How can I become Freemason membership?

An individual seeking membership today may apply directly to a local lodge or register through a Grand Lodge. Under current practice, an applicant can locate a lodge near where he lives, works, or studies and register his interest to be contacted by members, as the United Grand Lodge of England outlines, while university students in England or Wales aged 18 and older may join through the Universities Scheme. Candidates must be over the age of 18 regardless of race or religion, and are required to affirm a belief in a Supreme Being, as the United Grand Lodge of England states.

Historically, an application must be entirely voluntary. A candidate must apply of his own free will and accord, without being solicited by existing Masons or prompted by mercenary motives 2. In American custom, a petitioner traditionally applies to the lodge nearest his place of residence, though this requirement depends on local Grand Lodge law rather than an ancient landmark 2.

Within traditional lodge procedure, a candidate is introduced by a member who proposes him in open lodge at least one meeting before initiation, stating his name, age, occupation, and residence, and depositing a fee 1. This delay allows the brethren to make a private enquiry into the applicant's character, reputation, and financial capability 12. The petitioner must satisfy both internal qualifications—such as an uncoerced desire to join and a high regard for the fraternity—and external qualifications regarding moral character, mature age, and religious belief 2, before facing a ballot of the lodge members 2.