Change to missionary payment withdrawal date

The missionary equalized payment amount will now be withdrawn from the Ward Missionary Fund missionary categories in the first week of the month after a missionary has served. This is a change from prepayment to paying in arrears.

Many units with missionaries currently serving may have noticed the monthly amount for April was not withdrawn in the first week of April. That equalized payment amount will be withdrawn either today or tomorrow (the first week of May) to meet the April financial obligation. The May amount will will be withdrawn in the first week of June.

The finance department service representative I talked to said this is a permanent change and will continue past the effects the pandemic has had on missionary service. Monthly withdrawals for a missionary serving a partial month will remain as it has been in the past, only paid in arrears if payment is necessary.

Very helpful. I had a number of ward clerks in our stake ask why they hadn't seen any missionary deductions for April.

Any suggestions on how to handle a missionary support transfer? That is, if we send an MLS message and make the transfer effective May 20th, come the first week of June, does our ward's Ward Missionary fund get hit or does the new ward's?

allenjpl wrote:Any suggestions on how to handle a missionary support transfer? That is, if we send an MLS message and make the transfer effective May 20th, come the first week of June, does our ward's Ward Missionary fund get hit or does the new ward's?

A transfer of responsibility on 20 May will result in the May payment coming out of the new ward.

Assuming the family is providing the funds as in the past, before the first of the month or even up to 19 May, then they have already, or will have already, made the payment amount for the May amount to your ward. But the May withdrawal by headquarters would be taken from the new ward during the first week in June. Your ward would have an excess and the new ward would have a deficit.

This can all be worked out when headquarters is contacted to transfer responsibility.