Frequently Asked Questions

Changes to the Society’s membership arrangements and membership system have been underway since 2023 and are expected to be completed by December 2024.  As part of the transition work a separate website for joining the Society and renewing membership has been set up at membership.nifhs.org.  Payments of subscriptions are done through the new website.

Much of the information about the Society and its services continues to be presented through our “old” website at www.nifhs.org.

These changes may give rise to questions about how things are now done.  This set of FAQs is intended to help guide users through many situations that may be met.

How do I renew my membership?

Members will receive an email inviting renewal prior to memberships expiring on 31st August. You can then log in to your account and renew your membership.  Go to the Log In page and enter your membership number and password.  See the Renewal Demonstration on YouTube.
If you joined the Society or renewed offline (i.e. you filled out a paper membership form), you can renew online when you receive the reminder that your membership is due to expire.
If your membership has expired, you can reactivate it by logging into your account with your email address and selecting “Renew Now”.

I have joined the Society but I can’t log in to my account. What do I do?

Check that you have entered your username or email address correctly. Your username is your membership number beginning with the letter M followed by four digits. A common error is using the letter “0” instead of the digit zero “0”.
If you are sure you have entered everything correctly and you still can’t get access, reset your password by clicking on “Lost Password” (just under the Log In panel) or go to the Get New Password page.
Please note that, for security reasons, the membership team does not have access to your password.

I am a member and my personal details have changed – how do I let you know?

Go to the Log In page, log in to your account and edit Profile. You can change any of your details and our records will be updated.

I have forgotten my account login password or I want to change it. What do I do?

If you have forgotten your account password, go to the Log In page, click on “Lost Password” near the bottom of the Login page.
To change your password, go to the Log In page, log in to your account and click on “Change Password”.

Who do I contact if I have other questions about membership?

Please refer to the Contacts page on our website to find the relevant person to get in touch with.

If you are a Branch member or wish to know more about a particular Branch, please contact the Branch Secretary.

What is the difference between a Virtual Member and a Branch Member of the Society?

Virtual members are not affiliated to a specific Branch.

Any member can attend the talks given by all Branches but only Branch members will receive direct notifications of meetings and other activities in their Branch.

What is a Joint Membership?

Two people who live at the same address and apply at the same time may join as Joint Members, paying less than the cost of two individual memberships.

Joint members will receive all the benefits of individual membership but will receive only one copy of the Society’s journal, North Irish Roots, between them.

How do I make a Joint Membership Application?

The Primary Member should select Joint Membership on the Join the Society page and follow the screen prompts.

The Primary Member will add the details for both of the Joint Members.

A different email address is required for each of the members. If you do not have a different email address you can easily set up a free one with Gmail or similar. Create a Gmail account here.

Once the Primary Member has checked out and paid online for the membership, each member will have their own account.

My account shows that I have a Display Name – what is that?

Your Display Name is the name that will be used for your profile name. Any emails going out to you from the website will be addressed to your Display Name.

To change your Display Name, go to the Log In page, log in to your account and click on “Edit Profile” in the “Quick Links” panel to the right of your screen.

How can I pay my Membership Fee?

If you join online, you can pay by credit or debit card.

If you wish to join offline and pay by cheque or cash, please contact the Secretary of the Branch you wish to join via our Contact Page.

What is my Membership Fee used for?

The annual membership fee is set each year by the Society’s Council.  The fees are treated as donations to the Society.  They are used to pay for Research Centre rental, North Irish Roots journal, insurances and outreach services, etc.

If you have opted to join a Branch, a part of your fee will go towards the Branch’s costs, such as speakers’ fees and room hire.

I am unable to log in to the Members’ Area of the website. What do I do?

We are currently completing our new website and the Members’ Area within it will be available in due course.

You can still log in to the Members’ Area of the “old” www.nifhs.org website, using the Username and Password which were sent in your Welcome Letter.

Can I join a Branch if I originally signed up as a virtual member or can I change the Branch I chose?

You can change from a Virtual member to a Branch member, or change the Branch you originally signed up to, or remove yourself from a Branch and become a Virtual member.

These changes are limited to one per year.

You can make these changes from your membership account – go to the Log In page, click on “Membership Change Request” in the lower green panel on the right once you have logged in.

Please note that a Single member cannot change to a Joint membership until the current membership expires.

Can I join the Society for part of a year?

Our membership is a yearly membership from 1st September until 31 August.
Anyone joining from 1st May will be enrolled until 31st August the following year.

Will I receive a notification to say that my application to join the Society was successful?

Yes, your payment and membership details will be confirmed by email.

If you do not receive confirmation of an application made more than 7 days ago, check your Spam/Junk mailbox folders, and if an acknowledgement is not found there, please contact Membership Enquiries via our Contact Page.

Do I need an email address to join the Society?

An email address is required to complete your membership application online. Joint members each need to supply a different email address.

You can easily set up a free email account with Gmail or similar. Create a Gmail account here.

It is preferable that you have an email address so that you receive communication about your membership as well as activities and events. However if you wish to join without an email address, please request a Membership form from the Society by writing to NIFHS, Unit C4 Valley Business Centre, 67 Church Road, Newtownabbey, Co. Antrim, United Kingdom BT36 7LS

When are the North Irish Roots Journals published?

“North Irish Roots” is posted to all our current members normally in the spring and the autumn.

If I join the Society, will I get access to online records?

As a member, you will be able to log in to the Members’ Area of our website to access indexes to transcriptions and other records.

Our main collection of publications and records are held at our Research Centre in Newtownabbey and if you cannot get there, you can request a “Look Up”.

Some Branches also have records related to their local area.

Our new Members’ Area will be available in due course. Until then, log in to the Members’ Area on our old website at www.nifhs.org using the login details sent in your Welcome Letter.