Official RI
Policy on Rotary Club Membership
The Constitution of Rotary
International includes official
guidelines for membership in a Rotary club.
Those guidelines — from Section 3 of Article
V, which covers Membership — are included
here:
Section 3 — Composition of
Clubs
A club shall be composed of
active members who
are adult persons of good character and good
business and professional reputation,
i. engaged as proprietor,
partner, corporate
officer, or manager of any worthy
and
recognized business or profession;
ii. holding an important
position in any worthy
and recognized business or
profession or
any branch or agency thereof
and having
executive capacity with discretionary
authority
(or retired)
and
having their places of business
or residence located within the territorial limits
of the club or within the corporate limits of the city in which
the club is located
or within the territorial limits of an immediately adjoining club,
or within an immediately
adjoining community not part of the territory of an existing Rotary
club.
An active member moving from
the territorial limits of the club may retain membership
in the club where the member's board grants such permission
and said active member continues
to stay active in the same classification.
iii. There shall
be not more than one active
member in each classification
of business
or profession, excepting
the religion, news
media, and diplomatic
service
classifications, and
excepting the
provision for additional
active members
as provided in the bylaws.
iv. The bylaws of RI
may provide for kinds of
membership in addition
to active
membership in clubs
to be designated as
honorary membership
and shall prescribe the
qualifications for each.
v. Notwithstanding
any other provision of this
constitution or of the
bylaws of RI or the
standard club constitution,
a Rotary club
may be limited to members
of one gender
unless such limitation
is contrary to the law
of the jurisdiction
in which the club operates.
vi. In countries where
the word "club" has an
inappropriate connotation,
Rotary clubs,
with the approval of
the board, will not be
obliged to use it in
their names.
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