How do I invite people to join a family group?

Article Id: 14163
March 13, 2025
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First, create a family group. Then, as a group administrator, invite up to 500 people to join.

Note: The previous number of members a group administrator could invite to a group was 99. If a group administrator has a group with a limit of 99 members and wants to increase the group number to 500, they can contact FamilySearch Support for assistance.

When you invite someone to a group, FamilySearch creates a link that you send to one or more recipients using email, a group chat, WhatsApp, a social media group, and so forth. To join, the recipient will click the link, sign in to FamilySearch, and follow the instructions online.

The join links do not expire. If a link should no longer be used, a group administrator can delete it.

Before you start

If the family group has a family group tree, each person being invited should be added to the group tree first.

Steps (website)

  1. On FamilySearch.org, click your name.
  2. Select Family Groups.
  3. Click View Group.
  4. Click Invite.
  5. If you know the person’s email address, you can send the invitation that way:
    1. Click Email.
    2. In your email program, enter the email address of the person to be invited, and send it. After the recipient accepts the invitation, the name appears in a list to be approved.
  6. You can send the person a link.
    1. Click Copy Link. A link appears.
    2. Click Copy.
    3. Paste the link into any online communication channel that you share with the person being invited.
  7. Wait for the recipient to accept the invitation.
  8. Approve the request to join:
    1. Open the group.
    2. Find the person waiting to be approved. This shows up between the Getting Started section and the group feed.
    3. Click Approve.

Steps (mobile app)

  1. In the Family Tree mobile app, tap the 3 lines icon. On the screen that appears, open the Family Groups feature:
    • Apple iOS—lower right
    • Android—upper left
  2. Tap Family Groups.
  3. Find a group for which you are the administrator, and tap View Group.
  4. Above the list of members, tap the person icon.
  5. You see a list of contacts as well as various ways to send an invitation. Tap a person or an invitation method.
  6. Send the invitation.
  7. When the person accepts the invitation, the name appears in the group for approval.
  8. Approve the request to join:
    1. Open the group.
    2. Find the person waiting to be approved.
    3. Tap Approve.
    4. Tap Approve again.

Supervisor Instructions

To adjust the group member limit using DM Console with Data Admin 5 or 6, follow these steps:

  1. Find the group:
    • Search for the username, click the Groups tab, then select the group from the list.
    • Alternatively, select Group ID from the search options and enter the Group ID.
  2. Check the member limit:
    • Locate the member limit box (generally in the middle).
    • If the limit is already the requested number (e.g., 500), no changes are needed.
    • If the limit is 100, click Edit, change it to the requested number (if under 500), then Save.

What are FamilySearch family groups?
How do I create a family group?
How do I join a family group?
How do I remove someone from a family group?

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