to 60 days after the dismissal, but if you need to extend the coverage period, you must apply at the time of enrollment.
If you have any questions about SSMP, please contact Etna International (1-877-248-3608 or (813) 775-0381). Information about SSMP can also be found at www.dmba.com/ssmp . Be sure to select the link under the heading “Prospective Senior Service Medical Plan Members”.
Medicare Review
Evangelism can affect Medicare Advantage Insurance (Medicare Part C). Medicare Advantage insurance is valid for people residing in a particular area (usually one county, or multiple counties adjacent to one county). If you have to work outside the insurance coverage area for more than 6 months for missionary work, the insurance may expire.
Evangelizing dwelling
Housing Preparation
The church will prepare a furnished apartment for you and arrange for utilities. Sheets for personal use will be provided by the church, but other furniture (including kitchen fixtures) will be provided by the church. Please install cable TV, telephone and internet at your own risk.
Rent
Rent is paid to Homeward in the form of a donation to the Ward Missionary Fund. Due to the high rents in some parts of the world, the Church is helping couple missionaries by raising the rent limit to US $ 1,400.
Marital Missionaries
If the actual rent is less than $ 1,400, the full amount will be paid to the Ward Missionary Fund. If your rent exceeds $ 1,400, you will only pay $ 1,400.
Senior Sisters
Often share the same home with colleagues, so rents will not exceed $ 1,400 per person. Rent is usually less than $ 1,400, even in rare cases where there are no colleagues, such as when serving at church headquarters.
Payment of rent and car usage fees
Rent and church vehicle usage fees (if used) will be paid to your ward or branch missionary fund.
Donations can be made online (lds.org) or using the bank's payment service. Alternatively, you can have it paid by a trusted family member who lives in the area of your ward.
Travel expenses
Travel Expenses
The church will cover the round-trip travel expenses to and from the mission:
Regardless of the length of service, serve in your country of residence
18 or 23 months in a
foreign country Serve in a place outside your country of residence If you are assigned to serve for a period of 6 or 12 months, a round trip to your mission Travel expenses will be borne by the missionaries themselves. If you extend your mission to 18 or 23 months during your service, the Church will cover your return travel expenses.
If you fly to the mission and return, the church will arrange a ticket for your partner airline. You will purchase an economy class ticket in accordance with the guidelines of the Missionary Administration Department. If you wish to purchase tickets with different conditions, the missionary is responsible for booking, purchasing and arranging. It is not allowed to add waypoints.
If you move to a mission by private car and return, transportation expenses will be paid according to the distance traveled. This transportation fee includes fuel for automobiles, accommodation, and meals. The Travel Office of the Provo Missionary Training Center will check your transportation costs at the time of your orientation.
Traveling with a single sister If a single sister travels
more than 500 miles (900km) to the mission, the church will cover the transportation costs of the accompanying companion. Travel expenses to the mission and the fare for the return flight will be paid to the passengers.
At the end of the mission period, the church will cover the airfare and return travel expenses of the companion who comes to the mission and travels with him by car.
Colleagues traveling with you must be at least 18 years old. Even if two or more companions travel together, the church will only refund the travel expenses for one person.
Vehicle
when receiving an assignment to serve in the country of residence, the vehicle to be used during the service must be provided by yourself.
In some cases, a couple who is assigned abroad may be rented a church-owned vehicle and will be responsible for gasoline and oil changes and a monthly rental fee (currently $ 150). In that case, the mission headquarters will send you guidelines.
Electronic devices/devices
You can bring your personal computer, mobile phone, and other 'smart' devices to your mission at your own expense.
If you are in a country of residence, purchasing a mobile phone in your mission is much cheaper than having your cell phone and service in your country of residence. If your mobile phone is a 'smartphone', you may bring it in and use it within the range of Wi-Fi using various apps.
Internet
You can use some kind of internet service in almost all missions. Internet charges for apartments and homes are the responsibility of the individual.
Missionary Training Center
MTC Training
Most assignments include admission to the MTC for 5-7 days and training in'Preach My Gospel'. If there are other assignments (eg welfare, CES, family history, etc.), an additional 2-5 days of training will be added. We will inform you of the specific training you need to receive after your calling is accepted.
There is no MTC training for some assignments (for example, temples). For such assignments, you will be trained elsewhere.
Those who have been trained in “Preach My Gospel” at the MTC within the last three years can have the stake president apply for an exemption to go directly to the mission.
Parking and Accommodation — Provo MTC
If you enter Provo MTC, there is parking for vehicles and RVs. Please call the Provo MTC Security Office (801-422-4568) to make arrangements.
If you live within walking distance of Provo MTC, you can also go from home during training. If you do not come from home, you can contact us by phone and we will send you information about accommodation and food expenses at MTC.
Parking and Accommodation — After receiving other MTC calling letters
We will contact you with parking and accommodation instructions.
Name tags
Name tags will be handed over by MTC. Those who do not enter the MTC will receive it when they arrive at the mission headquarters.
Language training
You are not obliged to learn a new language even if you are assigned to a country where your native language is not spoken.
If you serve in a country where your native language is not spoken, Provo MTC offers an MTC Pre-Language Tutoring Program. Attendance is not mandatory, but it can help you achieve your goals as a full-time missionary. MTC offers online teaching materials, video conferences, and personalized teaching of the language over the phone.
Please call 1-801-422-1129 or email onlinetutoring@mtc.byu.edu. The tutoring coordinator discusses the best way to attend and develops a training plan. Please contact us as soon as possible as it will take some time to attend.
In addition, you can apply for a private professor for up to six months after arriving at your mission.
Problems with home and family home
What to do with your home
For your home, you can consider the following options:
- Have your relatives live
- Rent your home
- Sell your home
- Leave as a vacant home
Whichever you choose, keep the following in mind:
Be sure to know when you will be officially assigned to your mission so that you will not be asked to leave your home before you are ready to leave. Please give me.
Visa issuance may be delayed. If you are called to serve abroad, you may need a visa. Visa procedures vary in time and can sometimes delay your assignment. Please do not leave the house until your travel agent has obtained a visa. If you sell or rent your home, please postpone your move or secure a temporary place to live if your visa does not go as planned.
Wills and Trusts
You may consider setting up a notary to make a will to keep a record of your will in case of contingency. .. Lifetime trust is also an option.
Housing Expenses
Normally, utilities, insurance, property tax, etc. can be automatically paid by internet banking at banks or credit unions. Many financial institutions offer online statements and online payments, making it easier to manage your finances. If you want to leave your house unoccupied, you should let the insurance company know.
Mail that arrives at home
If you serve in your country of residence, you will usually have the mail forwarded to your mission address. Many senior missionaries who serve abroad forward mail to responsible relatives or those who are in charge of financial management. Talk to your financial adviser to find out about your local tax law. Long-term forwarding of mail to an address outside your state may change the tax requirements in that state.
Family matters
Family Contact
Senior missionaries can stay in touch with their families via email, phone, IP phone, web video, etc., and these contacts are more frequent than young missionaries. Keeping in touch should not interfere with your missionary responsibilities.
Family Visits
You can apply for missionary leave for important family events. This application is often approved but requires the permission of the regional president in addition to the permission of the mission president or temple president. Transportation and other expenses will be borne by you and your absence must not exceed 10 days.
With the permission of the mission president or the church leader in your place, you can invite close relatives, such as parents and siblings. In that case, the interruption of missionary responsibilities should be minimized.
Dependent Adult Children
Depending on the circumstances, dependent adult children can be brought to the mission if they are able to serve as Church-service missionaries. Prior to submitting a missionary nomination, the stake president will be required by the missionary administration to submit a policy exception application. The stake president should call the Missionary Administration for instructions. If exceptions are found, dependent children will be called to serve as Church missionaries, and marital missionaries will be called to serve as full-time missionaries.
Pets Pets
are not allowed when preaching away from home. If you want to go on a mission and serve, but need animal assistance, you should consider preaching as a Church-service missionary.
Contact Senior Missionary Support
If you would like to hear about senior missionary service or specific types of service, please contact the Senior Missionary Support Team.