A membership certificate is the oldest artefact in this whole category and the one most often issued without thought. It is a document, in the body's name, asserting that somebody belongs. Bodies print them for life members, for professional members who display them, and for anyone who asked. The trouble starts when the certificate outlives the membership, which it always does, because unlike a card nobody expects a certificate to expire. This page is about what to put on one so that it stays true.
The four lines a certificate has to carry
Who the member is, what they are a member of, what class of membership it is, and the date or period it refers to. The fourth is the one left off. A certificate saying somebody is a Member of the body, with no year on it, is a claim that never expires and that the body cannot withdraw, and it will be on a wall or a website long after the membership lapsed.
When to issue one, and when not to
Issue a certificate where membership is a credential the member displays: professional bodies, institutes, trade associations whose members show it to customers. Do not issue one where membership is a subscription, because the certificate then becomes a receipt with calligraphy and the body has created a permanent claim in exchange for one year's dues. A certificate of membership is not a nice extra; it is a durable statement.
What the templates get wrong
A membership certificate template found online gives you a border, a seal and space for two signatures, and no field for the period. It is designed as an award rather than a record. Adding the year, the class and a reference that ties back to the record turns it into something the body can stand behind; leaving it as designed produces a wall of undated claims your successor cannot verify.
Issuing from the record
Like the card, a certificate should be produced from the membership rather than typed. That way the class and the period are the ones the record holds, the issue is logged, and a body asked years later whether somebody was a member in a given year can answer from the same place the certificate came from.
Questions people ask about membership certificate
What should a membership certificate say?
The member, the body, the class of membership and the period or date of issue. Without the last, the certificate is a claim with no end, which is a problem for the body rather than for the member.
Should every member get a certificate?
Only where membership is a credential members display. For subscription-style memberships a card and a receipt serve better and create no lasting claim.
Are certificate of membership templates safe to use?
As a layout, yes. Add the class and the period before using one, because the standard designs are awards and leave both out.
How do we withdraw a certificate?
You cannot, in practice, which is why the date matters. A dated certificate simply becomes historical; an undated one stays current forever.