--- title: Understanding automatic membership description: With this feature, you can automatically manage the group memberships of people in your congregation, leaving you more time to take care of people instead of managing their memberships. It saves the church office time when managing groups and the… url: "https://staging.churchtools.academy/en/help/churchtools-modules/automatic-membership/understanding-automatic-membership/" updated: "2026-06-24" category: Groups / My Group / Automatic Membership --- # Understanding automatic membership With this feature, you can automatically manage the group memberships of people in your congregation, leaving you more time to take care of people instead of managing their memberships. It saves the church office time when managing groups and the people in your church will be pleased that they are added to groups more quickly thanks to this feature. Processes can be automated, your groups are kept up to date without manual effort and you can always react and act on a good basis. ## How does "Automatic membership" work? In the settings of a group, you set **IF conditions** in a person filter and then define which actions should **THEN** be executed for the persons found in this way. ### IF personal filters take effect... To do this, you first use a **person filter** to select the people in your congregation with the person or group properties you want to have automatic actions performed in the selected group. [![Screenshot Groups Settings Automatic-membership Filter-for-people](https://staging.churchtools.academy/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Groups_Settings_Automatic-membership_Filter-for-people-1024x398.png)](https://staging.churchtools.academy/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Groups_Settings_Automatic-membership_Filter-for-people.png) All **person information** (e.g. person status or gender) and essential information on **membership in other groups** (e.g. Role or Joined since) are available for filtering. If you use a date, both relative and formula-based filters are available. You can combine the conditions for the filter in **"and"** or **"or" connections (e.g. conjunction or disjunction)** as appropriate for your use case. Below the person filter, you will always be shown a current **hit list**, which you can use to easily check whether your filter is set correctly. **Note** The filters strictly follow the mathematical rules of logic, i.e. **Boolean algebra**. Especially with complex filters, it can make sense to familiarize yourself with the logic rules. ### ... THEN actions are executed automatically The persons found with the filter you have set will then be automatically assigned with the execution of **.**.. - ... added to or removed from the group you selected. - ... receive a new group member role and/or a new group membership status. - ... have new or changed group membership fields entered. A distinction is made between two columns. In the left-hand column, you define actions for the **people who match your filter result** and in the right-hand column for the **people who do NOT match your filter result**. [![Screenshot Groups Settings Automatic-membership Actions](https://staging.churchtools.academy/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Groups_Settings_Automatic-membership_Actions-1024x585.png)](https://staging.churchtools.academy/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Groups_Settings_Automatic-membership_Actions.png) ### Versions individually adjustable You determine whether the previously set actions - once manually or - are to be executed automatically on a regular basis. (1x per day between 0 and 4 o'clock) [![Groups - Settings - Automatic membership - activate execution](https://staging.churchtools.academy/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Groups_Settings_Automatic-membership_activate-execution.png)](https://staging.churchtools.academy/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Groups_Settings_Automatic-membership_activate-execution.png) **Note** The **regular execution of** the automatic memberships runs once a day, always with the execution of the *scheduled tasks*. You can also trigger the execution of the *scheduled tasks* manually via the Manage menu. ## Who can use "Automatic membership"? Users who have the "administer persons" right can use this feature for their groups. As this new feature is very broad and potentially serious mistakes can be made (e.g. removing all members of a group), it makes sense to enable this function for admins only. At the same time, this means that only admins can implement the major benefits of this feature for your church. **Tip** It's best to talk about "automatic membership" in the leadership circle and how you can use it most profitably for your church community. ## Read more - [How to set the personal filter?](https://staging.churchtools.academy/en/help/churchtools-modules/automatic-membership/how-to-set-the-personal-filter/) - [Which actions can I have executed?](https://staging.churchtools.academy/en/help/churchtools-modules/automatic-membership/which-actions-can-i-have-executed/) - [Example: Combine all small group leaders](https://staging.churchtools.academy/en/help/churchtools-modules/automatic-membership/example-combine-all-small-group-leaders/)